USOF, Prasar Bharati, ONDC forge alliance to boost digital empowerment in rural India

New Delhi [India], March 12 : The Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) under the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has inked a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Prasar Bharati, the national public service broadcaster, and the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
According to a press release from the Ministry, the objective of this strategic alliance is to extend affordable and accessible digital services throughout the country, leveraging the BharatNet infrastructure under USOF.
This move aligns with the vision of the Prime Minister, emphasizing digital innovation to empower rural India.
The MoU signed in the presence of key dignitaries including Dr Neeraj Mittal, Secretary (Telecom); Niraj Verma, Administrator, USOF; T Koshy, MD and CEO, ONDC; A K Jha, ADG, Platforms, Prasar Bharati; and Sunil Kumar Verma, Joint Secretary, DoT, underscores the government's commitment to bridging the digital divide and ensuring inclusive growth, read the press release.
USOF has played a pivotal role in facilitating high-speed broadband and mobile connections across Gram Panchayats (GPs) and villages across the nation.
With this MoU, USOF will ensure efficient and high-speed broadband services in rural and remote areas, while Prasar Bharati will offer bundled OTT services, including linear channels, Live TV, and on-demand content, to end consumers.
Prasar Bharati, with its rich legacy content, extensive consumer reach, and strong brand recall, will curate and produce content for its OTT platform, ensuring that rural audiences have access to quality entertainment and informative programming, read the press release.
Furthermore, ONDC, a key player in digital infrastructure, will provide technical expertise and the necessary framework to enable digital commerce in products and services.
This collaboration aims to expand services beyond entertainment to include education, health, training, credit, insurance, and agriculture, among others.
The synergies between connectivity, content, and commerce, facilitated by this MoU, are expected to revolutionize digital access and usage in rural India, unlocking immense opportunities for economic and social development.