Shillong: All India Radio (AIR) will have its services on Amazon's Echo Dot in the next three to six months and therefore, the government-owned broadcaster has diversified its information technology initiatives to meet the demands of diverse audience, AIR director-general Fayyaz Sheheryar said at a seminar here on Saturday.
Amazon Echo is a brand of smart speakers developed by Amazon.com. Echo Dot is a hands-free voice-controlled device that uses Alexa voice service to play music, set alarm and timers, weather and sports scores, manage to-do and shopping among others.
The event was organised on the eve of Public Service Broadcasting Day and as part of the 20th anniversary of Prasar Bharati. "We are working to provide virtual private network which will provide seamless broadcasting service to any part of the country," Sheheryar said. "The websites of AIR have also been developed which all stations across the country will incorporate. The AIR's mobile application is being developed to utilise the existing platforms with over 20 live streaming channels," he added. Congratulating Prasar Bharati on its 20th anniversary, Sheheryar said AIR is the inheritor of a great legacy and the largest news gathering and disseminating apparatus in the world. "A modern and vibrant democracy needs an informed citizenry capable of knowing various options available in which people can debate and act upon," he said. Sheheryar said AIR news bulletin, current affairs and other genre of programmes aired both in general and special audience segments have been strengthening the country's democratic fabric.
Upgrading the webcasting infrastructure for live streaming of all channels of AIR available on direct-to-home platform, including state-of-the-art audio encoding and streaming of infrastructure on a par with international broadcasters, are some of the IT initiatives of AIR.