ABP News given UK licence for launch

Hindi news channel, ABP News is set for a relaunch in the coming weeks after media regulator Ofcom awarded the station a licence to broadcast in the UK.

ABP News – formely Star News, was available for a short time in its new avatar before Star TV Network dropped it from its bundle last year.

After eight years of association, Star TV India and the Ananda Bazaar Patrika (ABP) Group parted ways resulting in the rebranding of Star News to ABP News. Last year, Media Content and Communication (MCCS) announced that Hindi news channel, Star News will be rebranded to ABP News.

ABP News is expected to be launched by Globosat, the same company behind the distribution of Sahara One in the UK. However, the company refused to comment at this stage.

ABP News will be the latest Asian news channel to launch in the saturated UK market. Recently, Pakistani channel, Geo Tez launched in the market, followed by ZEE News – which officially begins broadcasting later this month. CNN IBN from Viacom18 is also set for launch in the coming weeks.