Vaishnaw and Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday made the announcement of the first World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) in Goa from November 20-24 and described it as a visionary initiative by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as India seeks to make a mark in the media and entertainment sector.
“IP rights hold huge value in the media and entertainment sector. We will be strengthening the ecosystem for protecting IP rights,” Vaishnaw, the Information and Broadcasting Minister, said in his address at the curtain raiser event for WAVES.
Vaishnaw said the government was also exploring ways to make available low-cost funds to the media and entertainment sector with learnings from the venture capital model.
“The media and entertainment (M&E) world is undergoing a structural change and has seen immense technology infusion. This has opened many opportunities, but also caused concerns among few participants who have not been able to keep up with the change,” he said.
Vaishnaw said the role of public policy was to enable the harnessing of the best out of this structural change. He said the government was committed to supporting the entire ecosystem of media and entertainment in coping with this change.The minister said that the government’s focus was on creating employment in the media and entertainment sector and augmenting the talent pipeline.”This will be executed via both structural and procedural efforts. These efforts will ensure the creation of an ecosystem that encourages high-quality content, and creates and protects IP rights in the country,” Vaishnaw said.
Sawant said WAVES will add a new dimension for industry collaboration, networking and growth in the media and entertainment sector. He said the sector had produced 3,000 hours of content for the OTT platforms in 2023 itself.
The International Film Festival of India will be held from November 20-28 in Goa, Sawant said.
The media and entertainment sector is pegged at USD 27.5 billion in India and the government seeks to position WAVES as a platform to evoke ideas, fuel conversations, facilitate knowledge exchange and engage in meaningful collaborations with industry leaders from across the world.
It also seeks to present India as a business-friendly country and an investment destination for the sector.
I&B Secretary Sanjay Jaju said the WAVES event would seek to position India as a global leader in the media and entertainment sector.
He said that the summit will achieve the objectives of fostering innovation and technological advancement; enhancing the global competitiveness of the industry; strengthening industry collaborations; attracting investment; promoting skill development; encouraging content diversity and promoting sustainable growth.
