ITV

Category: Cable TV

  • Notice issued to Union of India on five DAS Phase III petitions

    Notice issued to Union of India on five DAS Phase III petitions

    NEW DELHI: Notice was issued by the Delhi High Court to the Union of India (Information and Broadcasting Ministry) on five petitions relating to the stay orders on Phase III of Digital Addressable System.

    Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Ms Sangita Dhingra Sehgal heard the petitioners for some time before issuing the notice and adjourning the matters to 26 September 2016.

    The cases that came up today related to petitions by Radiant Digitek Networks Pvt Ltd, Rajasthan Cable Operators Foundation, Nasik Zilla Cable Operator Association, Indusind Media and Communication Ltd, and Bhima Riddhi Digital Services. While the first two are against Union of India, the other three are against the state of Maharashtra.

    Yesterday, the first batch of a large number of cases was adjourned to 5 October. They had been listed before Mr Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, who is also to hear on 13 September another three cases including one by Home Systems Pvt Ltd of Mumbai and another by Digiana Pvt Ltd, which have been transferred to the Court. They could not be heard as the single bench did not assemble after the lunch break.

    As a result, the application by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation for being impleaded in the case also did not come up for hearing. However, it is expected that this may be mentioned on 13 September.

    The cases that were listed yesterday included the Rohtak Cable Operators’ Association, Andhra Pradesh MSOs Welfare Federation, Multi System Operators’ Welfare Association, Sai Big Star Welfare Association, Sree Devi Digital Systems, Federation of Telangana MSO, DEN Manoranjan Satellite, Victory Digital, Sri Chowdeshwary Cable Network, Shyam Baba Cable Network, Panchajanya Media, Bharat Digital Cable Network, and Yogesh Cable Networks.

    The Supreme Court had on 1 April accepted the plea of the Cemtral Government that ‘it wouldbe just and proper for this Court to withdraw all those cases pending in different HighCourts and transfer the same to Delhi High Court.’

    A total of 62 cases had been filed by some multi-system operators (MSOs) in various courts in the country for extension in the deadline of Phase lll. Out of these 62 cases, 12 cases had been disposed off by respective courts and 3 cases had been withdrawn by the petitioners.

    (The Bombay High Court had earlier this year made a reference to the Kusum Ingots case which had said that if one high court gives an order, others can give similar orders if similar circumstances exist. indiantelevision.com had reported in January this year that the MIB had told the Punjab and Haryana high court that it had ‘decided not to press the requirement of having a STB as for now till the decision of the cases which are pending before various other high courts’).

    Also read:

    Hearing of DAS cases in Delhi HC put off to Oct

     

  • Notice issued to Union of India on five DAS Phase III petitions

    Notice issued to Union of India on five DAS Phase III petitions

    NEW DELHI: Notice was issued by the Delhi High Court to the Union of India (Information and Broadcasting Ministry) on five petitions relating to the stay orders on Phase III of Digital Addressable System.

    Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Ms Sangita Dhingra Sehgal heard the petitioners for some time before issuing the notice and adjourning the matters to 26 September 2016.

    The cases that came up today related to petitions by Radiant Digitek Networks Pvt Ltd, Rajasthan Cable Operators Foundation, Nasik Zilla Cable Operator Association, Indusind Media and Communication Ltd, and Bhima Riddhi Digital Services. While the first two are against Union of India, the other three are against the state of Maharashtra.

    Yesterday, the first batch of a large number of cases was adjourned to 5 October. They had been listed before Mr Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, who is also to hear on 13 September another three cases including one by Home Systems Pvt Ltd of Mumbai and another by Digiana Pvt Ltd, which have been transferred to the Court. They could not be heard as the single bench did not assemble after the lunch break.

    As a result, the application by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation for being impleaded in the case also did not come up for hearing. However, it is expected that this may be mentioned on 13 September.

    The cases that were listed yesterday included the Rohtak Cable Operators’ Association, Andhra Pradesh MSOs Welfare Federation, Multi System Operators’ Welfare Association, Sai Big Star Welfare Association, Sree Devi Digital Systems, Federation of Telangana MSO, DEN Manoranjan Satellite, Victory Digital, Sri Chowdeshwary Cable Network, Shyam Baba Cable Network, Panchajanya Media, Bharat Digital Cable Network, and Yogesh Cable Networks.

    The Supreme Court had on 1 April accepted the plea of the Cemtral Government that ‘it wouldbe just and proper for this Court to withdraw all those cases pending in different HighCourts and transfer the same to Delhi High Court.’

    A total of 62 cases had been filed by some multi-system operators (MSOs) in various courts in the country for extension in the deadline of Phase lll. Out of these 62 cases, 12 cases had been disposed off by respective courts and 3 cases had been withdrawn by the petitioners.

    (The Bombay High Court had earlier this year made a reference to the Kusum Ingots case which had said that if one high court gives an order, others can give similar orders if similar circumstances exist. indiantelevision.com had reported in January this year that the MIB had told the Punjab and Haryana high court that it had ‘decided not to press the requirement of having a STB as for now till the decision of the cases which are pending before various other high courts’).

    Also read:

    Hearing of DAS cases in Delhi HC put off to Oct

     

  • Q1-17: Siti revenue, EBIDTA up

    Q1-17: Siti revenue, EBIDTA up

    BENGALURU: The Dr Subhash Chandra led newly renamed Siti Networks Limited (Siti) formerly known as Siti Cable Network Limited, reported 22.7 percent and 28.7 year-over-year growth in operating revenue and EBIDTA for the quarter ended 30 June 2106 (Q1-17, current quarter). Siti’s revenue in the current quarter was Rs 281.97 crore as compared to Rs 229.72 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. EBIDTA (including other income) in Q1-17 was Rs 47.41 crore (16.8 percent margin) versus Rs 36.84 crore (16 percent margin). Loss however was higher in Q1-17 at Rs 52.61 crore as opposed to a loss of Rs 36.68 crore in Q1-16.

    The company says that its digital subscriber base has grown to 84 lakh during the current quarter from 79 lakh in the immediate trailing quarter. For Q1-16, the company had reported a digital subscriber base of 55.80 lakh. It says that it has expanded its footprint to 387 cities across the country in Q1-17 as compared to 312 cities at the end of the immediate trailing quarter. Broadband subscriber base has increased quarter-over-quarter in Q1-17 to 1.67 lakh from 1.32 lakh in Q4-16. HD Services: Siti says that it has strengthened its SITI HD+ services by expanding its bouquet to 57 HD channels. SITI HD+ customer base increased 65,140, up 29.8 percent over Q4-16 (50,170).

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by the company for Q1-17

    Subscription revenue in the current quarter increased 8 percent in Q1-17 y-o-y to Rs 139.3 crore from Rs 129 crore. Carriage revenue declined slightly to Rs 72 crore from Rs 79 crore, while activation charges almost tripled (2.93 times) to Rs 36.6 crore from Rs 12.5 crore. Broadband revenue more than doubled in the current quarter to Rs 19.5 crore from Rs 9 crore in Q1-16.

    Other Income more than doubled to Rs 4.92 crore in Q1-17 from Rs 2.44 crore in Q1-16.  Finance costs in the current quarter reduced to Rs 29.67 crore from Rs 34.39 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. Total Expenditure increased to Rs 294.20 crore from Rs 231.16 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. Employee Benefit Expense increased to Rs 19.12 crore in the current quarter from Rs 13.33 crore in Q1-16.  Carriage sharing, pay channel and related costs in Q1-17 increased to Rs 148.44 crore from Rs 135.70 crore in Q1-16.

    Company speak

    Siti executive director & CEO, V D Wadhwa said, “We expanded our reach further by branching out to 387 cities in line with our strategy of select market expansion. We have established our broadband presence in Haryana and expect to significantly expand our subscriber base this year.

    Recurring cash flows were sluggish due to delays in Phase 3 monetization on account of legal bottlenecks. However, we expect a time bound resolution by the second half of the year and limited long term impact of this issue. We are well prepared for improved monetization of our subscriber base.”

    Note: The unit of currency in this report is the Indian rupee – Rs (also conventionally represented by INR). The Indian numbering system or the Vedic numbering system has been used to denote money values. The basic conversion to the international norm would be:

    (a) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10,000,000 = 10 million = 1 crore.

    (b) 10,000 lakh = 100 crore = 1 arab = 1 billion.

  • Q1-17: Siti revenue, EBIDTA up

    Q1-17: Siti revenue, EBIDTA up

    BENGALURU: The Dr Subhash Chandra led newly renamed Siti Networks Limited (Siti) formerly known as Siti Cable Network Limited, reported 22.7 percent and 28.7 year-over-year growth in operating revenue and EBIDTA for the quarter ended 30 June 2106 (Q1-17, current quarter). Siti’s revenue in the current quarter was Rs 281.97 crore as compared to Rs 229.72 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. EBIDTA (including other income) in Q1-17 was Rs 47.41 crore (16.8 percent margin) versus Rs 36.84 crore (16 percent margin). Loss however was higher in Q1-17 at Rs 52.61 crore as opposed to a loss of Rs 36.68 crore in Q1-16.

    The company says that its digital subscriber base has grown to 84 lakh during the current quarter from 79 lakh in the immediate trailing quarter. For Q1-16, the company had reported a digital subscriber base of 55.80 lakh. It says that it has expanded its footprint to 387 cities across the country in Q1-17 as compared to 312 cities at the end of the immediate trailing quarter. Broadband subscriber base has increased quarter-over-quarter in Q1-17 to 1.67 lakh from 1.32 lakh in Q4-16. HD Services: Siti says that it has strengthened its SITI HD+ services by expanding its bouquet to 57 HD channels. SITI HD+ customer base increased 65,140, up 29.8 percent over Q4-16 (50,170).

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by the company for Q1-17

    Subscription revenue in the current quarter increased 8 percent in Q1-17 y-o-y to Rs 139.3 crore from Rs 129 crore. Carriage revenue declined slightly to Rs 72 crore from Rs 79 crore, while activation charges almost tripled (2.93 times) to Rs 36.6 crore from Rs 12.5 crore. Broadband revenue more than doubled in the current quarter to Rs 19.5 crore from Rs 9 crore in Q1-16.

    Other Income more than doubled to Rs 4.92 crore in Q1-17 from Rs 2.44 crore in Q1-16.  Finance costs in the current quarter reduced to Rs 29.67 crore from Rs 34.39 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. Total Expenditure increased to Rs 294.20 crore from Rs 231.16 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. Employee Benefit Expense increased to Rs 19.12 crore in the current quarter from Rs 13.33 crore in Q1-16.  Carriage sharing, pay channel and related costs in Q1-17 increased to Rs 148.44 crore from Rs 135.70 crore in Q1-16.

    Company speak

    Siti executive director & CEO, V D Wadhwa said, “We expanded our reach further by branching out to 387 cities in line with our strategy of select market expansion. We have established our broadband presence in Haryana and expect to significantly expand our subscriber base this year.

    Recurring cash flows were sluggish due to delays in Phase 3 monetization on account of legal bottlenecks. However, we expect a time bound resolution by the second half of the year and limited long term impact of this issue. We are well prepared for improved monetization of our subscriber base.”

    Note: The unit of currency in this report is the Indian rupee – Rs (also conventionally represented by INR). The Indian numbering system or the Vedic numbering system has been used to denote money values. The basic conversion to the international norm would be:

    (a) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10,000,000 = 10 million = 1 crore.

    (b) 10,000 lakh = 100 crore = 1 arab = 1 billion.

  • What’s troubling HITS man Tony D’Silva?

    What’s troubling HITS man Tony D’Silva?

    MUMBAI: When the Hindujas announced their intentions to set up their Headend in the sky (HITS) platform to service cable dark phase III and phase IV– years ago, the project’s head – cable TV veteran Tony D’Silva – was highly excited. HITS would allow the company – Grant Investrade Ltd (GIL) – to beam out the 800 or so Indian TV channels to homes in towns and villages where setting up new or upgrading to expensive digital head ends was not viable or feasible.

    There were regulatory hurdles initially but the venture finally got off the ground last year much in advance of the DAS Phase III deadline of 31 December 2015. Tony went around marketing the project with great gusto, reaching out to cable ops in the hinterlands, got the Hindujas, the owners, to invest.

    There was interest from cable operators in almost all the areas that the product was demonstrated. The project looked very much viable as it gave cable operators a steady source of income without having to invest much in hardware and just servicing their existing subscribers.

    Then came the spate of cases in the courts of various states, and Phase III came to a grinding halt (it is now pending the decision from the Delhi high court which is expected in the next week). Analogue signals were not switched off in many parts of the country and Tony was in a bit of a fix. As are many other chieftains in MSOs like DEN and Hathway, which have reported very bloodied and battered results in Q1 2017.

    And Tony is a troubled man. Not just for that reason. He says he expects the court to rule justly in favour of digitization of the cable TV sector. However, he is not clear how many more court cases will be filed to stymie Phase III and Phase IV.

    Tony’s woes are mainly because he has been unable to strike viable content deals with some broadcasters.

    “It’s very unfair,” he states. “Some of the major broadcasters are asking the digital package price from me, but they continue to be okay with analogue pricing from cable operators in the very same phase III areas. How will I be able to offer them a digital package price to them when they are getting the same channels at analogue rates? Why will cable operators accept my superior quality digital offering? Why will an MSO and LCO agree to pay for digital services when they are also paying for analogue- that is double the price. These are questions broadcasters need to understand.”

    Another point that Tony would like to make is that broadcasters had refrained from charging any special digital rates in phase I and II areas until the cutoff dates. “We are a pure digital platform; but we are looking at serving in the now-analogue areas more,” he says.

    Tony would like to make an appeal to broadcasters and the regulator to stop charging digital package rates from him and analogue package rates from cable ops. “We are the new kid on the block and we are really aiding the spread of cable TV digitization in very difficult to reach areas of the country. I would beseech the community to give us a fair content deal at analogue rates until the analogue switch off commences. We are very open to pay digital rates once digital is switched on.”

    He goes on to point out that HITS is definitely going to help the pay TV broadcast sector get revenues in their coffers which are hitherto difficult-to-access as digitization gains in strength. “But allow us to run a feasible business first,” he says.

    Hopefully, broadcasters and the regulators will see reason in his plea.

    Meanwhile, the HITs platform is continuing with its game plan of merging GIL with IMCL – the hitherto cable TV MSO arm of the group. The company has informed the ministry of information & broadcasting about its merger intentions and has also approached the High court about the same.

    Then, over the past year or so, IMCL or Incable, has shut down or exited or bought joint ventures MSO headends where they had very little control over the operations. “We are down to about two and a half million paying cable TV customers and most of them are on a wholesale pre-paid model, so we are doing fine there,” says Tony. “The next few months are going to be very crucial. I am hopeful of things getting better,” he adds with a note of optimism.

  • What’s troubling HITS man Tony D’Silva?

    What’s troubling HITS man Tony D’Silva?

    MUMBAI: When the Hindujas announced their intentions to set up their Headend in the sky (HITS) platform to service cable dark phase III and phase IV– years ago, the project’s head – cable TV veteran Tony D’Silva – was highly excited. HITS would allow the company – Grant Investrade Ltd (GIL) – to beam out the 800 or so Indian TV channels to homes in towns and villages where setting up new or upgrading to expensive digital head ends was not viable or feasible.

    There were regulatory hurdles initially but the venture finally got off the ground last year much in advance of the DAS Phase III deadline of 31 December 2015. Tony went around marketing the project with great gusto, reaching out to cable ops in the hinterlands, got the Hindujas, the owners, to invest.

    There was interest from cable operators in almost all the areas that the product was demonstrated. The project looked very much viable as it gave cable operators a steady source of income without having to invest much in hardware and just servicing their existing subscribers.

    Then came the spate of cases in the courts of various states, and Phase III came to a grinding halt (it is now pending the decision from the Delhi high court which is expected in the next week). Analogue signals were not switched off in many parts of the country and Tony was in a bit of a fix. As are many other chieftains in MSOs like DEN and Hathway, which have reported very bloodied and battered results in Q1 2017.

    And Tony is a troubled man. Not just for that reason. He says he expects the court to rule justly in favour of digitization of the cable TV sector. However, he is not clear how many more court cases will be filed to stymie Phase III and Phase IV.

    Tony’s woes are mainly because he has been unable to strike viable content deals with some broadcasters.

    “It’s very unfair,” he states. “Some of the major broadcasters are asking the digital package price from me, but they continue to be okay with analogue pricing from cable operators in the very same phase III areas. How will I be able to offer them a digital package price to them when they are getting the same channels at analogue rates? Why will cable operators accept my superior quality digital offering? Why will an MSO and LCO agree to pay for digital services when they are also paying for analogue- that is double the price. These are questions broadcasters need to understand.”

    Another point that Tony would like to make is that broadcasters had refrained from charging any special digital rates in phase I and II areas until the cutoff dates. “We are a pure digital platform; but we are looking at serving in the now-analogue areas more,” he says.

    Tony would like to make an appeal to broadcasters and the regulator to stop charging digital package rates from him and analogue package rates from cable ops. “We are the new kid on the block and we are really aiding the spread of cable TV digitization in very difficult to reach areas of the country. I would beseech the community to give us a fair content deal at analogue rates until the analogue switch off commences. We are very open to pay digital rates once digital is switched on.”

    He goes on to point out that HITS is definitely going to help the pay TV broadcast sector get revenues in their coffers which are hitherto difficult-to-access as digitization gains in strength. “But allow us to run a feasible business first,” he says.

    Hopefully, broadcasters and the regulators will see reason in his plea.

    Meanwhile, the HITs platform is continuing with its game plan of merging GIL with IMCL – the hitherto cable TV MSO arm of the group. The company has informed the ministry of information & broadcasting about its merger intentions and has also approached the High court about the same.

    Then, over the past year or so, IMCL or Incable, has shut down or exited or bought joint ventures MSO headends where they had very little control over the operations. “We are down to about two and a half million paying cable TV customers and most of them are on a wholesale pre-paid model, so we are doing fine there,” says Tony. “The next few months are going to be very crucial. I am hopeful of things getting better,” he adds with a note of optimism.

  • MSOs urged to buy domestic set top boxes as there is no shortage

    MSOs urged to buy domestic set top boxes as there is no shortage

    NEW DELHI: Reiterating that there was no scarcity of digitally addressable set top boxes and the cut-off date of the final phase was fast approaching, Information and Broadcasting Additional Secretary Jayashree Mukherjee has urged multi system and local cable operators to place orders with domestic manufacturers.

    She has also also said that the broadcasters should develop their own AV Spots and start using these by 30 Septemberr 2016 and start a scroll on their channels to mount publicity campaign about digital addressable system.

    Chairing the 17th meeting of the DAS Task Force, Mukherjee agreed with a suggestion that an advisory may be issued by the Ministry to all MSOs to carry public awareness campaign on their local channels also.

    She said considering that the cut-off date of 31 December 2016 was fast approaching, the State Nodal Officers were requested to take help of the Assistant project Directors of Regional Units to implement complete digitization in their States and carry out regular monitoring of the progress at the State as well as District level, preferably on weekly basis.

    She said the schedule of the meeting planned at State level may be sent to the Ministry so that if required, the Ministry’s representative can also be present in some of these meetings.

    She also felt that the Ministry should regularly release Press Notes/Press Releases on the status of Cable TV Digitization.

    At the meeting held on 31 August 2016, Mukherjee, representatives of Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Punjab, Bihar, Rajasthan and West Bengal gave details of the progress of implementation of digitization in phase lll and measures being undertaken by them to implement the last phase of digitization in their respective States.

    Almost all of them said they were holding regular meetings to monitor the progress and are trying to resolve the issues with stakeholders in order to achieve the target of compfete digitization by the cut-off date.

    However, the Chairperson observed that more action was required to be taken by the Nodal Officers of UP, Bihar and Karnataka.

    Considering that there were around 6000 MSOs operating in the country but only about 1300 had applied for MSO registration to the Ministry, the broadcasters were requested to ask the MSOs with whom they have interconnect agreements but who have not applied for MSO registration wherher they were interested to work as MSO in the DAS notified area failing which they would not be able to act as MSO after the cut-off date.

    The representative of Sony mentioned that they have interconnect agreements with about 1500 MSOs,out of which 1101 have not applied to the Ministry for MSO registration. He confirmed that these MSOs have been advised to apply for MSO registration if they want to continue as MSO in DAS notified areas.

    The representative of Star also mentioned that they have issued similar letters to their MSOs who have not taken MSO registration from the Ministry.

    The Indian Broadcasting Foundation representative was requested to ensure that the similar action is taken by all other members of the IBF and also to supply the list with their e-mail addresses, including those from Sony, to the Ministry so that the Ministry can also write to them.

    The representative of CEAMA said they are not getting sufficient orders of STBs from the big players, though they have enough stock of STBs.

    Joint Secretary (Broadcasting) Sanjay Murthy said an issue of setting up of grievance redressal mechanism at national level for MSOs, LCOs and consumers was discussed with the representatives of broadcasters a few days back. He wanted to know the status of setting up of such a system. The representative of IBF said it was working on it and would submit a proposed plan by 10 September 2016 to the Ministry.

    While reviewing the progress of the court cases pending in Delhi High Court with regard to cut off date of phase lll digitization, the representative of IBF said it had filed an application in the Hon’ble Delhi High Court to implead them in these cases.

    Regarding the public awareness campaign, the representative of the IBF said its members have already started the public campaign using 2 AV Spots provided by the Ministry. He also said scrolls are being planned by their members. The Chairperson emphasized the need for IBF members to develop their own AV Spots as had been done on earlier occasions.

    Also read:

    DAS Phase IV: IBF asked to up campaign in addition to MIB ads

  • MSOs urged to buy domestic set top boxes as there is no shortage

    MSOs urged to buy domestic set top boxes as there is no shortage

    NEW DELHI: Reiterating that there was no scarcity of digitally addressable set top boxes and the cut-off date of the final phase was fast approaching, Information and Broadcasting Additional Secretary Jayashree Mukherjee has urged multi system and local cable operators to place orders with domestic manufacturers.

    She has also also said that the broadcasters should develop their own AV Spots and start using these by 30 Septemberr 2016 and start a scroll on their channels to mount publicity campaign about digital addressable system.

    Chairing the 17th meeting of the DAS Task Force, Mukherjee agreed with a suggestion that an advisory may be issued by the Ministry to all MSOs to carry public awareness campaign on their local channels also.

    She said considering that the cut-off date of 31 December 2016 was fast approaching, the State Nodal Officers were requested to take help of the Assistant project Directors of Regional Units to implement complete digitization in their States and carry out regular monitoring of the progress at the State as well as District level, preferably on weekly basis.

    She said the schedule of the meeting planned at State level may be sent to the Ministry so that if required, the Ministry’s representative can also be present in some of these meetings.

    She also felt that the Ministry should regularly release Press Notes/Press Releases on the status of Cable TV Digitization.

    At the meeting held on 31 August 2016, Mukherjee, representatives of Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Punjab, Bihar, Rajasthan and West Bengal gave details of the progress of implementation of digitization in phase lll and measures being undertaken by them to implement the last phase of digitization in their respective States.

    Almost all of them said they were holding regular meetings to monitor the progress and are trying to resolve the issues with stakeholders in order to achieve the target of compfete digitization by the cut-off date.

    However, the Chairperson observed that more action was required to be taken by the Nodal Officers of UP, Bihar and Karnataka.

    Considering that there were around 6000 MSOs operating in the country but only about 1300 had applied for MSO registration to the Ministry, the broadcasters were requested to ask the MSOs with whom they have interconnect agreements but who have not applied for MSO registration wherher they were interested to work as MSO in the DAS notified area failing which they would not be able to act as MSO after the cut-off date.

    The representative of Sony mentioned that they have interconnect agreements with about 1500 MSOs,out of which 1101 have not applied to the Ministry for MSO registration. He confirmed that these MSOs have been advised to apply for MSO registration if they want to continue as MSO in DAS notified areas.

    The representative of Star also mentioned that they have issued similar letters to their MSOs who have not taken MSO registration from the Ministry.

    The Indian Broadcasting Foundation representative was requested to ensure that the similar action is taken by all other members of the IBF and also to supply the list with their e-mail addresses, including those from Sony, to the Ministry so that the Ministry can also write to them.

    The representative of CEAMA said they are not getting sufficient orders of STBs from the big players, though they have enough stock of STBs.

    Joint Secretary (Broadcasting) Sanjay Murthy said an issue of setting up of grievance redressal mechanism at national level for MSOs, LCOs and consumers was discussed with the representatives of broadcasters a few days back. He wanted to know the status of setting up of such a system. The representative of IBF said it was working on it and would submit a proposed plan by 10 September 2016 to the Ministry.

    While reviewing the progress of the court cases pending in Delhi High Court with regard to cut off date of phase lll digitization, the representative of IBF said it had filed an application in the Hon’ble Delhi High Court to implead them in these cases.

    Regarding the public awareness campaign, the representative of the IBF said its members have already started the public campaign using 2 AV Spots provided by the Ministry. He also said scrolls are being planned by their members. The Chairperson emphasized the need for IBF members to develop their own AV Spots as had been done on earlier occasions.

    Also read:

    DAS Phase IV: IBF asked to up campaign in addition to MIB ads

  • Kashmir cable TV operators ordered to take off five TV channels

    Kashmir cable TV operators ordered to take off five TV channels

    MUMBAI: Five channels operating in Kashmir have been ordered to go off the air on account of their content which is apparently leading to a law and order problem in the state. The district magistrate (Srinagar) has issued a warning to cable TV operators to stop retransmitting KBC, Gulistan TV, Munsiff TV, JK Channel and Insaaf TV, failing which they will be punisheable under the the Cable Television Networks (Regulation Act, 1995).

    “Cable operators in Srinagar are transmitting various programmes which have created law and order problem in the Valley and Srinagar, as they transmit programmes which promote hatred, ill-will, disharmony and a feeling of enmity against the sovereignty of the State…

    programmes which have the potential of causing mental and physical harm to particular functionaries of the government,” said the magistrate’s order.

    It’s quite likely the cable TV trade in the Valley will comply. But policing and punitive action will have to follow, if the order has to yield results, say industry observers.

  • Kashmir cable TV operators ordered to take off five TV channels

    Kashmir cable TV operators ordered to take off five TV channels

    MUMBAI: Five channels operating in Kashmir have been ordered to go off the air on account of their content which is apparently leading to a law and order problem in the state. The district magistrate (Srinagar) has issued a warning to cable TV operators to stop retransmitting KBC, Gulistan TV, Munsiff TV, JK Channel and Insaaf TV, failing which they will be punisheable under the the Cable Television Networks (Regulation Act, 1995).

    “Cable operators in Srinagar are transmitting various programmes which have created law and order problem in the Valley and Srinagar, as they transmit programmes which promote hatred, ill-will, disharmony and a feeling of enmity against the sovereignty of the State…

    programmes which have the potential of causing mental and physical harm to particular functionaries of the government,” said the magistrate’s order.

    It’s quite likely the cable TV trade in the Valley will comply. But policing and punitive action will have to follow, if the order has to yield results, say industry observers.