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Category: I&B Ministry

  • Broadcast media sector FDI norms see minor tweaks in govt’s fresh announcement

    Broadcast media sector FDI norms see minor tweaks in govt’s fresh announcement

    NEW DELHI: The government of India yesterday issued a comprehensive FDI policy for various sectors where a slight change has been noticed in the media sector from what had already been announced in June 2016. Now, 100 per cent FDI is allowed in cable TV and HITS under automatic route for both digital and non-digital carriage services.

    For those segments of the media where automatic FDI approval is not granted and a government okay is needed, it would now be the nodal ministry — Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) — that would be responsible for the green signal instead of Commerce Ministry’s Foreign Investment Promotion Board, a division that has been now dismantled as part of government’s bid to make easy doing business in India.

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    FDI in broadcast carriage services like teleports, DTH, cable networks (both MSOs and LCOs for DAS and non-DAS areas), mobile TV, headend-in-the-sky broadcasting service (HITS) is 100 per cent under automatic route.

    The foreign investment limit (FDI) in terrestrial broadcasting of FM Radio and up-linking of news and current affairs TV channels remain at 49 per cent subject to government approval. Up-linking and downlinking of non-news and current affairs TV channels continue to be 100 per cent under automatic route.

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    Publishing of newspaper and periodicals dealing with news and current affairs  and publication of Indian editions of foreign magazines dealing with news and current affairs have a 26 per cent FDI limit subject to government approval.

    The head of an MSO company, on condition of anonymity, said it’s slightly confusing as to why it has been stated that 100 per cent FDI is allowed for carriage services like cable TV and HITS in both digital and non-digital areas  under automatic route.

    Though the government is of the opinion that 100 per cent digitization has been achieved in the country, broadcast carriage industry (MSOs and LCOs) insist there analog pockets in the country persist as set-top-boxes are still being seeded in small towns and rural areas.

    The government has also notified — most of it reiteration of earlier policy decision — detailed conditions for the broadcast media and they can be viewed at http://dipp.nic.in/sites/default/files/CFPC_2017_FINAL_RELEASED_28.8.17.pdf:

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  • Modi invites Indians’ ‘Mann ki Baat’, to be aired by AIR, DD, pvt channels & DTH platforms

    Modi invites Indians’ ‘Mann ki Baat’, to be aired by AIR, DD, pvt channels & DTH platforms

    NEW DELHI: Telephone lines opened on 16 August for people wanting to give their viewpoints to the prime minister Narendra Modi. Indians can call on toll-free number 1800 11 7800 before the 34th installment of his monthly Mann Ki Baat is broadcast.

    Messages can also be sent via the mygov.in website and narendramodi.in and those who miss the broadcast can listen in toll-free by dialling 1922.

    The next broadcast is slated for 27 August 2017 at 11 am over the entire network of All India Radio. Telephone lines for views will remain open till 23 August.

    The broadcast will be originated by All India Radio, Delhi, and will be relayed by all AIR stations, all AIR FM channels (FM Gold and FM Rainbow), local radio stations, Vividh Bharati stations and five community radio stations.

    The regional versions of the Mann Ki Baat will be originated by the capital AIR stations in non-Hindi speaking zones and will be broadcast immediately after the Hindi broadcast, and repeated at 8 pm on the same day. The regional versions shall be relayed by all AIR stations including local radio stations in the respective states.

    The broadcast is visually adapted by Doordarshan and other private TV and news channels in India and broadcast simultaneously. Similarly, radio in the private sector patches AIR. All DTH platforms also carry it.

    It is live streamed for global audience and is accessible through mobile app, All India Radio Live.

    Over the last one year, the Mann Ki Baat programme has become immensely popular in every nook and corner of the country and is eagerly awaited every month.

    The direct heart to heart address by the Prime Minister on issues concerning every citizen of the country has made the broadcast popular in every household in the country.

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  • Rajasthan Patrika’s FM Tadka to launch four stations

    Rajasthan Patrika’s FM Tadka to launch four stations

    MUMBAI: Rajasthan Patrika Group’s FM Tadka that recently launched two new stations in Ajmer and Bikaner, will soon be launching four new stations in Jammu, Srinagar, Aligarh, and Muzaffarpur. Amongst the four, Aligarh and Muzaffarpur will be launched within a month.

    Jammu being a sensitive area, Radioandmusic.com out of curiosity happened to ask the Programming Head of FM Tadka Jaipur AJ (Adbreak Jockey) Sufi, if they are ready for challenges. To this, he said, “If you are running a radio station, it does not matter if you are operating in Jaipur, Jammu or Srinagar. When you sit on the RJs chair, you have a lot of responsibilities. According to the Radio bible, no sex, no religion, no politics on the radio is to be aired and an RJ has to keep these things under consideration. So when jocking in Jammu we won’t talk about communal things, we also won’t jock such things in Jaipur.”

    The team is much more excited to be a part of Jammu and Srinagar as they will get to know about their lifestyle and also get a chance to design radio programmes according to them. “Jammu and Srinagar are a great challenge and a wonderful playground to work on. Jammu is a khichdi of Punjabis, Muslims, Pandits, more so music will be contemporary, Sufi and Punjabi,” stated Sufi.

    For detailed report, read here:

    FM Tadka to launch four new stations

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  • MIB: Set up cable TV regulatory panels, Century, Chinar & Pan India among 6 FM licences revoked

    NEW DELHI: The information and broadcasting ministry has issued directions to states to set up district-level and state-level monitoring committees to regulate content telecast on cable TV/FM radio channels/community radio stations to ensure adherence to the AIR Broadcast Code.

    Meanwhile, the licences of a total of six FM radio channels being operated by six companies in different parts of the country were revoked under FM Phase II. The six are — Century Communication, Chinar Circuits, Kushal Globalo Ltd. Pan India Network, Positive Radio Pvt Ltd, and Singla Property Dealer Pvt Ltd.

    According to ministry sources, a total 312 private FM radio channels are being operated by 44 Indian companies.

    The sources told Indiantelevision.com that during the last three years and the current year, the ministry issued four show-cause notices to 93.5 Red FM, Hit 95 FM, 94.3 FM Radio One and Radio City 91.1 FM on 23 January 2015, 17 February 2016, 2 September 2016 and 1 August 2016, respectively, for airing allegedly vulgar, obscene and objectionable content in violation of the provisions of GOPA and programme and advertising code as followed by All India Radio (AIR).

    Action was taken eight times on violation of provision of GOPA and Programme and Advertising Codes as followed by AIR by private FM radio channels by airing of obscene, vulgar and objectionable content during the last three years and the current year. These include two advisories to all channels and one only to Tamil Nadu-based FM channels. The channels that came under the scanner were ENIL Patna (Radio Mirchi), Malayala Manorama Kochi (Radio Mango), Digital Radio Broadcasting (Delhi) Ltd (Red fM), Clear Media (India) Pvt Ltd (Hit 95 FM), and Next Radio Delhi (94.3).

    Private FM Radio broadcasters have to follow the rules and regulation prescribed in the Grant of Permission Agreement (GOPA) signed by them with the Government. Private Satellite TV channels are required to abide by the terms and conditions as mentioned in the Policy Guidelines for Uplinking and Downlinking of Private Satellite TV channels in India.

    Only Indian companies registered under the Company’s Act, 2013 are eligible for bidding and obtaining permission for FM radio channels. The conditions are elaborated in the Policy Guidelines for expansion of FM radio broadcasting through private agencies Phase-III.

    GOPA provides that FM Radio Channels should follow the same Programme and Advertisement Codes as followed by All India Radio. These codes contain a whole range of parameters to regulate content on FM channels.

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  • Govt warned 55 violators of programme & ad codes in 3 yrs, says Rathore

    NEW DELHI: The government issued 55 advisories or warnings since 2014 to various channels for violation of the Programme or Advertising Codes, the Parliament has been told.

    These include four advisories to all channels of which two were issued this year, one relating to telecast of Republic Day events with accompaniment of sign language.

    There were nineteen cases in 2014, 17 in 2015, 16 last year and three this year, the minister of state for information and broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said.

    In most cases, channels have been issued warnings or advisories and in some cases to run apology scrolls.

    Permission to uplink and downlink private satellite TV channel is granted in accordance with the extant Policy Guidelines of Uplinking and downlinking of TV channels in India. Such permission holder companies, are required to abide by all the rules and regulations mentioned in the Policy Guidelines.

    Whenever any information/complaints about alleged irregularities in the functioning of any TV channel or their allied companies comes to the notice of this ministry, action is taken on case to case basis, under the provisions of the Policy Guidelines.

    In addition, all permitted broadcasters are required to ensure that all programmes and advertisements telecast on private satellite TV channels and transmitted/retransmitted through the Cable TV Network are required to adhere to the Programme and Advertisements Codes prescribed under the Cable Television Networks (Regulations) Act, 1995 and Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 framed thereunder.

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  • Four FDI media proposals await govt. nod

    NEW DELHI: A total of 99 proposals including four relating to the information and broadcasting sector for foreign direct investment are pending before various ministries, the Parliament has been informed.

    This follows the decision to entrust the work of granting government approval for FDI investment in eleven notified sectors/activities requiring government approval to the concerned  ministries/departments.

    Commerce and industries minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the decisions would be taken under the extant FDI Policy and Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA),

    The government, through the erstwhile Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), had already been considering and taking decisions on FDI proposals in the sectors on approval route.

    Consequently, the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for processing FDI proposals was issued on 29 June, 2017.

    According to the SOP, once the proposal is complete in all respects, which should not be later than six weeks/eight weeks (in cases where comments of the home ministry have been sought from security clearance point of view) from the receipt of the proposal, the competent authority will, within the next two weeks, process the proposal for decision and convey the same to the applicant.

    In respect of proposals where the competent authority proposes to reject the proposals or in cases where conditions for approval are stipulated in addition to the conditions laid down in the FDI policy or sectoral laws/regulations, concurrence of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion will compulsorily be sought within 8-10 weeks weeks (in cases where comments of the home ministry have been sought from security clearance point of view) from the receipt of the proposal.

    The 99 FDI proposals pending in various ministries/departments are:

    Name of Ministry/Department

    No. of Proposals

    Department of Economic Affairs

    13

    Department of Pharmaceuticals

    14

    Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion

    48

    Department of Telecommunications

      8

    Department of Defence Production

      4

    Ministry of  Home Affairs

      5

    Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

      4

    Department of Space

      2

    Department of Financial Services

      1

    Total

    99

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  • MIB flags issue of anti-national content on cable channels, seeks industry advisory

    NEW DELHI: Ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) is seeking an advisory from the Indian media and entertainment industry on a number of issues, including ways to track and stop so-called anti-national content being aired on some local cable TV channels, which do not need to register with any government body.

    In a meeting held in MIB’s headquarters in the Capital’s Shastri Bhawan yesterday, senior officials put forth their concerns to the industry representatives and sought their help in resolving the issues, which have been flagged in various sections of the government, including the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) responsible for internal security.

    Government sources indicated that  the MHA has requested MIB to look into the issue of cable channels being run by some LCOs in states like Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh where `objectionable’ content  aimed at flaring sectarian passions were being telecast. Some such cable channels are also said to be illegally downloading unencrypted content from foreign TV channels for rebroadcast in various parts of India.

    As cable channels run by LCOs or MSOs or similar channels on a DTH platform as part of value-added services or VAS are not yet required to register with the government, officials find it difficult to zero down on cable channels especially. As LCOs are required to register with the local post offices, a common database of such Indian LCOs is also not there for effective tracking, as admitted by a government official, who hastily added that work on creating a LCO database is underway.

    As part of its many set of recommendations to streamline the carriage part of the cable and broadcast business, regulator TRAI had suggested  that the government tweak relevant regulations to specify that all cable channels run by LCOs too would have to get government license like satellite or cable-delivered  TV channels. However, because of effective lobbying by LCO organizations, MIB is yet to act on the regulator’s suggestions on cable channels.

    Government sources indicated that more such meetings may be held with industry reps to understand and find solutions to issues linked to country’s national interest.

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  • July: 2 Viacom & 3 south channels among 9 permitted, far short of MIB’s March target

    NEW DELHI: With nine more television channels getting clearance, the total number of permitted private television channels has risen to 890 by the end of July 2017, still far short of the claim made last year that the country will have 1500 channels by the end of March this year.

    The master list issued by the government of 883 includes nine channels the permission of which was “cancelled by the ministry of information and broadcasting due to security denial by the home ministry. However, a stay order (has been granted) by (the) court.”

    The number of total channels had grown from 869 in February-end 2016 to 892 in February-end this year but had fallen by 10 since then. In fact, the number had risen to 899 by the end of December 2016 when the total cancellations were 155. By January-end this year, the number had fallen to 889 of which 12 banned channels had received stay orders from courts.

    Channels permitted in July include two news channels: Cauvery News in Tamil owned by Cauvery Power Trading Chennai Pvt. Ltd and TVS Kannada owned by Shreya Broadcasting Pvt. Ltd.

    Other channels permitted in July this year are: ATR owned by Lex Sportel Vision Pvt. Ltd; V6 ENT in Telugu owned by VIL Media Pvt. Ltd, Travelxp owned by Media Worldwide Limited; My Cam and The Office, both owned by Viacom 18 Media Private Limited; Pitaara owned by Paul E-Commerce Private Limited; and Shop 5 owned by Shopping Zone India TV Pvt. Ltd.

    The list of the channels permitted as on 30 July 2017 along with their area and language of operation and the names of owning companies has been placed on the MIB site.

    The Parliamentary Standing Committee for Information Technology which goes into issues relating to information and broadcasting had last year noted that the State Finance Commission, while drafting its proposals for the 12th Plan (2012-17), had assumed that the number of permitted TV channels would rise to 1500.

  • Prasar Bharati finds transmitter tenders plaint unsubstantiated

    NEW DELHI: Pubcaster Prasar Bharati, after an investigation, found the allegations regarding the purchase of transmitters by All-India Radio are unsubstantiated, the Parliament has been told.

    Minister of state for information and broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said the complaint was received in this ministry on 7 October 2015. It was sent to Prasar Bharati for further inquiry, he said.

    It is the endeavour of the government to ensure that the tendering process is conducted as per GFR, 2005/2017.

    The government is also implementing e-tendering process for procurement of various goods and services to obtain the most competitive and suitable bids.

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  • State-level television committees to monitor FM & Community Radio

    NEW DELHI: The state / district-level monitoring committees will  henceforth be authorised to monitor the content broadcast on private FM I community radio stations also in addition to private satellite TV channels. The content can be monitored by the committees suo-moto and on the basis of complaints received.

    The information and broadcasting ministry has therefore requested all state governments to constitute these committees wherever these have not been set up so far and to effectively monitor all types of content.  A detailed office memorandum in this regard has been sent to all states.

    This has been done as the ministry is in the process of formalising the complaint redressal mechanism whereby viewers and listeners can file complaints against programmes they find offensive in television channels or radio stations.

    This follows a judgment delivered on 12 January in the case of Common Cause Vs. UOI & Ors where the court advised the government to formalise the complaint redressal mechanism.

    According to MIB sources, if any violations were found, those would be acted upon by the authorised officers or brought to the notice of the ministry for taking necessary action as per relevant guidelines.

    The ministry had, in orders on 6 September 2005 and 19 February letter on 17 January 2017, asked for constitution of monitoring committees to enforce the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995. According to information available with the ministry, the monitoring committees were set up in 19 states, five union territories and 327 districts for monitoring content telecast on private satellite channels.

    Broadcast of FM radio channels and Community Radio Stations (CRS) are in the nature of terrestrial transmission. Hence, monitoring their content centrally is not feasible, the Ministry said.

    The content aired by them rs also of local nature. All private FM channels and Community Radio Stations are required to follow the All India Radio’s Broadcast Code in terms of the Grant of Permission Agreement  (GOPA) signed by them with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. 

    The ministry said it is therefore essential that such committees are set up for all types of content monitoring including private FM channels and community radio stations.

    The Ministry has sent to the states a list of permitted private FM channels and Community Radio Stations as on date. However, as this is an evolving list, the states have been told to access the latest list on the ministry’s website.

    The Ministry in its letter also informed the states that TV broadcasters have set up their self regulating system where too the public can lodge complaints. News Broadcasters Association (NBA), a representative body  of news and current  affairs TV channels, set up News Broadcasting Standards Authority  (NBSA), to consider complaints against or in respect of broadcasters relating to content.

    The Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF), a representative  body of non-news and current  affairs  TV channels  has set up Broadcasting  Content Complaints Council (BCCC)  to examine the complaints relating to content  telecast  on private satellite TV channels.

    In addition, the ministry said the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has set up a Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) to consider complaints in respect of advertisements.

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