ITV

Tag: Assam

  • CNN tracks the tea industry in depth, to air ‘The Price of tea’ series

    CNN tracks the tea industry in depth, to air ‘The Price of tea’ series

    MUMBAI: CNN International is set to enlighten viewers by taking a closer look at India’s tea industry. The channel will air a three part series titled The Price of Tea under its CNN Freedom Project starting from 14 March 2016. The show will be aired during CNN’s news streaming from 5:30 pm.

    The series will see tea-workers living in squalor in crumbling mud huts, many with no access to education. ‘The Price of Tea’ sheds light on the workers struggling to survive, while others are being trafficked into the sex trade.

    Trafficked for tea will take the viewers on a trek to Assam, India, a region that produces more tea than anywhere in the world to meet 18-year old Manju Gaur. She was just 14 when the traffickers came promising her a better life in the big city. With no education and making just pennies a day, she thought it would be a way to support her family. Instead, she saw young girls sexually assaulted by a ruthless trafficker, their money confiscated, and unable to leave. Manju managed to escape but now, she has another concern. Her 14-year old sister was still being held by traffickers.

    The second part titled The Raid is a daring raid on an apartment complex, wherein the show embeds with local police on a mission to rescue Manju’s 14-year old sister being held for more than a year by an alleged trafficker. CNN confronts the alleged trafficker, a man with a history. As police apprehend him, they demand to know where Manju’s 14-year old sister has been working. Will there be a final, emotional reunion?

    In the last segment Meet the Traffickers, the show ends by revealing the convicted trafficker who confesses to selling girls for as little as $200 (approx. Rs 13,000). He takes CNN to the railway station to show where he loaded girls on to the train and shipped them off to a life of domestic servitude and sometimes, worse.

  • DAS Phase III stay extended in Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh

    DAS Phase III stay extended in Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh

    New Delhi: With the Supreme Court stating that the stay on Phase III of digital addressable system by the Bombay High Court is not pan-India, stakeholders in three states – Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh – have received further extensions for varying periods.

    While the Hyderabad High Court has clubbed the two cases of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and granted a four week extension, the Allahabad High Court extended the stay for three more months.

    The Hyderabad High Court which received the counter-affidavit from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, gave time to the petitioners in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana – AP MSOs Federation and Federation of Telangana MSOs – to file their replies,

    The plea taken by both the petitioners had been the shortage of set top boxes, which had in late December led to a two month extension.

    The Supreme Court had made the observation on an appeal by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation, which was subsequently withdrawn.

    In Allahabad, where the petitioners have also taken the plea of shortage of STBs, the High Court directed I&B Ministry as well as the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to file counter-affidavits within four weeks.

     “In the meanwhile, we direct the respondents not to disconnect the cable TV network operated by the petitioner through the analogue system for a period of three months from today,” the court said.

    DAS Phase III has already been stayed for varying periods by High Courts in Assam, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh, for the entire states, apart from Tamil Nadu where prolonged legal cases have been pending since Phase I.

    In Karnataka, three individual stakeholders have got stay orders in Mangalore and Mysore areas while there is no state-wide stay. However, MSOs and Local Cable Operators in various parts of Karnataka told indiantelevision.com that transmission is still being use in analogue mode even in areas that fall in Phase III but for which no stay has been obtained.

    Interestingly, Ministry sources admitted to indiantelevision.com that there was a misreading of the Bombay High Court directive. The Court had merely refereed to the Kusum Ingots & Alloys Ltd vs the Union of India 2004 case to say that if one High Court gives a stay, another High Court can act in similar fashion if the facts are similar – in this case, shortage of STBs. Thus, they agree that the High Court stay was only confined to Maharashtra and not pan-India.

    The Bombay High Court passed a unique judgment stating that the Hyderabad High Court order would be applicable across India as per the Supreme Court judgment in.

    Meanwhile, The Ministry has filed a similar petition and sought not merely vacation of the stay orders by various High Courts, but also clubbing the cases together.

    The meeting of the Phase III and Phase IV Task Force – the first to be held after the 31 December deadline of Phase III – was told by Ministry Joint Secretary (Broadcasting) R Jaya that the percentage achievement had increased from 76.45 per cent as on 30 December 2015 to 90.44 per cent as on 15 February 2016.

    It was also claimed that the seeding of set top boxes by multi system operators increased from 6.91 million (69.1 lakh) to 12.43 million (124.3 lakh) for the same period.

    DAS Phase III covers 33.18 million (331.8 lakh( TV households across 29 states and five Union Territories, after changes made in updates for various states.

    Although Phase III was aimed at covering all remaining urban areas in the country, Ministry sources admitted that several urban may now be clubbed with the rural areas where the deadline is 31 December 2016.

  • DAS Phase III stay extended in Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh

    DAS Phase III stay extended in Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh

    New Delhi: With the Supreme Court stating that the stay on Phase III of digital addressable system by the Bombay High Court is not pan-India, stakeholders in three states – Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh – have received further extensions for varying periods.

    While the Hyderabad High Court has clubbed the two cases of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and granted a four week extension, the Allahabad High Court extended the stay for three more months.

    The Hyderabad High Court which received the counter-affidavit from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, gave time to the petitioners in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana – AP MSOs Federation and Federation of Telangana MSOs – to file their replies,

    The plea taken by both the petitioners had been the shortage of set top boxes, which had in late December led to a two month extension.

    The Supreme Court had made the observation on an appeal by the Indian Broadcasting Foundation, which was subsequently withdrawn.

    In Allahabad, where the petitioners have also taken the plea of shortage of STBs, the High Court directed I&B Ministry as well as the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to file counter-affidavits within four weeks.

     “In the meanwhile, we direct the respondents not to disconnect the cable TV network operated by the petitioner through the analogue system for a period of three months from today,” the court said.

    DAS Phase III has already been stayed for varying periods by High Courts in Assam, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh, for the entire states, apart from Tamil Nadu where prolonged legal cases have been pending since Phase I.

    In Karnataka, three individual stakeholders have got stay orders in Mangalore and Mysore areas while there is no state-wide stay. However, MSOs and Local Cable Operators in various parts of Karnataka told indiantelevision.com that transmission is still being use in analogue mode even in areas that fall in Phase III but for which no stay has been obtained.

    Interestingly, Ministry sources admitted to indiantelevision.com that there was a misreading of the Bombay High Court directive. The Court had merely refereed to the Kusum Ingots & Alloys Ltd vs the Union of India 2004 case to say that if one High Court gives a stay, another High Court can act in similar fashion if the facts are similar – in this case, shortage of STBs. Thus, they agree that the High Court stay was only confined to Maharashtra and not pan-India.

    The Bombay High Court passed a unique judgment stating that the Hyderabad High Court order would be applicable across India as per the Supreme Court judgment in.

    Meanwhile, The Ministry has filed a similar petition and sought not merely vacation of the stay orders by various High Courts, but also clubbing the cases together.

    The meeting of the Phase III and Phase IV Task Force – the first to be held after the 31 December deadline of Phase III – was told by Ministry Joint Secretary (Broadcasting) R Jaya that the percentage achievement had increased from 76.45 per cent as on 30 December 2015 to 90.44 per cent as on 15 February 2016.

    It was also claimed that the seeding of set top boxes by multi system operators increased from 6.91 million (69.1 lakh) to 12.43 million (124.3 lakh) for the same period.

    DAS Phase III covers 33.18 million (331.8 lakh( TV households across 29 states and five Union Territories, after changes made in updates for various states.

    Although Phase III was aimed at covering all remaining urban areas in the country, Ministry sources admitted that several urban may now be clubbed with the rural areas where the deadline is 31 December 2016.

  • DTH to benefit, Reliance Jio to intensify competition in DAS Phase III: Edelweiss

    DTH to benefit, Reliance Jio to intensify competition in DAS Phase III: Edelweiss

    NEW DELHI: Broadcasters are obviously clear winners, but the direct to home (DTH) platforms may ultimately become the greatest beneficiaries of Phase III of digital addressable system (DAS) by garnering incremental market share of more than 50 per cent.

     
    According to Edelweiss Securities Ltd, broadcasters will be one of the safest and most attractive plays on the digitisation theme, irrespective of higher subscriber additions by DTH or MSOs. “We expect a one-year lag for subscription revenue to flow (starting FY18) from the newly digitised subscribers,” Edelweiss said in its analysis of DAS Phase III.   

     
    “In our view, analogue signals will gradually switch off and substantial roll out of Phase III digitisation will take at least three to four quarters driven by mass media ads and proactive steps by DTH players, national MSOs & the regulator,” the firm said.

     

    However, this view is contrary to the Chrome Data Analytics’ claim of 70 per cent digitisation in Phase III. 

     
    With six states (Assam, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha and Tamil Nadu) stalling Phase III digitisation by eight weeks or more with High Court orders, Edelweiss says, “Uncertainty persists; we expect many more states to follow suit.” In Tamil Nadu, the stand-off between Arasu and the Information & Broadcasting Ministry will delay digitisation, as was the case with Chennai earlier. 

     
    Moreover, Edelweiss believes Reliance Jio’s entry in cable TV will intensify competition in the space. “Overall, we expect Zee, Sun TV, TV18 and Dish TV to be bigger beneficiaries of Phase III digitisation over the long term.”   

     
    In Phase I and II cities, MSOs were able to retain around 75 per cent of incremental market share, while DTH players managed to garner only 25 per cent.

     
    However in Phase III markets, Edelweiss says regional MSOs will have to incur substantial capex to make the cable infrastructure digital ready. “We believe DTH players will enjoy natural advantage over regional MSOs in Phase III markets.”

    Further, voluntary digitisation by national MSOs in Phase III markets, learnings from Phase I & II digitisation and parts of Phase III areas being contiguous with Phase I & II markets put national MSOs in better position than regional MSOs. 

     
    With the rollout of Reliance Jio, Edelweiss expects “competition to intensify in cable TV business. Cashing in on its strong balance sheet, RJio will fuel further competition in cable TV (free STBs, bundled services) in Phase I and II markets. We expect RJio’s entry to change the industry dynamics led by introduction of packaging and prepaid billing.”

  • MIB burning midnight oil to find ways to counter battery of High Court orders staying DAS

    MIB burning midnight oil to find ways to counter battery of High Court orders staying DAS

    NEW DELHI: Considering the odds it is facing from various High Courts all over the country for extending the deadline for implementing Phase III of Digital Addressable System (DAS), the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has to find a way to get even justice for the ultimate stakeholder — the consumer.

     

    Perhaps because of that, the last few days have been very busy in the corridors of fifth and sixth floors of Shastri Bhavan in the capital, which houses the MIB, with officials holding several meetings to find a way to stop the snowballing of the orders that commenced from Hyderabad and found a boost in the arguments in the Bombay High Court based on the Kusum Ingots case of 2004, which encouraged multi system operators (MSOs) and local cable operators (LCOs) in other states.

     

    At present, the implementation remains stayed for varying periods in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra, Orissa, Sikkim, and Telangana, apart from Tamil Nadu where prolonged legal cases have been pending since Phase I. A petition has already been filed in the Karnataka High Court and is listed for 8 January.

     

    Ministry sources confirmed to Indiantelevision.com that meetings had been held with legal experts and particularly with Government counsel.

     

    There was also general consensus on filing a petition by the Government in the Supreme Court, particularly as the apex court had on an earlier occasion relating to the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and orders issued thereunder that High Courts have to be cautious when giving orders on matters relating to policy.  

     

    Government legal experts advised that an appeal could be filed against any of the High Court orders in the Supreme Court and the apex court could be asked to transfer all linked matters to Delhi to be heard together.

     

    However, it needs to be seen whether this will be in the form of a writ petition or an appeal against the various High Courts – a decision left to a battery of legal experts.

     

    MSOs said, however, that this would impose a lot of financial burden on them as they could ill-afford to hire counsel in the Supreme Court. 

     

    Even as the Ministry would obey the directives of the various High Courts, which had extended the DAS deadline by various periods ranging between eight to 12 weeks, it would prepare to oppose the decisions.

     

    A senior Ministry official said that even as the Ministry was waiting to see all the High Court orders, it was working on how plans to thwart the implementation of Phase III could be prevented – if necessary through legislative processes.

     

    The official also expressed the view that the cases would in fact benefit the direct to home (DTH) and Headend In The Sky (HITS) players and would affect the last mile operator (LMO).

     

    The sources said they had evidence to show seeding of set top boxes (STBs) to the extent of 76 per cent as revealed in the 13th Task Force meeting on 30 December. 

     

    Meanwhile, legal opinion is divided on whether the Kusum Ingots case, which was referred to in the Bombay High Court could be used by a High Court to direct a pan-India stay.

     

    The broadcasters and channel distributors are united on one view: the government should not give any extension on its own, as that would lead to a further delay in not just the Phase III and Phase IV (slated for December 2016) but also pockets of Phase I and Phase II, which have still not implemented digital addressable systems.

     

    It is also learnt that both broadcasters on the one hand and the channel distributors and major MSOs on the other, are pressing the government to move the apex court to get a single ruling instead of different High Court orders.

     

    However, it was admitted by the stakeholders that there was very little progress as far as indigenous STBs are concerned with just one or two players making local boxes despite the ‘Make in India’ campaign, and the government had to be proactive in this regard.

     

    The attempt would be to prevent the High Courts from staying implementation of Phase III under which analogue signals were to be switched off after midnight on 31 December, 2015.

     

    One representative of a broadcaster said switching back to analogue on getting a High Court stay did not cause any technical difficulty, but it raised problems relating to accounts and agreements already agreed upon.

     

    Be that as it may, the consumer who has already spent money on acquiring STBs hopes his efforts will not go waste in haste.

  • MIB updates areas in 16 states & UTs to be covered in DAS Phase III

    MIB updates areas in 16 states & UTs to be covered in DAS Phase III

    NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) today updated the urban areas to be covered in 16 states during Phase III of the Digital Addressable System (DAS), which is to be completed by the end of this year.

     

    These states and union territories are: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Punjab, Tripura, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar, and Puducherry.

     

    The ministry also indicated the areas that have been deleted and those which have been added, apart from the number of television households to be covered in each case. Deletions have been made on the basis of reports of empowered officers in each state.

     

    This list does not contain areas covered in the first two phases.

     

    The list of areas to be covered in Phase III had been issued on 30 April this year.

  • DAS Phase III: 372 MSOs granted registration of which 146 are provisional

    DAS Phase III: 372 MSOs granted registration of which 146 are provisional

    NEW DELHI: Clearly, the pressure of the approaching deadline for the third phase of Digital Addressable System (DAS) is beginning to show its signs in the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry, with a second list of registered multi system operators (MSOs) being issued within one month.

     

    A total of 372 MSOs were issued registration today, which included 226 who have ten-year registration and 146 who have provisional licences.

     

    With indications coming from the Home Ministry that MSOs may no longer insist on security clearance, the hope of the 146 becoming permanent have brightened.

     

    According to the list issued on 14 August, the Ministry had registered a total of 349 MSOs of which 126 were provisional.

     

    The total figure is impressive considering that 74 new MSOs have been permitted to operate since 12 July, though a majority of them have provisional licences.

     

    While a majority of MSOs including Kal Cables have had their licences cancelled following the Home Ministry denying security clearance, some have been cancelled for non-operation. These include four cancelled in 2015.

     

    Eleven MSOs who had earlier been granted permanent licences were permitted to change their areas of operation.

     

    Provisional licences given after 12 July total 66 including one for Assam and another for Mizoram. Provisional licence had been issued prior to 12 July to one MSO in Kashmir. 

  • Axom Communications aims to install 1 million STBs in NE

    Axom Communications aims to install 1 million STBs in NE

    KOLKATA: Assam based multi-system operator (MSO), Axom Communications and Cable, which already boasts of around six lakh cable TV connections in the state including the lower and central parts, is aiming to spruce up its digitisation drive.

     

    By the end of the phase IV of digitisation, it aims to install one million set top boxes (STBs) not only in Assam but also in other states of the north-eastern region.

     

    Axom Communications and Cable director Sanjive Narain says that the MSO has already installed the digital headend in the year 2009 and has laid down the fiber connectivity linking around 250 kms from three sides of Guwahati, the commercial hub of Assam. The setup of the digital headend was supported by Cisco, from whom Axom would be purchasing STBs as well. 

     

    “We aim to have a million boxes seeded by the end of 2015. We have around 10 analogue headends and one digital headend,” he says. According to sources, the MSO had spent Rs 3 crore for installing the digital headend.

     

    Out of 6 lakh connections, more than 70,000 cable homes have been converted into digital mainly in Guwahati, even before the digitisation process has started in the state.

     

    The seven sisters come under phase III and IV of digitisation. “Right now the process has not started in the true sense but the industry is getting ready,” adds Narain. He expects the current deadline of December 2014 to be extended as well. This could be because the government is addressing the loopholes witnessed in phases I and II.

     

    “Fibre network connectivity work is still progressing in states like Tripura, Nagaland, Meghalaya to name a few,” he adds.

     

    The north east terrain is such that cable TV cannot reach everywhere. Therefore DTH made a sizeable penetration in this market. “We will convert the DTH subscribers into cable by giving a lucrative option to consumers,” he says adding that the MSO may charge Rs 250 plus tax for offering 350 channels.

     

    As far as the funding for the undertaking is concerned, Cisco’s capital arm is one of the options amongst others such as private equity or JVs with other parties.

  • The Election Tracker & Agar Abhi Chunav Ho Toh

    The Election Tracker & Agar Abhi Chunav Ho Toh

    MUMBAI: As a prelude to the upcoming General Elections, CNN-IBN & IBN7 in partnership with THE WEEK are again back with the last round of The Election Tracker.’

     
    CNN-IBN & IBN7 began this massive effort with its first round of The Election Tracker in July 2013, which was a one-of-its-kind study that tested the mood of the nation on key governance issues and attempted to track the fortunes of key political leaders; eventually endeavoring to answer the BIGGEST QUESTION – Who will rule India for the next five years?

     
    The upcoming round of The Election Tracker on CNN-IBN and Agar Abhi Chunav Hon Toh on IBN7 scheduled from 31st March to 4th April, 2014 will see participation of approximately 18,050 respondents to be surveyed across 22 states with focus on social and political issues of national importance. Based on a rigorous methodology, this study, conducted by the ‘Centre for the Study of Developing Societies’ (CSDS) will project likely voting patterns and outcome.

     
    The states to be covered will be: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand.

     
    Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief, IBN Network, said, “As we approach one of the most complex and debatably the most fascinating and exciting elections so far, we believe that our viewers need to be  well armed with extensive and accurate information related to our present political and social scenario. This is crucial in order to enable them to make informed decisions while voting which will help take our country forward in the right direction. Through ‘The Election Tracker’ and ‘Agar Abhi Chunav Ho Toh’ on CNN-IBN and IBN7 respectively, our network aims to do precisely this.”

     
    Philip Mathew, Managing Editor, THE WEEK, said, “THE WEEK is known for its incisive political reporting and exhaustive analytical articles. The election prediction polls we have been associated with over the years have always been credible and accurate. As we prepare to elect a new government, THE WEEK is happy to be part of an effort to gauge the mood of the electorate, and predict which way the wind blows.”

     
    Don’t miss The Election Tracker on CNN-IBN and Agar Abhi Chunav Hon Toh on IBN7 from 31st March to 4th April, 2014 @ 8:00 PM.
    You can also read the detailed results and analysis of the survey in the issue of THE WEEK hitting stands on 4th April 2014.

     

  • ETV News sees prospective markets in J&K, Assam, TN and Kerala

    ETV News sees prospective markets in J&K, Assam, TN and Kerala

    MUMBAI: With elections looming large, television networks are prepping to launch news channels in different parts of the country so as to get a decent share of the viewership pie. One such is Network18, which, after completely acquiring all ETV channels (save for Telugu channels) in January this year, decided to launch news channels in states where its GECs were present and not news.

    Recent launches include ETV News Bangla, ETV News Kannada, ETV News Himachal Pradesh/Haryana, ETV News Gujarat and ETV News Odiya, with Gujarati and Odiya news channels launching in the next two to three months. What’s more, another set of news channels is being planned for 2015.

    ETV news channels under TV18 are looking to get sister channels in ETV News Jammu and Kashmir, ETV News Assam, ETV News Tamil Nadu, and ETV News Kerala. “If everything goes well, we may launch these channels by the end of 2015,” says ETV News group editor Rajesh Raina.

    ETV news channels under TV18 are looking to introduce news channels in Jammu & Kashmir, north east (Assam), south (Tamil Nadu and Kerala).  “There’s a strong feeling that we should expand our news services into these regions as there is great deal of potential. We would like to expand and spread nationally. However, decisions of when and why to foray in these areas will be taken by the management of the Network18 group,” says ETV News group editor Rajesh Raina.

    As to how ETV will compete in Tamil Nadu and Kerala where current networks have a stronghold, Raina says: “In these states, most of the channels are affiliated to different political parties except a few. ETV is known for its credibility and is the ‘people’s channel’. Wherever we operate our channels, we give priority to ‘people’s issues’ and that is the reason we have the highest viewership in all regions.”

    In Jammu and Kashmir, ETV Urdu has been running two news bulletins every day for the past six years, which the channel claims has become very popular in the region. This in turn will help them create a niche for a 24X7 news channel in the state.

    Whereas in Assam, Raina says, “In a strife-torn state like Assam, we can be a bridge for government schemes to reach the masses and this will work to generate good revenue from both the state and central governments if ads given to TV channels are at par with newspapers, for which our network head Jagdish Chandra has been fighting hard.”

    The network wants to be the ‘voice of the people’ in the country, and “So far, we have been successful and we hope to sustain this success in future also. No channel can match our quality of coverage. We have some distribution issues in some places but they are being sorted out,” Raina adds.

    The focus will be more on rural, less on urban areas. “Quality coverage means raising the issues of the common man. But some channels are focused totally on urban centres and try to attract eyeballs in some selective centres only. But our channel is the common man’s channel and not the channel for the elite class only,” says Raina.

    According to him, no changes have come about in the ETV channels after acquisition. There are investments being made to upgrade the technology. Sources say nearly Rs 10 to 12 crore is being pumped into each channel for this purpose. Recently, Network18 had announced the launch of its regional news website news18.com that provides state-wise news.

    A Ministry of Information and Broadcasting document ‘permitted satellite TV channels as on ‘10 March 2014’ shows that the network already has licences for the channels. However, folks close to Network18  are quick to clarify, that these licences have been given to the Ramoji Rao group. “The Ramoji Rao group had applied for about 28 licences which they have got,” says the source. “The Network18 management has to start the process of applying for the new channel licences afresh.” 

    Currently, ETV runs news channels including Bangla, Kannada, Urdu (news and infotainment), Uttar Pradesh/Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh/Chattisgarh, Bihar/Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Haryana/Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat and Odia. ETV2 News is not under the ownership of TV18.