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Tag: Delhi High Court

  • Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court vacation judge Justice Najmi Waziri has declined to vacate the injunction obtained by Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) from the court earlier this month against collection of licence fees by the Indian Performing Rights Society, the Phonographic Performance Ltd and Novex.

    However, the court gave directions whereby a complete list of performances would be kept for which payments are claimed and these will be subject to the final outcome of the petition by EEMA.

    Earlier, on 23 December 2016, Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva had accepted that IPRS, PPL, and Novex were not registered copyright societies under section 33 of the Copyright Act, and had therefore restrained them from collecting any licence fee from performers or performing societies. He listed the matter for further hearing on 24 April 2017.

    EEMA had filed caveats in the event of these bodies seeking to challenge the restraint order and were therefore present in court when the challenge came up before the vacation bench.

    The vacation bench said for the interim period, EEMA members / the event organizer will provide PPL/IPRS/Novex a list of songs that they intend to play before an event on mail. PPL / IPRS / Novex will thereafter need to confirm in writing if they own the tracks.

    The event organisers will pay the amount before the event as per mutual negotiation with the copyright owner. The License issuing company/entity shall provide proof by way of legal agreements within seven days of the invoice, to the satisfaction of the event organiser. In case the event organiser is not satisfied by the proof provided, a refund can be claimed through the courts. The money will not be appropriated till such time that the matter is mutually resolved  

    Thus, copyright licence fees can only be collected under Section 30 which is reserved for owners of the copyright with the clear proviso that, when called upon to do so, they need to prove their ownership.

    Additionally, PPL/IPRS/Novex were asked to put up a detailed list on their website listing all songs they own, including the names of the authors / producers they have acquired them from along with the dates of validity of the contract till 31 March 2016.

    In addition to this, the licensing companies have to upload the valid legal agreements by which they claim ownership of these tracks by 31 December 2016.

    In the order that came after hearing EEMA counsel Ramji Srinivasan and Ashwani Kumar for the respondents, the Court instructed PPL/IPRS/Novex to set up an online payment gateway within one month of this hearing wherein we will be able to easily obtain permissions online.

    In a statement issued later, EEMA described the order as ‘very positive’ in the direction of transparency and accountability that EEMA and the creative fraternity across the music industry has been fighting for.

    The statement added that EEMA believes that copyright fees should be paid to the rightful creators and owners of copyright in a transparent and reasonable manner so that the rightful owners should receive their due and the rates being charged are logical and reasonable.

    Also Read:

    Court orders stay on music licensing societies from collecting royalties ahead of New Year

     

  • Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court vacation judge Justice Najmi Waziri has declined to vacate the injunction obtained by Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) from the court earlier this month against collection of licence fees by the Indian Performing Rights Society, the Phonographic Performance Ltd and Novex.

    However, the court gave directions whereby a complete list of performances would be kept for which payments are claimed and these will be subject to the final outcome of the petition by EEMA.

    Earlier, on 23 December 2016, Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva had accepted that IPRS, PPL, and Novex were not registered copyright societies under section 33 of the Copyright Act, and had therefore restrained them from collecting any licence fee from performers or performing societies. He listed the matter for further hearing on 24 April 2017.

    EEMA had filed caveats in the event of these bodies seeking to challenge the restraint order and were therefore present in court when the challenge came up before the vacation bench.

    The vacation bench said for the interim period, EEMA members / the event organizer will provide PPL/IPRS/Novex a list of songs that they intend to play before an event on mail. PPL / IPRS / Novex will thereafter need to confirm in writing if they own the tracks.

    The event organisers will pay the amount before the event as per mutual negotiation with the copyright owner. The License issuing company/entity shall provide proof by way of legal agreements within seven days of the invoice, to the satisfaction of the event organiser. In case the event organiser is not satisfied by the proof provided, a refund can be claimed through the courts. The money will not be appropriated till such time that the matter is mutually resolved  

    Thus, copyright licence fees can only be collected under Section 30 which is reserved for owners of the copyright with the clear proviso that, when called upon to do so, they need to prove their ownership.

    Additionally, PPL/IPRS/Novex were asked to put up a detailed list on their website listing all songs they own, including the names of the authors / producers they have acquired them from along with the dates of validity of the contract till 31 March 2016.

    In addition to this, the licensing companies have to upload the valid legal agreements by which they claim ownership of these tracks by 31 December 2016.

    In the order that came after hearing EEMA counsel Ramji Srinivasan and Ashwani Kumar for the respondents, the Court instructed PPL/IPRS/Novex to set up an online payment gateway within one month of this hearing wherein we will be able to easily obtain permissions online.

    In a statement issued later, EEMA described the order as ‘very positive’ in the direction of transparency and accountability that EEMA and the creative fraternity across the music industry has been fighting for.

    The statement added that EEMA believes that copyright fees should be paid to the rightful creators and owners of copyright in a transparent and reasonable manner so that the rightful owners should receive their due and the rates being charged are logical and reasonable.

    Also Read:

    Court orders stay on music licensing societies from collecting royalties ahead of New Year

     

  • Delhi HC removes legal hurdles to implement DAS IV by 1 Jan 2017

    Delhi HC removes legal hurdles to implement DAS IV by 1 Jan 2017

    NEW DELHI/ MUMBAI: The Delhi High Court has vacated all interim orders giving extension of deadline in Phase III of digitisation, thus clearing legal hurdles for complete digitisation by the stipulated deadline of 31 December 2016 when the last and Phase IV is supposed to get completed.

    The court, disposing of pending petitions, directed all petitioners to run a scroll on their networks about digitisation and analog switch-off in two weeks, apart from informing their subscribers in advance about the change-over to digital signals that will require a set-top-box (STB).

    Last month, the court overruled orders passed by various other courts in the country and, in eight other cases, vacated the stay where petitioners had sought an extension of deadline for implementing digital addressable system (DAS) in Phase III areas.

    While originally the date for implementation of DAS Phase III was 30 September 2014, it was extended to 31 December 2015 by a notification issued by the ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB). The country, as per the original plan, is supposed to be fully digitised with the completion of Phase IV by the last day of 2016.

    With the latest court directive, now it’s up to the various industry stakeholders, the government and the regulator to ensure that Phase IV is completed on schedule or as early as possible. Complete digitisation of TV services in the country is expected to bring about more transparency in the system that would benefit all.

    Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) president and Zee MD Punit Goenka said, “We welcome all stakeholders into the dawn of a new era and hope that the digitisation bandwagon continues unabated in Phase IV as well, which is to be implemented from 1 January 2017.”

    IBF, an apex body of broadcasting companies, has been involved in the cases filed in various courts that were finally transferred to the Delhi High Court under the direction of the Supreme Court. “We were hit by a flurry of litigations, all filed within a space of 15 days beginning with 30 December 2015, in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Stays were obtained on implementation for periods of up to two months. Soon, the fire spread to 18 other high courts with over 50 petitions being filed,” said IBF secretary-general Girish Srivastava.

    Welcoming the judgement, Siti Networks Limited ED & CEO and president of All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF) VD Wadhwa said, “This is a landmark moment in the Digital India journey as it will clear the passage for timely implementation of DAS Phase IV. It is now obligatory on part of broadcasters and other players to disconnect analog signals within two weeks. This will also pave the way for digital revenues to flow in from these areas.” AIDCF is an industry body representing digital MSOs.

    According to Hinduja Group CEO-Media Tony DSilva, “It’s a positive step in the direction of digitisation. I would appreciate if MIB comes out with a clarification on final cut-off date for digitisation and be more realistic in the dates for Phase IV.”

    DEN CEO S N Sharma, terming the court direction as positive, said that the demand (for STBs) would increase as the legal question marks over DAS have been cleared.

    Background To Legal Cases Relating to Digitisation

    A total of 62 cases had been filed in different courts and 29 cases had been transferred by various courts to Delhi by July-end. Of the 62 cases, 12 had been disposed off by respective courts and three cases had been withdrawn by the petitioners.

    While the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana High Court had given orders extending the deadline of 31 December 2015 for Phase III, the Bombay High Court, while referring to a judgement, had said that if similar situation prevails in all states, then the stay can be pan-India. This was because the plea taken by petitioners in high courts was shortage of STBs.
     Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) had admitted that the Law Ministry had observed the order passed by the Andhra Pradesh High Court staying Phase III “appears to have all-lndia applicability”.

    Indiantelevision.com had reported in January this year that MIB had told the Punjab and Haryana High Court 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”.

    Sensing the wildfire effect the DAS Phase III cases could have, MIB approached Supreme Court with a plea to transfer all similar cases to one high court and the apex court asked Delhi High Court in April 2016 to handle these cases and directed notices to be sent to all other high courts to forward relevant files to Delhi HC.

    Also Read:

    DAS cases put off to 23 Nov as legal processes incomplete

    Siti Networks CEO V.D. Wadhwa hails dismissal of DAS III cases by Delhi HC

     

  • Delhi HC removes legal hurdles to implement DAS IV by 1 Jan 2017

    Delhi HC removes legal hurdles to implement DAS IV by 1 Jan 2017

    NEW DELHI/ MUMBAI: The Delhi High Court has vacated all interim orders giving extension of deadline in Phase III of digitisation, thus clearing legal hurdles for complete digitisation by the stipulated deadline of 31 December 2016 when the last and Phase IV is supposed to get completed.

    The court, disposing of pending petitions, directed all petitioners to run a scroll on their networks about digitisation and analog switch-off in two weeks, apart from informing their subscribers in advance about the change-over to digital signals that will require a set-top-box (STB).

    Last month, the court overruled orders passed by various other courts in the country and, in eight other cases, vacated the stay where petitioners had sought an extension of deadline for implementing digital addressable system (DAS) in Phase III areas.

    While originally the date for implementation of DAS Phase III was 30 September 2014, it was extended to 31 December 2015 by a notification issued by the ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB). The country, as per the original plan, is supposed to be fully digitised with the completion of Phase IV by the last day of 2016.

    With the latest court directive, now it’s up to the various industry stakeholders, the government and the regulator to ensure that Phase IV is completed on schedule or as early as possible. Complete digitisation of TV services in the country is expected to bring about more transparency in the system that would benefit all.

    Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) president and Zee MD Punit Goenka said, “We welcome all stakeholders into the dawn of a new era and hope that the digitisation bandwagon continues unabated in Phase IV as well, which is to be implemented from 1 January 2017.”

    IBF, an apex body of broadcasting companies, has been involved in the cases filed in various courts that were finally transferred to the Delhi High Court under the direction of the Supreme Court. “We were hit by a flurry of litigations, all filed within a space of 15 days beginning with 30 December 2015, in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Stays were obtained on implementation for periods of up to two months. Soon, the fire spread to 18 other high courts with over 50 petitions being filed,” said IBF secretary-general Girish Srivastava.

    Welcoming the judgement, Siti Networks Limited ED & CEO and president of All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF) VD Wadhwa said, “This is a landmark moment in the Digital India journey as it will clear the passage for timely implementation of DAS Phase IV. It is now obligatory on part of broadcasters and other players to disconnect analog signals within two weeks. This will also pave the way for digital revenues to flow in from these areas.” AIDCF is an industry body representing digital MSOs.

    According to Hinduja Group CEO-Media Tony DSilva, “It’s a positive step in the direction of digitisation. I would appreciate if MIB comes out with a clarification on final cut-off date for digitisation and be more realistic in the dates for Phase IV.”

    DEN CEO S N Sharma, terming the court direction as positive, said that the demand (for STBs) would increase as the legal question marks over DAS have been cleared.

    Background To Legal Cases Relating to Digitisation

    A total of 62 cases had been filed in different courts and 29 cases had been transferred by various courts to Delhi by July-end. Of the 62 cases, 12 had been disposed off by respective courts and three cases had been withdrawn by the petitioners.

    While the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana High Court had given orders extending the deadline of 31 December 2015 for Phase III, the Bombay High Court, while referring to a judgement, had said that if similar situation prevails in all states, then the stay can be pan-India. This was because the plea taken by petitioners in high courts was shortage of STBs.
     Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) had admitted that the Law Ministry had observed the order passed by the Andhra Pradesh High Court staying Phase III “appears to have all-lndia applicability”.

    Indiantelevision.com had reported in January this year that MIB had told the Punjab and Haryana High Court 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”.

    Sensing the wildfire effect the DAS Phase III cases could have, MIB approached Supreme Court with a plea to transfer all similar cases to one high court and the apex court asked Delhi High Court in April 2016 to handle these cases and directed notices to be sent to all other high courts to forward relevant files to Delhi HC.

    Also Read:

    DAS cases put off to 23 Nov as legal processes incomplete

    Siti Networks CEO V.D. Wadhwa hails dismissal of DAS III cases by Delhi HC

     

  • Rohtak Cable DAS III extension case dismissed; eight posted for 7 Dec

    Rohtak Cable DAS III extension case dismissed; eight posted for 7 Dec

    NEW DELHI: While the case by Rohtak Cable Operators’ Association challenging the deadline set for Phase III of digital addressable systems (DAS) was dismissed, the Delhi High Court today directed that it would hear the other cases on 7 December 2016.

    The division bench comprising the chief justice G Rohini and justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said it would pass orders in some of the matters on that date and would complete hearing in others.

    The division bench is taking cognizance only of cases relating to the DAS Phase III which challenge constitutional provision, while other matters are pending before a single bench.

    The cases that came up yesterday included those by Om Systems of Mumbai, Digiana Projects Pvt. Ltd., Ortel Communications Ltd., Moon I.T. Service Pvt Ltd, Allahabad Cable T.V. Operator Welfare Society, Agile Broadband Private Ltd., Ganpati Digital Network Association, and Sree Devi Digital Systems.

    Earlier, on 26 September 2016, the diision bench of the chief justice G Rohini and justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal held that two matters filed by IndusInd Media & Communication Ltd and Bhima Riddhi Digital Services were challenging the challenge to the constitutional validity of certain provisions of the Maharashtra Entertainment Duty Act, 1923, as amended by the Maharashtra Entertainment Duty (Amendment and Continuance) Act, 2014 and not the validity of the Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable Services) Interconnection (Digital Addressable Cable Television Systems) Regulations 2012.

    The Central Government counsel said appropriate steps would be taken before the Supreme Court to get these matters re-transferred to the respective high courts and so the cases were adjourned sine die.

    The Supreme Court had, on 1 April, this year accepted the plea of the Central Government that “it would be just and proper for this court to transfer to Delhi High Court all the cases pending in different high courts, many of which had given injunction orders.”

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

    (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”).

  • Rohtak Cable DAS III extension case dismissed; eight posted for 7 Dec

    Rohtak Cable DAS III extension case dismissed; eight posted for 7 Dec

    NEW DELHI: While the case by Rohtak Cable Operators’ Association challenging the deadline set for Phase III of digital addressable systems (DAS) was dismissed, the Delhi High Court today directed that it would hear the other cases on 7 December 2016.

    The division bench comprising the chief justice G Rohini and justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said it would pass orders in some of the matters on that date and would complete hearing in others.

    The division bench is taking cognizance only of cases relating to the DAS Phase III which challenge constitutional provision, while other matters are pending before a single bench.

    The cases that came up yesterday included those by Om Systems of Mumbai, Digiana Projects Pvt. Ltd., Ortel Communications Ltd., Moon I.T. Service Pvt Ltd, Allahabad Cable T.V. Operator Welfare Society, Agile Broadband Private Ltd., Ganpati Digital Network Association, and Sree Devi Digital Systems.

    Earlier, on 26 September 2016, the diision bench of the chief justice G Rohini and justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal held that two matters filed by IndusInd Media & Communication Ltd and Bhima Riddhi Digital Services were challenging the challenge to the constitutional validity of certain provisions of the Maharashtra Entertainment Duty Act, 1923, as amended by the Maharashtra Entertainment Duty (Amendment and Continuance) Act, 2014 and not the validity of the Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable Services) Interconnection (Digital Addressable Cable Television Systems) Regulations 2012.

    The Central Government counsel said appropriate steps would be taken before the Supreme Court to get these matters re-transferred to the respective high courts and so the cases were adjourned sine die.

    The Supreme Court had, on 1 April, this year accepted the plea of the Central Government that “it would be just and proper for this court to transfer to Delhi High Court all the cases pending in different high courts, many of which had given injunction orders.”

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

    (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”).

  • NDTV gets additional time in SEBI case

    NDTV gets additional time in SEBI case

    MUMBAI: Prannoy Roy and family-controlled NDTV India can heave a sigh of relief. The channel had got a notice by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in June 2016 for alleged violation of takeover norms with respect to timely disclosure of some share transactions of its promoters.

    With regards to their petition to the Delhi High Court, the date of the hearing which was 29 November 2016 has been adjourned to 17 January 2017. The change in date was announced on the BSE today.

    “The company and its promoters have, on 13 June 2016, received Show Cause Notices (SCNs) issued by Sebi with regard to certain non-compliance related to delay/non-filing of disclosures in the previous years under Sebi Takeover Regulations,” NDTV said in a regulatory filing to BSE.

    The company further said it is “of the opinion that the alleged non-compliance referred in SCN are technical/ procedural in nature,” and it is seeking legal advice to take appropriate action in the said matter.

    NDTV was recently directed by the government to go off air for 24 hours from 9 November 2016 as a penalty for breaching telecast norms related to security issues. The channel was accused of airing images and revealing information regarding defence locations while covering the Pathankot terrorist attack a few months back.

    In an another development, the News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA), the self-regulatory body of news channels under the News Broadcasters’ Association ( NBA) late last month asked NDTV, the English news channel, to air an apology for showing an incorrect map of India. The letter from NBA to NDTV stated the complaint was studied and the channel was directed to run an apology (full screen) prior to 9 pm on 5 November.

  • NDTV gets additional time in SEBI case

    NDTV gets additional time in SEBI case

    MUMBAI: Prannoy Roy and family-controlled NDTV India can heave a sigh of relief. The channel had got a notice by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in June 2016 for alleged violation of takeover norms with respect to timely disclosure of some share transactions of its promoters.

    With regards to their petition to the Delhi High Court, the date of the hearing which was 29 November 2016 has been adjourned to 17 January 2017. The change in date was announced on the BSE today.

    “The company and its promoters have, on 13 June 2016, received Show Cause Notices (SCNs) issued by Sebi with regard to certain non-compliance related to delay/non-filing of disclosures in the previous years under Sebi Takeover Regulations,” NDTV said in a regulatory filing to BSE.

    The company further said it is “of the opinion that the alleged non-compliance referred in SCN are technical/ procedural in nature,” and it is seeking legal advice to take appropriate action in the said matter.

    NDTV was recently directed by the government to go off air for 24 hours from 9 November 2016 as a penalty for breaching telecast norms related to security issues. The channel was accused of airing images and revealing information regarding defence locations while covering the Pathankot terrorist attack a few months back.

    In an another development, the News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA), the self-regulatory body of news channels under the News Broadcasters’ Association ( NBA) late last month asked NDTV, the English news channel, to air an apology for showing an incorrect map of India. The letter from NBA to NDTV stated the complaint was studied and the channel was directed to run an apology (full screen) prior to 9 pm on 5 November.

  • Justice Sachdeva refuses more time for cable digitisation

    Justice Sachdeva refuses more time for cable digitisation

    MUMBAI: The Delhi High Court has asked two cable operators to ensure that all analogue connections are converted to digital by 24 November while denying grant of any further time for installation of digital set-top boxes. The central government had asked all cable operators to install set-top boxes by 31 December, 2016.

    Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva ordered the cable operators to make sure that the conversion is over by 24 November, and all its subscribers are clearly informed about the switchover.

    “The notification was issued by the Government on 11 November, 2011. Around five years have elapsed from the said date when the operators were made aware that they have to change over to DAS. The petition was filed in February, 2016, and now we are in November. The petitioners have already got sufficient time to complete the installation of set-top boxes and the changeover to DAS. Even post the filing of the present petition, approximately nine months have passed,” the court noted as it said there was no justification for granting more time.

    The two cable operators had gone to court seeking time for installation of STBs while appealing that, till the completion of the installation, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting be restrained from discontinuing supply of analogue signal.

    On 3 November 2016, the Indian Broadcasting Foundation hailed the order passed by the Delhi High Court dismissing nine DAS-related petitions. The petitions also dealt with the time extension for implementing digital addressable system (DAS) in certain areas of Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and Uttar Pradesh under Phase-III, the deadline for which had expired on 31 December 2015. There is however no change in DAS Phase IV deadline, which continues to be 31 December 2016. With the dismissal of these petitions, the stay granted by various high courts in areas covered by the above-mentioned nine cases stands vacated and will no longer apply.

    Meanwhile around 30 more multi-system operators (MSOs) received provisional registration in October. The total of MSOs has risen to 1033 with just around seven weeks to go for switching off analogue signals and completion of digital addressable system for cable television in India. While the total of provisional licences as on 31 October went up from 774 to 804, the number of permanent licences (10 years) remained static at 229.

  • Justice Sachdeva refuses more time for cable digitisation

    Justice Sachdeva refuses more time for cable digitisation

    MUMBAI: The Delhi High Court has asked two cable operators to ensure that all analogue connections are converted to digital by 24 November while denying grant of any further time for installation of digital set-top boxes. The central government had asked all cable operators to install set-top boxes by 31 December, 2016.

    Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva ordered the cable operators to make sure that the conversion is over by 24 November, and all its subscribers are clearly informed about the switchover.

    “The notification was issued by the Government on 11 November, 2011. Around five years have elapsed from the said date when the operators were made aware that they have to change over to DAS. The petition was filed in February, 2016, and now we are in November. The petitioners have already got sufficient time to complete the installation of set-top boxes and the changeover to DAS. Even post the filing of the present petition, approximately nine months have passed,” the court noted as it said there was no justification for granting more time.

    The two cable operators had gone to court seeking time for installation of STBs while appealing that, till the completion of the installation, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting be restrained from discontinuing supply of analogue signal.

    On 3 November 2016, the Indian Broadcasting Foundation hailed the order passed by the Delhi High Court dismissing nine DAS-related petitions. The petitions also dealt with the time extension for implementing digital addressable system (DAS) in certain areas of Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and Uttar Pradesh under Phase-III, the deadline for which had expired on 31 December 2015. There is however no change in DAS Phase IV deadline, which continues to be 31 December 2016. With the dismissal of these petitions, the stay granted by various high courts in areas covered by the above-mentioned nine cases stands vacated and will no longer apply.

    Meanwhile around 30 more multi-system operators (MSOs) received provisional registration in October. The total of MSOs has risen to 1033 with just around seven weeks to go for switching off analogue signals and completion of digital addressable system for cable television in India. While the total of provisional licences as on 31 October went up from 774 to 804, the number of permanent licences (10 years) remained static at 229.