ITV

Tag: Government

  • MIB warns MSOs against disconnection signals to LCOs

    MIB warns MSOs against disconnection signals to LCOs

    MUMBAI: The Government today warned multi-system operators against disconnecting signals of local cable operators without due notice specifying reasons and said any violation of this would viewed seriously and action against erring MSOs.

     

    The directive comes even as more than twenty cases are pending before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) relating to disconnection of signals by distributors to MSOs or MSOs to LCOs.

     

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry said Chapter V of Standards of Quality of Service (Digital Addressable Cable Systems) Regulations 2012 issued by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is clear that ‘no multi system operator (MSO) shall disconnect the signals of a TV channel of a linked local cable operator, without giving three weeks’ notice to such local cable operator, clearly specifying the reasons for the proposed disconnection.’

     

    The Regulation further says notice of disconnection of signals of TV channels is also required to be published in two leading local newspapers of the State in which the service provider is providing the services, out of which one notice shall be published in the newspaper in the local language of the area.

     

    The Ministry said it had been brought to its notice that some MSOs are disconnecting signals to cable subscribers without giving any notice in violation of the Regulation.

     

    The Ministry said this is also in violation of the undertaking given by MSOs in form 2 of their application which states: ‘We shall ensure that my/our cable television network shall be run in accordance with the provisions of the Cable Television Network (Regulations) Act 1995 and the rules made thereunder, regulations, orders, guidelines or the directions issued by the Central Government or the Authority from time to time.’

  • DD awaits Prasar Bharati’s nod for a HD channel

    DD awaits Prasar Bharati’s nod for a HD channel

    NEW DELHI: In the era of high definition, Doordarshan, proved its mettle in telecasting in HD mode as early as 2010.

     

    The pubcaster had then shown the Commonwealth Games held in the national capital in HD feed, even before the other private channels entered the segment.

     

    Doordarshan is ready to launch a national channel in a parallel HD mode, as per the sources within the pubcaster, but is awaiting a nod from the  Prasar Bharati board.

     

    Prasar Bharati sources however told indiantelevision.com that the issue of a separate HD channel had not been put up before the board.

     

    Currently, DD News is telecasting the Commonwealth Games from Glasgow in high definition on its terrestrial transmitters while covering more of the games/events where Indians are participating.

     

    It is learnt that DD Sports and Ten Sports failed to reach an agreement on the issue, and the Ministry had issued a showcause notice to Ten Sports, last week, for declining to share the feed with DD Sports. Under the The Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act 2007 as it is considered a sports event of national importance, it is mandatory for the rights holder (Ten Sports, in this case) to share the broadcast with Prasar Bharati.

     

    The sports event is mandated to be carried on the terrestrial network to ensure that viewers who do not have access to cable or DTH services can also view the games. 

  • Govt admits Pakistan TV signals available in border areas

    Govt admits Pakistan TV signals available in border areas

    NEW DELHI: Even as the government has been claiming for several years that it is giving priority to strengthen its communication towers on the borders to strengthen its signals, the Home Ministry and Prasar Bharati have admitted that the signals/coverage of Pakistan TV is available in the bordering districts of the country.

     

    However, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar told Parliament that ‘no complaints have been received during the last three years regarding telecast of Pakistan TV in the bordering districts of the country.’

     

    He said strengthening of TV coverage of Doordarshan to counter the anti-India propaganda along border areas is an ongoing process. Doordarshan has been assigning priority for expansion of its coverage in the border areas of the country in various expansion plans formulated from time to time. Special packages for expansion and improvement of Doordarshan services in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) have also been implemented in the past.

     

    At present, Prasar Bharati has informed that 112 TV transmitters of varying power are functioning in the districts near the Pakistan border.

    Javadekar said that to further strengthen TV coverage in J&K, a scheme was approved in the 11th Plan which includes projects of establishment of five high power TV transmitters in J&K (Kashmir region- 1; Jammu region-1; Ladakh region-1 besides 2 high power transmitters at Rajouri).

     

    These projects are expected to be completed in phases, in about two years, he added. 

     

    Meanwhile, DD sources told indiantelevision.com that all areas uncovered by terrestrial transmitters in border areas along with the rest of the country have been provided with multichannel television coverage through Doordarshan’s free-to-air direct-to-home platform Free Dish which can be received anywhere in the country with small sized dish receiver units.

     

    However, All India Radio and DD terrestrial coverage in the border areas in Jammu and Kashmir is being strengthened with an outlay of Rs 1 billion in the 11th Plan.

      

    A total of 273 TV transmitters of varying power are presently functioning in the border areas all over the country, DD sources told indiantelevision.com

  • Steps taken to prevent bullying of children on the internet, claims government

    Steps taken to prevent bullying of children on the internet, claims government

    NEW DELHI: About 18 per cent of children have said that they have been victims of bullying on internet.

     

    This is revealed by a survey report ‘Cyber Crime -2013 – Kids (India),’ published by software company Symantec which covered a sample size of just 203 kids.

     

    Parliament was told this week that a website (secureyourpc.in) for children, home users and elderly is available for safeguarding their computer systems and learning the risks on internet. 

     

    Communications and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said there had been some media reports that children are becoming victims of depression because of cyber bullying.

     

    The Home Ministry had issued an Advisory on Preventing & combating Cyber Crime against Children on 4 January 2012, advising States/Union Territories to specifically combat the crimes in the forms of cyber stalking, cyber bullying, child pornography and exposure to sexually explicit material etc. 

     

    The Information Technology Act, 2000 has provision for dealing with cyber crimes targeting children. 

    The government has implemented Information Security Education Awareness (ISEA) programme including the programmes conducted by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Internet & Mobile Association of India (IMAI) and Data Security Council of India (DSCI) for security awareness and training in the area of information security.

     

    Specific workshops have been conducted for school children on making them aware about risks on internet and adopting safe internet browsing practices. In these programmes around 710 workshops have been organised across the country covering large number of organisations, schools, students and teachers. During the workshops, awareness kits have also been distributed. Security awareness material like posters, DVDs, cartoon/animation videos have also been developed and widely distributed.

     

    A dedicated website for information security awareness (www.infosecawareness.in) has also been developed and content is available in English and Hindi language. 

  • World’s biggest fund manager, Mohamed El-Erian speaks exclusively on ET NOW

    World’s biggest fund manager, Mohamed El-Erian speaks exclusively on ET NOW

    MUMBAI: One of the most influential voice in the global market and a veteran economist, today, speaks exclusively on ET NOW, India’s # 1 Business News channel. Catch him as he shares his views on India & Indian Economy post Modi Government and why he thinks a growth rate of sub 5 % in India is equivalent to recession elsewhere onlyon ET NOW’s marquee show ‘FII View’ today, at 7.30pm and 10.30pm.

    Chief Economic Advisor, Allianz Group and Former CEO & Co CIO at PIMC, Mohamed El-Erian is responsible for the global asset allocation strategies. In this exclusive interview which is his first ever interaction with any Indian media, he talks about expectations from the new government, risk to global liquidity in lieu of tapering & potential tightening by the Fedand opportunities to invest in Indian markets amongst many other things.
     

    ‘FII View’ features foreign institutional investors that give the viewers an opportunity to gain insights into the global markets Catch repeat telecast of the special Mohamed El-Erianshow by tuning in to ET NOW on Saturday at 10:30 am.

  • Govt. seeks public view on advertising guidelines

    Govt. seeks public view on advertising guidelines

    NEW DELHI: The government has sought the views of the general public following a Supreme Court verdict that an Advertisement Code needs to be drawn up to differentiate between advertisements about government messaging and those that are politically motivated and designed to patronise media organization and get favourable media coverage.

     

    In its verdict on 23 April, the apex court set up a three-member committee for this purpose, to be coordinated by Information and Broadcasting Ministry secretary Bimal Julka, which held its first meeting on 5 May. The Committee has been asked to submit its report within three months, and so various stakeholders have been asked to submit their views within four weeks.     

     

    The Court wanted substantive guidelines to be laid down until the legislature enacts a law in this regard.

     

    The Court felt that the Advertising Code of the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity did not draw this distinction.

     

    The petitions had been filed by Common Cause and the Centre for Public Interest Litigation. 

  • There is a Government in my TV

    There is a Government in my TV

    From the days of a single Doordarshan channel where one had to watch Krishidarshan and pretend that one is enjoying it, Indian TV has come a long way.  The choice of channels is awesome, sometimes even exhausting. There is music. There are movies. There are soaps. There is news. There is education and there are a host of special interest programmes and channels. TV is no longer just colour. If one is willing to pay for it, it is full HD with Dolby Surround Sound.

     

    Indian Government in general and a succession of Ministers of Information and Broadcasting have played a stellar role in this progress. They have been supported by outstanding bureaucrats – from Secretaries of I&B at the top to Joint Secretaries. They have been friends of the Indian public and accessible to the industry. How much the industry values the caliber and integrity of these people individually is reflected in the fact that a couple of years ago, by popular vote the industry picked Mrs Ambika Soni as the Impact Person of the year.

     

    That said, government actions in the last year or two have raised a question in many minds about the role the Government should be playing in the world of media. Not many will debate that Government has a role to play in setting the policy for media. And that the policy has to cover a number of areas.  Content to the extent it can impact law and order or public’s sense of decency for one.  Foreign investment for another. These two policy areas are relevant to all media. The third are where TV, Internet and probably radio are unique is the pace of technological advancement.  Various components of the industry have to move forward in unison to commercialize technological innovations and make them accessible to all. And to that extent government must be involved in setting these technological standards.

     

    Beyond that, Government’s involvement in issues like adcap and TV audience measurement in truth is hard to justify.  In the courts and tribunals, one can advance arguments referring to clauses of acts to justify these ‘policies’. Examples of anything can be found if one looks at government regulations around the world to support a government’s stand.

     

    But let us pause and look at some of these questions dispassionately, honestly.  What is not so unique about TV that it has advertising. If the government does not prescribe the max percentage of advertising a newspaper can carry or a website can carry, why should it prescribe a limit in the case of TV?

     

    What is not unique about TV is that advertisers want audiences of each media vehicle measured so that they may rationally decide the price they will pay for it. If the government does not prescribe guidelines for print readership measurement or internet engagement measurement, why should it be involved in setting guidelines for TV ratings measurement?

     

    Fewer regulations in important areas of policy and their strong enforcement make for a healthy, economically vibrant society.  Government’s involvement in setting ‘policy’ in dozens of micro-areas makes for a high-cost uncompetitive economy. Perhaps the incoming Government will take heed and pull out of regulating these micro-areas that are best left to the market forces.

     

    (Arvind Sharma, outgoing chairman of Leo Burnett, was the Guest Editor Of the Day at Indiantelevision.com)

  • Govt releases six documentaries for DD and YouTube

    Govt releases six documentaries for DD and YouTube

    NEW DELHI: Six documentary films produced by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) on good governance initiatives are to be telecast on National Network of Doordarshan and other television channels.

     

    According to Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions V Narayanaswamy the number of such films will now go up to 67.

     

    The films include: Tackle the problem of adverse sex ratio – initiative of District Administration of Nawashahr, Punjab; Initiative of Strengthening CSR spending in Raigarh District, Chattisgarh;  Educational initiatives in Dantewada, Chhattisgarh; Saving Open Space and Urban Lakes (SOUL) and Cultural Rejuvenation of the Twin City of Hubali-Dharwad, Karnataka; Excellence in Rural Management and Development in the Challenging Physical Environment of the Sikkim Himalaya; and Kaushalya Vardhan Kendra (Skill Development) project of the Directorate of Employment & Training, Gujarat.

     

    The films were formally released by DARPG Secretary Sanjay Kothari. The documentary films of three-and-a-half-minute duration were also screened in the release function. These are of different duration and can also be used for classroom study and discussions in the training institutes, and for conferences where senior level officers participate.

     

    Based on stakeholders’ consultation, the films have been made in three durations – 14 minutes, three-and-a-half-minute, and 30 seconds. The 14-minute format is for class room study and discussion in the Central Training Institutes (CTI) and Administrative Training Institutes (ATI); the three-and-a-half-minute film is meant for larger conferences where senior level officers participate, or if the audience is already aware of the broad contours of the schemes or for the meetings with non-officials. These are also meant for telecast on national network of Doordarshan or other television channels. The 30 second version is like a teaser to be used for advertising or to evoke interest in the audience to watch the larger version of the film.

     

    These films are available on YouTube and the department’s website www.darpg@nic.in.

  • Kantar argues TV ratings regulation requires legislative action

    Kantar argues TV ratings regulation requires legislative action

    NEW DELHI: Kantar Market Research Services, a promoter of India’s only television ratings agency TAM Media Research, said today that any action relating to fundamental rights had to be done through an act of Parliament and not by an executive order.

     

    Harish Salve, counsel for Kantar, said during the hearing on his client’s petition in the Delhi High Court against regulations for television ratings agencies that the government should have issued an ordinance and then replaced it with an act of Parliament since any attempt to regulate television ratings agencies was tantamount to interfering with the freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a). Any order curtailing fundamental rights must have statutory backing, he claimed.

     

    He said even the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India which had earlier given a report on TV ratings in 2008 and the Parliamentary Standing Committee which had considered the issue later in the same year had been of the view that the government could not tamper with the content. In any case, Salve argued that TRAI was only concerned with carriage and not content and can only make recommendations.

     

    He wondered why the Government did not act after it received the TRAI report in 2008 to push through legislation on this issue.

     

    He said the executive order under Article 73 was part of the government’s agenda to push for control of content.
     

    He said there will be a complete blackout of television viewership ratings under new government regulations since the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) was still in the planning stage.
     

    He also said that the law was in any case clear that the government was a licensor for broadcasting and not TAM which was a private rating agency. As a private agency, it could not be told not to have cross-media holding.
     

    While still not granting a stay on the regulations that come into effect from 15 February, Justice Manmohan said he will continue hearing the case tomorrow but may consider ‘interim arrangements’ if the hearing lingers on.

     

    The Judge also asked Kantar to place on its website the shareholding pattern of various shareholders in TAM since the primary objection taken by Kantar is to the reference to cross-media holding in the proposed regulations.  

     

    The three respondents Union of India, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) have filed their affidavits and will present their views tomorrow on Kantar’s petition for an interim stay. 

     

    Salve, who concluded his arguments today, said Kantar did not have any cross-holding in the broadcasting sector. He claimed that TAM was operational in 37 countries.
     

    Senior counsel Mukul Rohatgi, who also represented Kantar, said the committee that recommended BARC had itself admitted that TAM was the best rating agency in the country, and had not made any recommendations with regard to cross-media holdings.

     

    During the last hearing, the judge had wanted to know why TAM was not present itself, and Salve said that the issue of cross-media holdings mentioned in the guidelines affected Kantar which was a major shareholder and not TAM.

  • Delhi HC to further hear Kantar case tomorrow; hints at an interim arrangement

    Delhi HC to further hear Kantar case tomorrow; hints at an interim arrangement

    NEW DELHI: The deadline for implementing the TV ratings agencies policy is inching closer. But Kantar Market Research Services, a shareholder of current and only ratings agency TAM, had decided that it had to challenge the guidelines in the Delhi High Court.

     

    While still not giving it a stay order today, the court has decided that it will continue hearing the case. The next date of hearing is tomorrow. Kantar counsel today argued that the directive of the ministry on TV ratings guidelines had been done under an executive action, which can be questioned in a court of law. Counsel for Kantar also said that since the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) was still under formation, there would be a total blackout if TAM is not allowed to function.

     

    Justice Manmohan while hearing the case remarked that though he was in favour of concluding the hearing before 15 February, he would ‘consider issuing an interim arrangement if the hearing goes on longer than that date’. 15 February is when the guidelines will become effective.

     

    The three respondents Union of India, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) will present their case on Kantar’s petition for an interim stay order tomorrow. 

     

    Click here for the updated story