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Tag: I&B ministry

  • Regional Units set up to implement DAS; broadcasters ask MSOs for analogue rates till Dec

    Regional Units set up to implement DAS; broadcasters ask MSOs for analogue rates till Dec

    NEW DELHI: Twelve Regional Units (RUs) are being set up for implementation of Digital Addressable System (DAS) in Phase Ill areas.

     

    At the ninth meeting of the DAS Task Force earlier this month, Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry joint secretary (broadcasting) R Jaya said these RUs will hold workshops on digitisation where all issues shall be discussed with the District Nodal officers nominated by State Governments.

     

    The remark came when a representative of local cable operators (LCO) from Assam said multi-system operators (MSO) are stopping signals to LCOs without any reason and the local authorised officers do not take cognisance of any violation of the provisions of the Cable TV Act. He added that there is no redressal mechanism for violations of Cable Act at State level and the cable operators do not have the means to file cases in Telecom Disputes Settlement and Arbitration Tribunal (TDSAT).

     

    Additional secretary J S Mathur, who chaired the meeting on 7 July, said time was fast running out and impressed on all stakeholders to ensure progress and timely completion of digitisation by the cutoff date.

     

    The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) GS Kesarwani was given the task to ask broadcasters to get details of MSOs who were intending to wait till September 2015 before sending requests to broadcasters for agreements in Phase III areas.

     

    On the other hand, Mathur said that the endeavour on the MSOs’ part should be to start using indigenously manufactured set-top-boxes (STBs) in their network.

     

    Kesarwani informed of a review meeting that was held by TRAI on the progress of signing inter-connect agreements for Phase Ill areas with broadcasters and MSOs. He said that three broadcasters namely Star India, Multi Screen Media (MSM) and TV18 – informed TRAI that they had received 55 requests from MSOs so far out of which they have signed commercial deals with two MSOs, whereas deals with 11 MSOs were in advance stages of negotiation.

     

    Kesarwani also urged MSOs who had not received any response to their requests from broadcasters, to inform TRAI.

     

    Saying that the Headend-in-the-Sky (HITS) operations were also covered under DAS regulations, Kesarwani asked HITS operators to apprise TRAI if no response was received from broadcasters to their requests for interconnect agreements.

     

    Apprehending that there may be some gap areas or MSO deficient areas, Jaya asked Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) representatives to get details of these areas from broadcasters and intimate the same to the Ministry.

     

    Meanwhile even as they admitted some progress, representatives of national MSOs said  that broadcasters were asking for seeding plans and other data. However, MSOs were not in a position to provide this at this stage. They said channel pricing in Phase III areas was the main hurdle in signing of interconnect agreements. Some of them said that a few broadcasters had proposed agreements on analogue rates till December 2015 and others on reference inter-connect order rates.

     

    Even according to the TRAI, pricing can be different for different markets, they said.

     

    A representative of Siticable Networks said, “According to an analysis of urban areas carried out by us, it may not be feasible for any operator to carry out digitisation in urban areas having only a few hundred TV households. Even broadcasters are insisting on analogue agreements at present.”

     

    According to an IBF representative, broadcasters had entered into agreements with five regional MSOs. He said, “Broadcasters have filed an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging the TDSAT judgment on the tariff orders issued by TRAI.”

     

    On the issue of STBs, a representative of Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA ) said that no major orders were received by the industry so far from MSOs. On the other hand, while Siticable and Hathway officials said they were in talks with indigenous STB manufacturers, officials of direct-to-home (DTH) companies said that they had procured about three million STBs from Videocon.

     

    The meeting was attended by around 35 persons including some senior Ministry officials and some representatives from state governments.

  • Mock auctions extended by a day to accommodate Sun Group FM bidders

    Mock auctions extended by a day to accommodate Sun Group FM bidders

    NEW DELHI: Even as the e-auction for the first batch of bidders for FM Phase III is to commence on 27 July, the Government held three rounds of mock auctions instead of the originally announced two.

     

    The mock auctions while earlier were slated for 22 and 23 July, were extended by one more day to 24 July.

     

    Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry sources told Indiantelevision.com that the mock exercise had been extended in the light of the Delhi High Court order of 22 July with regard to Red FM for taking part in the auctions and the Madras High Court order of 23 July with regard to Kal Radio-run Suryan FM to take part in the e-auctions.

     

    C1 India Pvt. Ltd is serving as the e-auctioneer and auction adviser to the I&B Ministry, who arranged the training of pre-qualified bidders for the first batch of private FM radio Phase III on 17 July, 2015. The training was held in two batches on the same day, at National Media Centre in New Delhi.

     

    A total of 28 applicants had applied for the e-auction of 135 private FM radio channels for the first batch of the Phase III expansion plan. The 28 applicants had cumulatively submitted Rs 316.91 crore as earnest money deposit by 27 March, 2015, which was the deadline for the application process.

     

    Meanwhile the petition related to participation Red FM in the FM Phase III auction will be heard by the Supreme Court on 25 July. 

  • Radio Mirchi gets I&B nod to purchase Oye FM

    Radio Mirchi gets I&B nod to purchase Oye FM

    MUMBAI: Radio Mirchi FM’s mother company Entertainment Network (India) Limited (ENIL) has received the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry’s nod to purchase TV Today Network’s (TVTN) four radio stations, which owns 104.8 FM Oye.

     

    This includes the company’s radio business in Amritsar, Jodhpur, Patiala and Shimla.

     

    The purchase will be subject to fulfilment of conditions specified by I&B Ministry, execution of relevant documents with TVTN and completion of all other relevant formalities.

     

    It can be noted that ENIL had signed the non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with TV Today Network for the purchase of seven radio stations. However, on 13 February, 2015 and 8 May, 2015, I&B Ministry declined its approval on the grounds that the proposed sale by TVTN and proposed purchase by ENIL is not in conformity with the FM Radio Guidelines.

     

    With this approval, the shares of ENIL saw a hike of close to 17 per cent in intraday trading on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) to touch a life high of Rs 849 on 22 July.

  • TV Today board raises foreign investment limit to 26%

    TV Today board raises foreign investment limit to 26%

    MUMBAI: The board of TV Today Network has approved the increase in foreign investment limit by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) and Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) up to 26 per cent and by non-resident Indian (NRI) up to 24 per cent of the paid-up capital of the company.

     

    However, this will be subject to the maximum permissible limit of 26 per cent of the paid-up capital of the company, under the Portfolio Investment Scheme pursuant to FEMA (Transfer or issue of Security by a person resident outside India) Regulations, 2000 (‘FEMA Regulations’) and approval of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

     

    Additionally, the FIBP approval should be in accordance with the revised uplinking guidelines for news and current affairs channel by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India and other applicable laws.

     

    The network informed the same to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), saying that the infusion of foreign investment would be subject to the shareholders’ approval.

  • Sun TV to move HC on denial of permission to bid for FM Phase III auctions

    Sun TV to move HC on denial of permission to bid for FM Phase III auctions

    NEW DELHI: The Sun TV Group is planning to move the High Court in Delhi or Chennai on Monday (20 July) to challenge the denial of permission to Red FM to bid in Phase III of FM auctions.

     

    Sun Group chief financial officer SL Narayanan told Indiantelevision.com that the Group had received a formal communication from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry on night of 16 July that it would not be allowed to bid in view of pending cases against the Maran brothers.

     

    Narayanan said that the Group had so far refrained from commenting as “we do not want to fight in the media,” but was not reacting as the Ministry had given it a cause of action for a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution.

     

    The list of 21 bidders, which had got the go-ahead on 15 July did not contain the name of Red FM, which is a strong contender.

     

    Narayanan also said that the cases against the Marans were not linked to security issues and had in any case not been concluded. Further, he said that a company could not be asked to close down merely because it had some cases pending against it.

     

    Expressing his gratitude to the manner in which the Indian media had taken up the cause of freedom of the press on behalf of Sun, he said that no plans had been drawn up for moving the Courts on Sun TV since there was no cause for action as the government had so far failed to send any communication relating to the security clearance issue pending with the Home Ministry.

     

    He was particularly grateful to Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) president Uday Shankar and Association of Radio Operators in India’s (AROI) Uday Chawla for writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as Home Minister Rajnath Singh and I&B Minister Arun Jaitley.

     

    In addition, political parties Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and PMK had also issued statements condemning the delay by the Government in taking a decision.

  • MIB urges MSOs not to be misled by fraud agents for registration

    MIB urges MSOs not to be misled by fraud agents for registration

    NEW DELHI: The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has once again asked applicant multi-system operators (MSOs) not to be misled by individuals making false claims of helping to get the MSO licences in lieu of illegal gratification.

     
    The Ministry, which has earlier alerted MSOs and TV broadcasters several times in this regard, had last posted a similar notice on its website on 5 August last year.

     
    However, it has come to the notice of the I&B Ministry that ‘certain individuals are approaching MSO applicants with false claims of providing MSO registrations and demanding illegal gratifications/bribe to get the work done.’

     
    The Ministry reiterated that it had adopted a very transparent way of dealing with issuance of MSO registrations. In order to maintain transparency in processing of MSO registration applications, the Ministry organizes monthly Open House Meeting on the 20th of every month in the chamber of Deputy Secretary (Digitization).

    A notice in this regard had also been put on the website on 9 April this year. 
     

    This mechanism enables the applicants to know the status of their applications, provide/submit documents as required by the MIB as also to represent their grievances to the Ministry.
     

    For any doubt or enquiry about status of their applications, the applicant MSOs may participate in the Open House Meeting by sending an e-mail at sectionofficerdas@email.com with a copy at das.miK@gmail.com by the 10th of every month.

  • Registered MSOs for DAS areas touch 275 mark; cancellations total 29

    Registered MSOs for DAS areas touch 275 mark; cancellations total 29

    NEW DELHI: With less than six months for the completion of Phase III of Digital Addressable System (DAS) for cable television, the number of multi system operators (MSOs) who have been given permanent registration for a period of ten years is now 215.

     

    In addition, a total of 60 MSOs have been given provisional registration, while 29 MSOs have had their licences cancelled or their files have been closed.

     

    The number of MSOs getting permanent licences has gone up sizably since the list issued on 22 June put this figure at 191.

     

    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 only four, which were cancelled in 2015.

     

    MSOs given permanent registration pan India after 22 June include Goldy Diginet of Rajasthan, Engineer’s Resource Associates India of Madhya Pradesh, Multireach Media of Kolkata, SHR Digital Networks of Delhi and Siti Cable Network Limited of Noida.

     

    The others are as follows: E-Cable Vision of Chhatisgarh to cover the Districts of Dhamtari, Charama, Kanker, Keskal, Konda Goan, Jagdalpur, Gidam, Dantewada, Kirndul, Nagarnar, Balod, Dalli Rajraha, Bhanupartapur, Mahasamund, Kurud and Nagri under Phase-lll & lV; Manair Digital Entertainment Networks for Telengana; Narmada Cable Network for Kareli and Narsinghpur Tehsils in Madhya Pradesh, Linkmen Services for West Bengal; Desh Entertainment for West Bengal Under Phase III & IV; Sai Digital Services for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana under Phase lll and lV; INSAT Cable Network for Sitara, Pune, Sangli, Solapur and Raigard/Sindu Durg Districts in Maharashtra; Mahapatra Dooradarshan Cable Network System for Ganjam District of Odisha; Raj Cable Network for Anuppur, Shahdol and Umaria District in Madhya Pradesh and Koria, Surajpur and Ambikapur District in Chhattisgarh, Baba Nanak Optical & Fiber in Punjab; Aurangabad Satellite Cable Service Centre for West Bengal areas; SM Cable for Pachpadra in Barmer District of Rajasthan; Diamond Cable Network for Bhandara, Gondia & Nagpur Districts of Maharashtra under Phase-lll & lV; Zaka Cable TV Network for Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand; One Digital TV Services in Nalgonda, Khamam, Warangal, Ranga Reddy & Mahaboob Nagar Districts under Phase lll & lV in Telangana; Bhagyalakshmi Communication Network in Rompicherla, Chinnagottigallu, Bakarapet, Sodam, Somala, Chowdepalle’ Kallur, Damal Gheruvu and Kalikiri in Ghittoor District of Andhra Pradesh; and Bhimavaram Community Network in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh.

     

    While there is no new addition to the northeast, one licence has been issued for Kashmir to J K Cable Network for Sopore, Baramula, Zainageer, Rafiabad, Bandipora, Handwara, Kupwara, Uri, Pattan, Tangmarg, Gulmdrg, Sumbal, Hajin, Narbal and parts of Srinagar. 

     

    While Kal Cables continues to be blacklisted by the Home Ministry, licences issued for Tamil Nadu are: Lucky Cable Vision which will cover area in all cities, towns, Town Panchayats, Village Panchayats of Pollachi (Taluka) Udhumalpet (Taluka), Palani (Taluka), Valparai (Taluka), Kinathu, Kadavu (Taluka) Phase III & Phase IV; and King Digital Network for Salem.

  • FM phase III agreement formats with I&B and WPC released

    FM phase III agreement formats with I&B and WPC released

    NEW DELHI: Aiming to expedite the process for FM Radio Phase III, the Government has released the format of the Grant of Permission Agreement (GOPA) for FM Radio in Phase III and the agreement format for those migrating from Phase II.

     

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry also placed on its website mib.nic.in the format of the undertaking to be given to the WPC Wing of the Telecom Ministry for frequency assignment.

     

    This undertaking makes it clear that the spectrum given to the FM operator will be provisional and will be surrendered in the event of the operator getting fresh spectrum after a permanent licence is issued through auction.

     

    The permission will be valid for a period of 15 years from the effective date and there will be no extension. The permission, unless cancelled or revoked earlier, will automatically lapse and expire at the end of 15 years. Additionally, the permission holder will thereafter have no rights to continue to operate the channel after the expiry date.

     

    The effective date of the permission period shall be reckoned from 1 April, 2015. The permission will be for free to air broadcasts on main carrier and data on sub-carriers.

     

    The agreement mentions that the permission holder shall not be competent to grant a sub–permission directly or indirectly. However, the permission holder may resort to outsourcing of content production as well as leasing of content development equipment as long as it does not impact the permission holder’s right as FM broadcaster and enjoys complete control over the channel. The permission holder will be fully responsible for any violations or omissions of the stipulated provisions with regard to the content.

    As per the agreement, the permission holder may hire or lease broadcasting equipments on long-term basis as long as it does not impact permission holder’s right as FM Radio broadcaster and enjoys complete control over the channel. However, the permission holder will be fully responsible for any violation of the stipulated technical parameters.

     

    The permission holder will not enter into any borrowing or lending arrangement with other permission holders or entities except recognised financial institutions and its related entities, which may restrict its management or creative discretion to procure or broadcast content or its marketing rights.

     

    It will be the responsibility of the permission holder to ensure that there is no linkage between a party from whom a programme is outsourced and an advertising agency.

     

    The holder will also have to ensure that no content, messages, advertisement or communication, transmitted in its broadcast channel is objectionable, obscene, unauthorised or inconsistent with the laws of India.

     

    The Government will have the right to temporarily suspend permission of the permission holder in public interest or for national security for such period or periods as it may direct. The company shall immediately comply with any directives issued in this regard failing which the permission issued shall be revoked and the company disqualified to hold any such permission in future for a period of five years.

     

    The total direct and indirect foreign investment including portfolio and foreign direct investments into the company has been capped at 26 per cent.

     

    In the event of the government announcing a new cross-media policy, the permission holder will have to conform to this within six months.

     

    The permission holder will follow the same programme and advertisement codes as followed by All India Radio (AIR) or any other applicable code, which the Central Government may prescribe from time to time.

     

    Additionally, the permission holder will be permitted to carry the news bulletins of AIR in the exact same format on such terms and conditions as may be mutually agreed with Prasar Bharati. No other news and current affairs programs have been permitted under the Phase III policy.

     

    The broadcast pertaining to the categories to be treated as non-news and current affairs broadcast and therefore permissible include information pertaining to sporting events, excluding live coverage. However live commentaries of sporting events of local nature may be permissible. Other coverage includes information pertaining to traffic and weather; coverage of cultural events, festivals; coverage of topics pertaining to examinations, results, admissions, career counseling; availability of employment opportunities; public announcements pertaining to civic amenities like electricity, water supply, natural calamities, health alerts etc. as provided by the local administration; and such other categories not permitted at present, that may subsequently be specifically permitted by the government.

  • TRAI to resolve disputes between MSOs & broadcasters on interconnect agreements

    TRAI to resolve disputes between MSOs & broadcasters on interconnect agreements

    NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is holding a meeting on 14 July to resolve any issues between broadcasters and multi system operators (MSOs) relating to interconnect agreements.

     

    The Information and Broadcasting Ministry (I&B) has asked all broadcasters and MSOs facing such problems to bring this to the notice of TRAI by 10 July.

     

    The TRAI representative who had attended the ninth Task Force Meeting for implementation of Digital Addressable System (DAS) in phase III areas on 7 July had given this assurance.

     

    The MSO has been asked to indicate the name of the broadcaster with whom there are any specific issues so that the representative of that broadcaster may also be called for the meeting.

     

    The exact time of the meeting would be conveyed by TRAI to the participants through e-mail after receiving the representation. 

  • AIDCF submits recommendations to I&B; asks for removal of 8% AGR on cable broadband

    AIDCF submits recommendations to I&B; asks for removal of 8% AGR on cable broadband

    MUMBAI: Broadband is the way forward for multi system operators (MSOs) who are looking at improving their average revenue per user (ARPU). Understanding the pain areas of the operators who are looking at expanding their broadband base, the newly formed MSO association- All India Digital Cable Federation (AIDCF), recently met the Information and Broadcasting Ministry (I&B) on the issue of 8 per cent AGR being charged on MSOs offering broadband services.

     

    During the meeting a five point recommendation was submitted to the Ministry, which later will be submitted to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). The recommendation reads:

     

    1)      Remove the 8 per cent AGR applicable for MSOs who are offering broadband services.

     

    2)      It has requested the Government to support MSOs for right of way and protection of infrastructure laid on ground. MSOs offering broadband services feel that the pole charges levied by some states are huge. Also, to set up the broadband service, expensive equipment needs to be installed on streets and poles. According to AIDCF, as of now, there are no rules per se, to protect the equipment which costs anywhere between Rs 7000 to Rs 10,000. The association, through the recommendation, is asking the Government to protect the expensive equipment, so that the MSOs can start installing the infrastructure.

     

    3)      The association has asked the Government to rationalise import duties on network equipment. While the Government has plans for ‘Digital India’ and ‘Make in India’, there are still certain infrastructure related products which are not being manufactured in the country, and hence have to be imported. The association has thus asked the Government to rationalise the import duties being charged on these goods, until someone from the country starts manufacturing them.

     

    4)      It has requested the Government, like in the case of Telecom, to provide infrastructure status to the cable broadband network. With the infrastructure status, MSOs will become eligible for easy bank financing, in addition to overseas fund raising to expand their broadband base.

               

    5)      Allow use of Universal Service Obligation (USO) fund for wireline network rollout in the country.