ITV

Tag: Regulatory Authority

  • Pakistan’s cable TV operators end strike

    Pakistan’s cable TV operators end strike

     MUMBAI: Cable operators have agreed to abide by the rules and regulations of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) regarding re-broadcasting of channels without ‘lending rights’.

    A spokesman for Pemra said the authority had returned the equipment of the cable operators confiscated for showing the channels, which had not been granted ‘lending rights’ by Pemra.

    The cable operators pledged to support Pemra to enforce regulatory regime and they called off their strike in Islamabad on 24th December and resumed their cable service operation. .The spokesman said the satellite channel required registration under rules for getting ‘lending rights’.

    The spokesman said 35 channels had no ‘lending rights’ from Pemra including AXN, National Geographic, Reality, Set Max, Sony, Sahara One, Balle Balle, Etc, Channel One, Now, MM, MM2, M NET, Series, Action, Super Sports 1, Super Sports 2, Super Sports 3, Super Sports 4, Super Sports 5, Super Sports 6, Fashion TV International, Zee TV, Zee Cinema, Zee Music, Zee Sports, Zee News, Zee Smile, STAR Ustav, STAR Care, STAR Gold, BHU Movies, BHU Music and E-Entertainment.

    On 23 December, Pemra had ordered Pakistan’s cable TV operators to stop airing 35 channels over ‘piracy issues’ and threatened a complete shutdown of the service from this week, a media report said .

    “It (the closure of 35 channels) is a regulatory action to force cable TV operators to air only legitimately subscribed channels and stop showing those banned by the government,” said Pemra spokesman Muhammad Saleem. “We have received complaints from these channels and have been urging these operators not to indulge in piracy and show only those channels which they subscribe to.”

    The cable industry in Pakistan was legalised in 2000 during the military rule of Gen. Pervez Musharraf. Pakistan Television (PTV) had total monopoly in the television industry till private channels, run from outside but catering to Pakistani audiences, began surfacing in mid-2002.

    There has been a tremendous growth in cable TV operators in the country over the last two years and besides nearly 1,000 registered with the association, there are countless others operating illegally.

    For commercial and political reasons, Pakistan banned some Indian channels in 1999 as the government at that time believed they were hurting the country’s interests.
    While they were believed to be indulging in propaganda against the country, these channels were also eating away a major chunk of advertising revenue as people had switched over to more entertaining Indian channels.

  • MSOs demand new electronic media regulatory authority

    NEW DELHI: Proposing that any new TV channel seeking to beam into India ought to be mandated through a set-top box in a digital mode, multi-system operators (MSOs) have petitioned the government that a new electronic media regulatory authority should be set up or sector regulator’s powers enhanced.
     

    MSO Alliance, a body of some of the biggest MSOs in the country, has also said that conditional access system (CAS) is required to be mandated for the whole country “on a progressive” basis with 12 months set as a time-bound implementation framework and “immediate rollout in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata on a full-city basis.”

    The stand of the MSOs is in contrast to the demand by a section of the industry that CAS should be implemented on a voluntary basis.

    Making a case for compulsory licensing of all content providers/broadcasters/cable operators, in a submission to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), mandated to regulate the broadcast and cable sectors too, the MSO Alliance has further submitted that a clause on non- discrimination on content should be made compulsory on broadcasters/content providers.

    In effect, this would means that all broadcasters/content providers would have to compulsorily provide their products to all platforms; even if that means supplying TV channels to a rival-promoted platform. Under this demand, for example, Star India would have to provide all its channels to the country’s first KU-band DTH service, Dish TV, which is promoted by rival Subhash Chandra’s companies (something that has been resisted till now). Vice versa would also hold true.

    In another interesting observation, the MSOs have pitched for Trai being the intermediary when commercial agreements between the cable and broadcast industry are signed. Tariff rates/ revenue sharing mechanisms amongst broadcasters, MSOs and local cable ops ought to be “regulated by Trai on an equitable commercial principles for the initial period of at least 12 months,” the Alliance has stated.

    At the moment, as per a Trai order, not only commercial agreements are referred to the regulator, but the broadcasters also have to submit their accounts of profit and loss to Trai.

    According to the MSO Alliance, a la-carte choice of pay channels is to be made available to customers as it is the essence of CAS, though “broadcasters may offer better prices in bouquet form.”

    MSO Alliance is a body comprising Rajan Raheja controlled Hathway Datacom, Hindujas-controlled IndusInd Media (INCablenet), Sun group’s parent company Sumangali (SCV), RPG Network, Trinity Platco and Zee Telefilms cable subsidiary Siti Cable.

    The Alliance presentation to Trai, made earlier this month, also enlists the following initiatives that should be undertaken by Trai in the run-up to CAS implementation:

    Stress advantages of digital transmission, enhanced viewing experience and additional viewing choices including PPV/VOD etc in order to overcome the problem of channel carrying capacity constraints in analogue mode.

    Educate consumer groups, public at large and the media about the consumer friendliness and choice of channels through CAS, specially free to air choice not requiring boxes and tailoring of cable price by intelligent choice of packages.

    Liaisoning with the state governments and setting up of state-level implementation committees to monitor proper implementation of guidelines issued by Trai. State governments to set up special consumer courts or create ombudsmen to settle consumer issues.

    Broadcasters to announce transparent a la carte/bouquet prices.

    MSOs to announce affordable schemes; both outright purchase and refundable rental schemes (for STBs ) for consumers, with commercial interoperability mechanism.

  • Pak cable ops call off strike

    MUMBAI: Pakistan cable operators called off their three day agitation on Tuesday evening, and have decided not to press for the resumption of transmission of banned channels in the country.
    ACable operators in Pakistan had gone on a week long agitation protesting the government’s ban on Indian satellite channels, which are very popular across the border.
    Operators across the country, owing allegiance to the All Pakistan Cable Operators Welfare Association, blacked out all foreign and local private channels in most parts of the country, but the government stuck to its stand saying that Indian channels would not be allowed. While operators showed only the four PTV channels, PTI reports said that the government was also considering revoking the licenses of cable ops who continued to resort to a blackout, as a punitive measure. Last evening, however, the operators called off their strike and resumed transmission of a number of channels to their viewers.
    According to the daily Dawn, a spokesman for the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority welcomed the step and said Pemra would help in the resolution of their “genuine” problems within the parameters of Pemra Ordinance and as per policy of the government. “We will facilitate between the channel providers and cable operators in determining rates for foreign channels and also ask Wapda and civic bodies to extend cooperation to cable operators,” a spokesman of the Authority said.
    While the cable ops have dropped the demand for resumption of transmission of banned Indian channels, accordingt to the Dawn, the associaton representing the cable ops has now outlined major problems including high rates of foreign channels available on decoders, difficulties in availing poles facilities of bodies like Wapda, the absence of a uniform policy of civic bodies and relay of ads on VCDs. Pemra is scheduled to hold a public hearing shortly on the issue of fixing rates of foreign channels, the Dawn says.

  • FTA channels demand separate regulatory authority for broadcasters

    NEW DELHI: India’s information and broadcasting (I&B) minister Ravi Shankar Prasad doesn’t tire from saying there is life beyond and apart from conditional access system (CAS), but he continues to meet the industry over the issue.
    The free to air (FTA) Indian channels have now demanded a regulatory mechanism for the broadcasting sector to be put in place now that CAS rollout is just about 20 days away.
    According to government sources, representatives from broadcasting companies, including those from Zee, Aaj Tak, NDTV and Sahara, were of the view that a regulatory authority for broadcasting could be separated from the Convergence Bill, since it was not known how long its passage would take.
    However, Zee Telefilms vice-chairman Jawahar Goel played down the meeting with Prasad saying it was a routine one to take stock of the situation before CAS rollout. Among those in the delegation were TV Today Network CEO G Krishnan, Sahara TV president Mahesh Prasad, NDTV’s director Narayan Rao and Goel.
    A PTI report states that some broadcasters also met Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray, who had been opposing CAS, in Mumbai on Monday. A delegation of roadcasters is also likely to meet Delhi chief minister Shiela Dikshit, an opponent of the measure, urging her not to make CAS a political debate.
    The PTI report, quoting unnamed sources, said, at today’s meeting in Delhi the broadcasters impressed upon the minister that Star wanted CAS to be delayed as their television ratings would drop since its direct-to-home (DTH) proposal was still in the pipeline.
    The broadcasters also welcomed the setting up of a CAS Implementation Committee, which had representatives from all broadcasters. Sources said Prasad told the broadcasters that the government, having learnt a lot from the CAS experience, was for a regulator, however, the issue was clubbed with the Convergence Bill pending in Parliament.

  • Ministry of consumer affairs representatives on CAS panel: I&B

    NEW DELHI: India’s information and broadcasting ministry, grappling with the issue of implementing conditional access (CAS) in cable homes in metros, has decided to have representatives of ministry of consumer affairs on the CAS implementation panel, which will have its first meeting in the first week of August.

    “There had been a demand to involve the consumer affairs ministry and we thought it’d be good to do so,” a senior government functionary said today.
    Pointing out that political opposition to CAS has almost been smoothened out, it was revealed that the government does not foresee much hitch in the rollout of CAS from 1 September.
    In the lower house of the Parliament today, dwelling on CAS, information and broadcasting minister Ravi Shankar Prasad informed his fellow parliamentarians that the zone-wise implementation of CAS in the metros would give everybody time that will be “utilised to set up preparedness for smooth rollout of CAS and to educate subscribers and increase their awareness.”
    Later, inaugurating a newly refurbished Press Lounge at the Press Information Bureau (PIB) in the capital, Prasad took a swipe at the television industry by saying my assertion of “self regulation better than control” has not worked with the television people. “I hope it would work with journalists who, I am sure, would help in the upkeep of the swanky lounge,” the minister said.
    REGULATORY AUTHORITY
    The Indian government is studying a suggestion that entails expanding the ambit of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to cover the broadcast sector.
    Though the information and broadcasting ministry preferred to play down this move, a senior official did admit that having TRAI do the job on a temporary basis is a suggestion that has come to the ministry.
    “But these things (like a regulatory body) cannot be done in a hurry and various suggestions have to be studied,” the official said, adding that seminars on the issue of a regulatory mechanism would be held in association with the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries 
    (Ficci).