Answering a question in the Lok Sabha, the Minister of State (MoS) in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore said that Doordarshan’s free direct-to-home (DTH) platform Free Dish has seen a drop in its TV channel offering; it is now offering 72 channels. Earlier, it offered 80 channels.
Free Dish also offers 39 radio channels. Rathore added that the government has approved the distribution of 66,000 DTH in tribal, remote & border areas.
The MoS added that the government sanctioned a scheme under 12th Plan for further expansion of Doordarshan’s DTH platform up to 250 TV channels which also adds to the prospects of revenue generation through advertisement and through additional channels.
The high slot price ranging from Rs 6.5 crore and Rs 8 crore looked too much for broadcasters to launch their channels n Free Dish.
Rathore said: “The revenue model of DD Free Dish has limitations and the Ministry advised Prasar Bharati (Doordarshan) that the proposed e-auction be kept in abeyance. Doordarshan offers a channel for as low as Rs.6-8 crores whereas as per newspaper reports including in The Tribune dated 11/10/2017 with the title “DD to review auction of slots to Private Channels on free dish” a private channel earns between Rs.500-700 crores.”
The minister also told that the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has asked the government to come out with a comprehensive policy for Free Dish.
MIB has no power on Digital: The MoS Rathore also told the lawmakers that the I&B Ministry has no power to issue licences to online news channels and portals. He added that the policy matters relating to information technology and internet are governed by the Information Technology Act, 2000 administered by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
He said: “Presently, this Ministry has no legislation/ policy to register or issue licenses to online news channels/ portals.”
The MoS added: “MIB does not regulate paid streaming and video on demand services provided over the internet.”
On monitoring, he said: “Law Enforcement agencies regularly monitor the web and social media and take appropriate action for blocking of such URLs whenever they notice hosting of objectionable contents as per provision of rules notified under Section 69A of Information Technology Act 2000.”
Source: http://cablequest.org/index.php/news/dth-news/item/12442-eight-channels-quit-free-dish-mib-not-authorized-to-issue-license-to-online-channels-rathore
The MoS added that the government sanctioned a scheme under 12th Plan for further expansion of Doordarshan’s DTH platform up to 250 TV channels which also adds to the prospects of revenue generation through advertisement and through additional channels.
The high slot price ranging from Rs 6.5 crore and Rs 8 crore looked too much for broadcasters to launch their channels n Free Dish.
Rathore said: “The revenue model of DD Free Dish has limitations and the Ministry advised Prasar Bharati (Doordarshan) that the proposed e-auction be kept in abeyance. Doordarshan offers a channel for as low as Rs.6-8 crores whereas as per newspaper reports including in The Tribune dated 11/10/2017 with the title “DD to review auction of slots to Private Channels on free dish” a private channel earns between Rs.500-700 crores.”
The minister also told that the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has asked the government to come out with a comprehensive policy for Free Dish.
MIB has no power on Digital: The MoS Rathore also told the lawmakers that the I&B Ministry has no power to issue licences to online news channels and portals. He added that the policy matters relating to information technology and internet are governed by the Information Technology Act, 2000 administered by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
He said: “Presently, this Ministry has no legislation/ policy to register or issue licenses to online news channels/ portals.”
The MoS added: “MIB does not regulate paid streaming and video on demand services provided over the internet.”
On monitoring, he said: “Law Enforcement agencies regularly monitor the web and social media and take appropriate action for blocking of such URLs whenever they notice hosting of objectionable contents as per provision of rules notified under Section 69A of Information Technology Act 2000.”
Source: http://cablequest.org/index.php/news/dth-news/item/12442-eight-channels-quit-free-dish-mib-not-authorized-to-issue-license-to-online-channels-rathore
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