Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Forced to share 75 per cent of its advertisement revenue with telecast rights-holders for sporting events held in foreign countries,public broadcaster Prasar Bharati wants the government to amend the law so it is able to retain at least 50 per cent of these revenues.
Private broadcasters holding telecast rights of major events outside in which India has a major stake,such as cricket,are mandated by law to share their feed with Doordarshan. This law,the Sports Broadcasting Signals Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati Act,enables private broadcasters to claim 75 per cent of revenue generated by Doordarshan. The Prasar Bharati Board on Tuesday,has proposed that this law be amended to ensure that it is required to pay not more than 50 per cent.
The Prasar Bharati Board also wants DD to sell its own advertisement space. As of now,the private company owning the telecast rights sells space for itself and for Doordarshan.
Prasar Bharati has further suggested that airing of public interest campaigns,like those related to RTI or Bharat Nirman,should not be counted as commercial advertising. Also,while calculating the revenue to be shared,airtime devoted to these campaigns must not be included.
In a statement,the Prasar Bharati said it would request the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for immediate implementation of its recommendations because of the heavy financial consequences imposed on Doordarshan due to the unequal playing field provided under the present dispensation.
