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A senior member of the IBF confirmed to indiantelevision.com
today that a member had floated the idea of legally challenging
the TRAI. But after reading the finer print of the TRAI Act, the
path of confrontation was abandoned.
"Instead of going the legal way, we, as an industry, should
work with the regulator and if there is some confusion, then we
should seek clarifications in a civil manner," the IBF member
stressed.
Towards this end, the IBF, at its board meeting today, decided
to form a sub-committee to go into the issues raised by TRAI in
its consultation paper and has also sought time from the regulator.
The sub-committee would be headed by Zee Telefilms vice-chairman
Jawahar Goel and includes ESPN India head R C Venkateish, Ten Sports
India MD Sharmista Rijhwani and Sahara TV president Mahesh Prasad.
According to a draft of a letter that is to be sent to TRAI, the
IBF secretary-general has said that the Foundation "should
be given a fair chance to present our views and explain the ground
realities of the industry."
Referring to the 15 January, 2004, TRAI notification announcing
a ceiling on charges payable by subscribers, MSOs and cable operators,
the IBF has contended, "This order was issued without consultation
with the broadcasting industry and, hence, this order has created
utter confusion in
the industry. Further, TRAI's notification included non-CAS areas
which were free of these problems so far."
IBF sources said members did bring up valid points that point towards
confusion. For example, would the TRAI order on price freeze mean
that a free to air channel cannot convert into a pay service? Till
the time, TRAI comes out with a final view on various issues, would
the order also mean that no new pay channel can be launched?
Sometime back, the government, through a notification, had mandated
TRAI as the regulator for the broadcast and cable services. It could
do this on account of an amendment that had been carried out in
the TRAI Act last year. Subsequently earlier this month, TRAI came
out with an order freezing the
cable TV rates as on 26 December and issued a consultation paper.
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