|
NEW DELHI: Ten members of the Lok Sabha have moved a Statutory
Resolution disapproving the promulgation of the Sports Broadcasting
Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Ordinance
on 2 February.
The statutory resolution will be put to the vote on tomorrow
(8 March) when the Lok Sabha is scheduled to take up for consideration
and passing the Bill to replace the Ordinance.
The discussion will be subject to the completion of the discussion
to the Motion of Thanks to the President for his Address to
the Joint Sitting of both Houses.
The members are Communist Party of India (Marxist) member
Mr V Radhakrishnan, Mr Ramjilal Suman of the Samajwadi Party,
Shiv Sena member Suresh Prabhu, Mr Rajiv Ranjan Singh 'Lalan'
of the Janata Dal (United), and Bharatiya Janata Party members
Bachi Singh Rawat, Professor Rasa Singh Rawat, Professor Vijay
Kumar Malhotra, Mr Santosh Gangwar, Mr Girdhari Lal Bhargava,
and Mrs Sumitra Mahajan.
These members feel that since the Parliament session was
slated to commence later in February, there was no need for
the Government to resort to issuance of an Ordinance.
Introducing the Bill making it mandatory for private broadcasters
to share the feed of live telecast of sports events with Prasar
Bharati, information and broadcasting minister Priyaranjan
Dasmunsi had told the Lok Sabha earlier this month that the
law was in the interest of millions of viewers who had the
facility of only terrestrial or free-to-air channels to enjoy
live sports events of national and international importance.
The Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar
Bharati) Bill 2007 will have retrospective effect from November
2005 when the Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines had been
issued.
The ordinance was promulgated after Nimbus Communications
refused to share live feed of the India-West Indies one-day
series with Doordarshan after the Delhi High Court passed
an order for a seven-minute deferred telecast signal to the
public broadcaster and live broadcast on All India Radio.
The Minister in a statement giving reasons for promulgation
of the Ordinance, said the Government was only reiterating
an earlier order making sharing of live feed of sports events
with Doordarshan mandatory.
The statement of objects and reasons appended to the Bill
said the public broadcaster Doordarshan covered 98 per cent
of the population and was the only network having terrestrial
rights of broadcasting.
Distribution of broadcasting signals of sporting events of
public interest in India is characterised by a few dominant
exclusive rights holders or broadcasters and distribution
platforms. "The end result is that a large number of
listeners and viewers in India especially those who do not
have access to satellite and cable TV and most of which are
in rural areas are denied access to these events," it
added.
Under the Bill, television channels that fail to comply would
have to pay a penalty up to Rs 10 million and also face possible
revocation or suspension of license. It has also been stipulated
that no action of the government would be challenged in any
court of law.
The Guidelines for downlinking of TV channels had been issued
on November 11, 2005 and the Uplinking Guidelines had been
issued on December 12, 2005. These Guidelines are already
the subject matter of the petition in the Delhi High Court
by Nimbus Communications on the Indo-West Indies series telecast.
Nimbus, which owns Neo Sports channel, had expressed apprehensions
that the government may resort to coercive methods for share
their exclusive feed.
The Bill provides for a revenue sharing formula between private
and public broadcasters. Advertisement sharing between private
and the public broadcasters would be in the ratio of 75:25
in case of TV coverage in favour of the rights holder and
50:50 in case of radio coverage.
| 
