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DD'S WORLD CUP DRAMA CONTINUES
The drama over the World Cup air-time marketing
and telecast rights continued over last week too with allegations
being made that Prasar Bharati officials went out of their
way to accommodate the bid from Nimbus and dustbin the bid
made by Stracon. Stracon and DD officials have alleged that
the Prasar Bharati chief O.P Kejriwal dipped into the information
and broadcasting ministry's coffers to the tune of Rs 210
million to secure the World Cup Cricket terrestrial telecast
rights when it was Nimbus which should have arranged for these
funds.
Nimbus retaliated by saying that Stracon had
funded the education of DD officials' children and the sabbatical
of another DD senior executive in the US to secure the air
time sales contracts for earlier events. Nimbus promoter Harish
Thawani called the award of the sports air time marketing
contract to Stracon a Rs 2000 million scam. Stracon's Siddhartha
Ray has labeled the allegation as humbug. He has in turn said
that it is Thawani who is actually ripping off the government
in collusion with DD officials and has not even allowed the
broadcaster to encash a cheque of Rs 125 million for the event
acquisition rights.
Meanwhile, just as a committee, which had been
set up to look into the air time marketing fiasco by DD, submitted
its report, Ray announced that Stracon was resigneing from
the consortium. The report has said that Ray and the private
marketing consortium's arrangement with DD has resulted in
losses for the broadcaster.
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