NEW DELHI: Even as Nimbus remains adamant about sharing broadcasting rights with All India Radio, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry has asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take immediate action to ensure that the commentary of the on-going one-dayers between England and India should be given live to AIR.

The Ministry has said that the rights for AIR should not be clubbed with the rights given to Doordarshan under the Sports Broadcasting (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act.

In a letter to BCCI, the Ministry said the demand by Nimbus for 50 per cent of the revenues from the radio commentary ?appears to be an effort to arm twist Prasar Bharati?.

The Ministry has suggested that radio rights ?should be made available directly to AIR at a negotiated price as far as India is concerned?.

According to Nimbus Communications, AIR has refused to follow the 50:50 sharing of advertising revenues, which has been mandated by the Sports Broadcasting (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act.

According to the letter by the Ministry to BCCI, the provisions of the Sports Act apply only if the rights holder for TV telecast broadcasts the match either on television, cable, DTH, or the radio broadcast rights holder actually broadcasts the commentary over the respective medium in India.

?As regards radio, no private broadcaster is allowed to carry the commentary of sporting events of national level in India. The provisions of Sports Act relating to sharing of the signal do not apply to radio coverage,? the letter said.

MUMBAI: The fifth season of the Indian premier League is scheduled to last from 4 April to 27 May, the IPL Governing Council announced today.

The tournament will have nine teams, as IPL has scrapped the Kochi franchise due to the breach of contractual obligations.

"The dates of the DLF IPL 2012 were confirmed. The tournament will begin in Chennai on 4 April, 2012 and end on 27 May, 2012. An opening ceremony will be held in Chennai on 3 April, a day before the inaugural game," BCCI said in a release. 

The IPL Governing Council, which met in Hyderabad today with the new chief Rajiv Shukla, however, did not discuss on the player regulation, including participation of Pakistani players, and trading modalities of the auction.

?The player regulation and trading modalities will be discussed at the next meeting of the governing council," the statement said.

The governing council has also asked the management team to come back with options for the format and structure for the 2012 season of the tournament.

The governing council approved various operational items for the forthcoming IPL season.

NEW DELHI: Neo Cricket and Prasar Bharati have run into a row and blamed each other for the delayed telecast of the first one day international between India and England on Doordarshan.

Neo Cricket, the telecast rights holder, accused Prasar Bharati for delay in giving uplinking clearance, because of which viewers missed the first few balls of the match.

Neo Cricket said they were given the clearance after 2.30 pm only, after they submitted the bank guarantee by 12.37 pm as demanded by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

Neo Cricket said it is "deeply disappointed" by what it believes could be construed to be unreasonable behaviour by Prasar Bharati and intends to approach the Government after consultation with industry bodies with a request that appropriate rules be framed to govern future events such that the process and rules governing the sharing of events with Prasar Bharati are equitable and reasonable.

However, DD sources told indiantelevision.com that the Neo application was not in accordance with the Sports Broadcast Signal (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act 2007. The sources said application was made by Nimbus on 30 August, 45 days before the match in accordance with the Act, but Nimbus had mid-way changed the channel to Neo Cricket and, thus, the mandatory period of 45 days was not met.

Explaining its reasons for the late start of the live telecast of the match, Neo Cricket in a statement late in the evening blamed Doordarshan and the Government for its unreasonable demand of asking for the bank guarantee of Rs 40 million nine days before it was actually due. 

Neo Cricket said that the Information and Broadcasting Ministry had sent a letter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) after office hours yesterday stating that "uplink permission would be granted to BCCI only if Neo would submit a bank guarantee by the morning of today that is, in a few business hours to Prasar Bharati."

The statement added that this was despite the fact that Prasar Bharati?s own draft agreement stated that the bank guarantee was required to be furnished five days after the agreement was signed. It said Neo was given no choice but to accede to the demand of Prasar Bharat to ensure that the cricket loving public in India would get to see the cricket match.

Despite submitting the bank guarantee, Neo said, the uplink license to BCCI and Neo Cricket was issued past the match start time of 2:30 pm resulting in no coverage for the first few balls of the match.

Relating the sequence of events, Neo said despite repeated follow ups from Neo Cricket after 30 August, including three letter reminders and multiple phone calls, Prasar Bharati refused to confirm whether it wanted to share the live broadcast of the event. Finally on 9 October, a mere five days before the first match and a whole 40 days after receiving the original notification letter, Prasar Bharati wrote an email to Neo confirming that it wanted to share the live feed of the match and asking for a meeting on the next day to appoint the Revenue Management Company (RMC) for the match.

It may be noted that the RMC is the company responsible for selling advertising on the broadcast of the match on Doordarshan and is appointed by a process in which both Neo and Prasar Bharati are required to make sealed bids.

The RMC meet was held on the evening of 10 October, and awarded to Neo following the sealed bid process. On 12 October, Prasar Bharati submitted a draft agreement to Neo for comments and signature. This draft clearly stated that it wanted Neo to submit the bank guarantee of Rs 40 million within five days of signing of the agreement.

Neo was hoping the agreement would be signed by 13 or 14 October and the guarantee would be submitted on 19 or 20 October. Therefore when the Ministry sent its letter to BCCI, Neo said it "was obviously taken aback by this unreasonable demand of Prasar Bharati and requested a meeting to discuss the issue, and the meeting was held this morning".

MUMBAI: The Supreme Court today dismissed former IPL chairman and commissioner Lalit Modi?s plea seeking reconstitution of the BCCI?s three member disciplinary panel that is conducting a hearing into financial irregularities done during his tenure.

Modi had moved the Supreme Court after the Bombay High Court had dismissed a similar plea back last year. The SC noted that there should be a "real danger of bias" and "not just an apprehension of bias".

A bench comprising Justices JM Panchal and H.L. Gokhale said that the three-member committee was validly constituted by the BCCI.

"Mere apprehension of biasness cannot be a ground to reconstitute the committee," the Bench said.

MUMBAI: The Kochi Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise has moved for arbitration regarding its dispute with the BCCI.

This has been necessitated as cricket?s richest body has encashed the bank guarantee of Rs 1.53 billion, after the franchise failed to obtain a stay.

Proceedings are likely to begin next week.

Kochi Tuskers Kerala chairman Mukesh Patel said there is a clause in their contract that allows for arbitration. "How can they encash the bank guarantee when there was time for it to expire (27 September)? We do not owe the BCCI any dues. That is a lie. We are going for arbitration to get the money back and also to challenge the termination of our contract."

Patel also said that the franchise had earlier asked for a change in venue to Ahmedabad from Kochi due to reasons of safety. He, however, denied reports of a rift between the owners with some wanting to exit.

Two days back, Justice Vajifadar had quashed the plea of the Kochi IPL franchise against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

As a follow-up action, Kochi Tuskers Kerala had appealed against the Bombay High Court?s decision. Yesterday a division bench did not hear an appeal to stay the order of the single judge. It was to have heard the matter today.

MUMBAI: In a blow to the owners of the Kochi Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, the Bombay High Court today quashed their plea against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

As a follow-up action, Kochi Tuskers Kerala has appealed against the Bombay High Court?s decision.

The franchise?s case was dismissed by a single bench of Justice SF Vajifdar today. A new hearing before a division bench of the court will take place tomorrow.

Cricket?s richest body had terminated Kochi Tuskers Kerala?s contract on Monday for breaching its terms and conditions, prompting the franchise to move the court.

The Kochi franchise defaulted on a Rs 1.56 billion annual payment it was to make as bank guarantee.

Kochi Tuskers Kerala chairman Mukesh Patel had earlier maintained that the franchise does not owe the BCCI any money.

It remains to be seen as to what happens to the players in that franchise like Mahela Jayawardene. However, BCCI president   said the players? interests would be safeguarded.

The BCCI has not clarified yet whether it will hold an auction for a 10th franchise or go with nine teams.