Prasar Bharti's 24-hour Malayalam radio channel to begin this month

7 May 2006 TRIVANDRUM -
Prasar Bharti, the federal government-owned broadcasting corporation, will start a new 24-hour Malayalam radio channel in Kerala from May end, its Chief Executive Officer K.S. Sharma said here yesterday. Inaugurating the Trivandrum branch office of Prasar Bharti's marketing division, the eighth in the country, he said the new channel would offer music, drama and features besides the usual programmes. Prasar Bharti would make special effort to translate good content from Malayalam classics to other languages and broadcast it through its national channel, to show the nation what Kerala culture is.He said with Prasar Bharti opening marketing divisions in various cities, it was providing single window service to customers to book advertisements on AIR and Doordarshan channels from anywhere in India. Sharma said that the new Malayalam radio channel was among eight radio and 18 television channels being launched by the Prasar Bharati. These channels would broadcast programmes through Direct-To-Home (DTH) service.The senior officer said that the Prasar Bharati, launched in the early nineties with the government funding, is now able to stand on its own feet.The corporation has pushed Star and Zee TVs behind in revenues by earning Rs12.5 billion through advertisements alone.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/subcontinent/2006/May/subcontinent_May232.xml&section=
subcontinent&col=

AIR to broadcast exclusive programme for CRPF personnel

Srinagar, April. 23 (PTI): Aiming to lessen the strain faced by CRPF personnel entrusted with maintaining internal security in Jammu and Kashmir, the local All India Radio station has decided to start a new programme which will feature songs exclusively requested by them.
The programme 'Hello CRPF' will be aired by Radio Kashmir from today, station director G H Zia said adding there will be repeat broadcast of the programme on Monday from the commercial broadcasting service of the station. IGP CRPF, Kashmir, A P Maheshwari welcomed the gesture of Radio Kashmir and said the programme will go a long way in entertaining the jawans who are serving in difficult situations in the state. CRPF recently replaced Border Security Force from the internal security duty in Jammu and Kashmir.

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200604231554.htm

Post card with ad of BBC Hindi

Recently India Post released a meghdoot post card with advertisement of British Broadcasting Corp, Hindi service.

Background :
India Post introduced Meghdoot Post Card on September 2, 2002. Meghdoot is priced at 25 paise that is half the cost of the regular post card. The writing space available on the address side of the regular post card is made available for advertising in multicolor in case of Meghdoot. The rate of the advertisement is Rs.2 per card and the minimum order for print is 100,000 cards. Meghdoot is printed by Security Printing Press at Hyderabad in sheets of 8 cards, although some have been supplied to post offices by the press in sheets of 4 and pairs of 2 cards.Being a postal stationery article with an advertisement, its area of distribution is determined by the advertiser, as its design and copy. In addition to the post offices in the area of its distribution the Meghdoot is also made available in limited quantity of 2000 cards at select 8 philatelic bureaus that handle postal stationery, namely Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, and Mumbai.

31 radio towers to be set up in 15 states

New Delhi : Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs, P. R. Dasmunsi on Monday in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha informed that the Government propose to set up 31 radio towers in as many cities spread over 15 States.
Of these, five are in Andhra Pradesh (Kakinada, Hyderabad, Vijayawada - 10 KW each; Karimnagar - 5 KW and Srikakular - 1 KW), four in Maharashtra (Aurangabad, Amravati, Sholapur - 10 KW each and Oros - 5 KW), three each in Uttar Pradesh (Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Vararnasi - 10 KW each) and Uttaranchal (Bageshwar - 5KW and Gairsen, New Tehri - 1 KW each), two each in West Bengal (Darjeeling, Coochbihar - 10 KW each), Tripura (Agartala - 10 KW and Longtharai - 5 KW), Tamil Nadu (Madurai, Tirunelvelli - 10 KW each), Karnataka (Gulbarga, Bellary - 10 KW each) and Rajasthan (Udaipur, Bikaner - 10 KW each) and one each in Gujarat (Junagarh - 10 KW), Haryana (Rohtak - 10 KW), Madhya Pradesh (Ujjain - 5 KW), Manipur (Imphal - 10 KW), Orissa (Rairangpur - 1KW) and Punjab (Jallandhar - 10 KW).
In the information, it is mentioned that some of the cities where Doordarshan towers exist, radio towers have not been set up as FM radio channels/additional channels are proposed to be set up on these Doordarshan towers. Towers are set up subject to approval of the schemes, availability of the funds and the necessity of putting a new tower. In up-gradation/replacement schemes where FM transmitter is replaced, no new tower is required.
http://www.newkerala.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=17200

New website of TWR India

In the latest edition of HCJB-Dx Partyline there is an interview with Shakti Verma, technical director of TWR- India. Allen Graham interviewed him during HFCC conference. In his interview Mr Verma advised about the new TWR India website :
http://www.radiovv.org/
He also announced that TWR India will start verifying listeners reports with e-qsl's .

Contact details for TWR India as foll :
Address :
Trans World Radio - India
L - 15, Green Park
New Delhi - 110016
Phone : +91 11 26515790
Email : info@twr.in

Latest edition of DxPartline can be heard at :
http://www.hcjb.org/mass_media/dx_partyline/dxpl_audio_files.html

BBC arm wins seven FM radio licences in India

By Sumeet Chatterjee
BBC WORLDWIDE, the broadcaster's commercial arm, acquired FM radio licences covering seven of India's biggest cities yesterday in the unit's first move into overseas markets. BBC and its local partner, Mid-Day Multimedia, won licences to operate FM radio services in Bombay, Delhi, Bangalore, Madras, Calcutta, Ahmedabad and Pune. The successful bids came just days after the BBC announced that it had bought a 20 per cent stake in Radio Mid-Day West, a subsidiary of Mid-Day Multimedia, the Bombay-listed media group. India's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting began the auction of licences covering the country's 13 largest cities yesterday. As many as 84 companies have been cleared to participate in bidding for a total of 338 new radio licences in 91 cities. The BBC had hoped to scoop nine licences in the first round of bidding. However, Monisha Shah, BBC Worldwide's director of emerging territories, said that she was delighted with the results: "Given the significant size and audience reach of these licences, our radio venture has now created the substantial national presence we were aiming for." Ms Shah added that the venture would refine its bidding strategy before the next round in the auction. The auction ends next month. Tariq Ansari, managing director of Mid-Day Multimedia, said that Radio Mid-Day West aimed to use the content, expertise and technology of BBC Worldwide to emerge as one of the leading private radio stations in the second-most populous country after China. FM radio is a fledgeling industry in India and has enormous growth potential. According to analysts, advertisers spent about $40 million with commercial broadcasters in India in 2003 - less than 2 per cent of total advertisement spend. However, radio revenues are expected to more than triple to $150 million by 2008. The Indian radio network covers 97 per cent of the country's population of more than a billion through 24 languages and 146 dialects. Besides BBC Worldwide, a host of leading Indian media houses and international companies, including Britain's Virgin Radio and the Malaysian pay-TV company Astro All Asia, are vying for licences as part of the Government's newly unveiled liberalised investment guidelines. Virgin Radio has tied up with HT Music, part of the HT Media group that publishes the Hindustan Times, India's second-biggest selling daily, to enter the market. The British company has not disclosed financial details of the partnership. However, in a statement yesterday Virgin Radio said that Virgin Radio Asia, a subsidiary, confirmed that it would provide radio expertise, knowhow and advice to Hindustan Times Group, which has successfully bid for FM radio licences in Bombay, Delhi, Bangalore and Calcutta. The company has entered into similar radio ventures in Thailand and with Oui FM in Paris. Under the Indian Government's liberalised norms for ownership rules in the media industry, foreign investors can hold a maximum 20 per cent stake in an FM radio station. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,16614-1974177,00.html

FM Radio set for massive expansion

NEW DELHI, JAN 8 (PTI)The second phase of licensing for private FM radio has struck the right note with aggressive bidding by companies, promising over Rs 500 crore to the government in just the first round and a whole new world of variety in entertainment for the public.The government, which on Friday put on block 64 of the 338 frequencies it plans to sell in this phase, was in for a pleasant surprise as many of the players bid ambitiously for capturing airwaves in 13 top cities of the country, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata.And what's more, the aggressive bidding promises a good response to the four remaining rounds of bidding left, which will see the government selling stations in places like Agra, Bhopal, Jamshedpur, Varanasi, Ajmer, Aligarh, Chandigarh, Jammu, Patiala, Jodhpur, Shimla, Panaji, Kohima and Hissar.Not only did incumbents like Entertainment Network, Music Broadcast Pvt Ltd (MBPL) and Radio Mid-Day ensure entry into newer cities in this round, new ones like Anil Ambani-backed Adlabs and HT Music and Entertainment also jumped in, hoping to have a sizeable presence in the radio industry believed by many to be expanding on the lines of the telecom revolution.But what may come as a concern to some is the fact that many players bid as much as 2-3 times more than what was bid for the same cities in the first phase of licensing.However, industry players and experts strike down this concern and say the revenue share regime on a ten-year license, in contrast to the annual license fee structure in the first phase which proved disastrous for the government as well as the companies, will ensure that all stay afloat."It is a win-win deal for all -- the government, broadcasters, public as well as advertisers," Sunil Kumar, who runs a radio consultancy firm Big River Radio, told PTI. Kumar's company conducted a study before the start of the second round and has forecasted that government is likely to collect Rs 1,350 crore as One Time Entry Fee for the licenses for all 338 FM radio stations it plans to sell in 91 cities.Asked whether he felt the bidders engaged in overbidding following the optimism in the new regulatory set-up, he said this was not the case. "I feel a majority of them bid as per a business plan. And many of the players like Rajasthan Patrika had regional markets to protect," he said.Kumar said the presence of a large number of players within the same city would mean more choice for the customers and also emergence of niche programming.The optimism is difficult to miss going by the way incumbents like ENIL, which runs services under 'Radio Mirchi' brand, went about. The Times Group company, which runs FM services in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Pune and Indore, is among the successful bidders in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Kanpur, Nagpur and Surat."We are on a great high and have bid after 12-14 months of research," Radio Mirchi CEO A P Parigi said.Asked whether the aggressive bidding could again lead to losses for companies, especially new entrants, he said: "The bidding looks rational. We hope the players have submitted them (bids) after studying the industry dynamics well.On the other hand, MBPL which runs services under 'Radio City' brand in Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Lucknow, has won seven more licences in Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Nagpur, Pune and Surat. "I am thrilled with the results of the bidding process. We are already established as a long-term consistent player in four cities that we operate in. This will help us further consolidate our position as the leaders in the radio space in India," Radio City CEO Apurva Purohit said.Radio Mid-Day, in which BBC recently purchased a stake, was among the top bidders for Delhi (Rs 31.40 crore), Chennai (Rs 12.20 crore), Kolkata (Rs 3.21 crore), Ahmedabad (Rs 5.12 crore), Bangalore (Rs 15.42 crore) and Pune (5.4 c rore).Among the new players, who in no way can be dismissed as insignificant given their deep pockets and wide experience, HT Music and Entertainment is all set to hit the airwaves in Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Bangalore while Adlabs in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad Kanpur and Bangalore.Adlabs' Rajesh Sawhney said the high bids were not much of a concern. "We were solely guided by our business plans," he pointed out.Other players who are on way to hit the air waves include the Bhaskar Group, Muthoot Finance, Kal Radio, Rajasthan Patrika and India Today group's Radio Today, which recently sold its 'Red FM' brand to a consortium that included NDTV.According to Big River Radio's Kumar, radio advertising is currently worth Rs 240 crore, which is projected to grow to a whopping Rs 1,300 crore over the next 2-3 years."In fact, advertising spend on radio is currently below two per cent of the total spend while globally the average is about 6-8 per cent," he adds. http://www.outlookindia.com/pti_news.asp?id=347087

Radio can make waves

The aim of every community radio should be to create awareness among local people in various fields, Surjit Singh Barnala, Governor of Tamil Nadu and Chancellor of Anna University, said while inaugurating the week-long international workshop for community radio station managers at Anna University.Elaborating on the role of community radios in developing the community surrounding it, the Governor said they empower the people and nurture local knowledge and are committed to human rights, values, social justice and it is a must for socio-economic development.Community radios can make a strategic contribution to the development of the community. The right of common citizens to express the kind of society they want to live in is a fundamental part of an alternative vision of development. This vision could be attained by the democratic participation enabled by the community radio, he said.Strengthening rights of freedom of information and freedom of expression would lead to effective interaction and free discussion. Community radios can play a vital role in uplifting the status of women in society, so that they can become opinion-makers, Barnala said.Turning his attention to Anna University, he pointed out that the university should work out the modalities for forming women self-help groups in the areas covered by their FM. They should identify the social problems of villages, produce programmes to educate people on health, cleanliness and protecting environments. The youth in villages should be enlightened on the latest developments in science and technology and career programmes.Reiterating the fact that community radios can play a major role in education, Barnala also said the role of Anna FM as a home tutor in teaching lessons for the schoolchildren and clarifying their doubts would be of a great assistance to poor and needy students.He also urged Anna University to come forward with plans to increase the coverage range of Anna FM so that more and more people in the local villages benefited from this effort.Dr E Balagurusamy, Vice-Chancellor, Anna University, said community radios have a major role to play in the development of society and pointed out that radio was the only medium which could reach the rural masses, because many villages in India were not accessible; and these villages may not have electricity facility and the villagers use radio as a medium for knowing what is happening in the outside world.Stating the reason for Anna University starting a campus community radio, the Vice-Chancellor said the institution could bridge the gap between technology and people.Tarja Virtanen, advisor for communication and information, Asia-Pacific region, UNESCO, said for the past two decades, many community radios were started in various parts of the world owing to the reduction of cost of radio transmitters and other equipment.David H. Walker, education specialist (education technologist), Commonwealth of Learning, Vancouver, Canada, stated that in the near future every village in the world would have one community radio station. Dr Usha Vyasulu Reddi, director, Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA), New Delhi, said the workshop would analyse all aspects of community radio and various experts would share their experiences.Prof K Jayaraman, Registrar, Anna University, said the university was the first to get the licence to start a campus community radio in the country, 10 months ago.N Arun Kumar http://www.chennaionline.com/education/Events/2004/12annafm01.asp

Know your RTI through AIR Pune

Express News Service Pune, January 6: WANT to know about the Right to Information (RTI) Act? All you have to do is to tune in to the programme Tila Tila Daar Ughad (Open Sesame), to be broadcastby All India Radio (AIR), Pune at 7.16 am on Saturdays. AIR and Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Development Administration (YASHADA) have tied up to produce a 52-episode programme, which will be broadcast to all districts in the State for a period of one year. Probably the first of its kind in the country, the first episode will be aired this Saturday. The programme deals with various aspects of RTI in each episode. Divided into four parts, each episode will have sections titled Paul Khuna - background, Aamne Saamne - face to face, Magowa - follow-up and Prashna Mantale - questions and answers. The Paul Khuna section will deal with the background of the RTI Act and include the history of similar legislation and practices during the Greek civilisation and Sweden in the 7th century. In the Aamne Saamne part, interviews of common people and their reactions to the RTI Act and functioning of government offices will be broadcast. Interviews of RTI experts and information activists as well as people involved in the formulation of the Act will also find a place in this section. In the Magowa section of the programme, instances of common people using the Act to retrieve information will be shared with the listeners as well as action taken against government officers who were not able to give the requisite information sought through the RTI Act. The episodes will conclude with a question-answer section, where listeners can send their queries regarding the act to Tila Tila Daar Ughad, station director, All India Radio, Pune. http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=164549

All India Radio fails to bag radio rights for Indo-Pak series

(Friday, Jan 06, 2006 - 06:00 am)
Televisionpoint.com Team
The All India Radio has failed to bag the radio rights for the India-Pakistan series. AIR had bagged the radio rights for the 2003 friendship series between India and Pakistan from Ten Sports. Last year, Ten Sports sold the rights to another Dubai-based company, ARY broadcasters, a company with 11 channels that has rights for cricket matches in Pakistan and the Middle East. Now, ARY has refused to sell the rights to AIR at the price offered. AIR is willing to pay $40,000 for the entire series, the amount it paid Ten Sports in 2003. ARY feels the price is too low and has demanded $2.5 lakh for the entire series. Their contention is that AIR earned $5 lakh from the last series and, therefore, the amount they're quoting is reasonable. AIR, on the other hand, is refusing to go any higher, justifying its quotation by saying it will have to bear the entire production cost and that the hype this time isn't as high.
http://www.televisionpoint.com/news2006/newsfullstory.php?id=1136509681

Germany's DW looking for partners for radio, TV

Press Trust of IndiaNew Delhi, November 25, 2005
Germany's international broadcaster Deutsche Welle has said it wasinterested in entering the television and FM radio space in India, though itwas wary about the restrictions on news and current affairs programmes forforeign broadcasters."India is an important country and we are looking for partnerships here," DW Director-General Erik Bettermann said.He said DW, which had revenues of about 300 million Euros last year, wasopen to making investments in the Indian market, in case right opportunitiesand partners came its way.Among others, Bettermann held meetings with top officials of publicbroadcasters All-India Radio and DD during his visit to the nationalcapital, and welcomed the government's decision to allow foreign directinvestment in FM radio.He, however, expressed reservations over some of the restrictions on foreignbroadcasters in respect of news and current affairs programmes. "Free pressis a pre-condition for democracy... Open the sector for foreignbroadcasters. It is the trend worldwide," he said.While the government has disallowed news and current affairs programming inprivate FM radio, foreign TV news broadcasters like BBC and CNN cannot haveprogramming and advertising specifically designed for Indian audience.DW, which transmits multilingual feed over its network including in Hindi,offers 29 radio channels apart from its TV channels. It is mandated bypublic law and funded by the federal government.The German network, whose programming ranges from news, features, sports andbackgrounders, may look for a content tie-up with an Indian radio partnerand offer programmes on sports, culture and lifestyle.Thomas Barthlein, a senior official of DW, said that the broadcaster wasalso speaking to direct-to-home (DTH) service providers in India like Zeeand Prasar Bharati for making their TV channels available on their platform.This was apart from the efforts on the FM radio side, he said.After the liberalisation in the FM sector, which included shifting to arevenue share regime and allowing 20 per cent FDI, the market has seeninterest from a variety of broadcasters.BBC is believed to have filed an application with the Foreign InvestmentPromotion Board for a 20 per cent stake in a radio company while others likeUKs Virgin group are also keen on a radio foray.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1556298,00020020.htm

BBC tunes in to FM radio

OUR BUREAUMumbai, Nov. 21:
BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of Britain's publicservice broadcaster, has filed an application with the Foreign InvestmentPromotion Board (FIPB) seeking permission to establish and operate an FMradio station in Mumbai.The application was filed on November 14, just three days before thegovernment cleared a proposal permitting 20 per cent foreign investment inthe FM radio business.The rider attached is that the 20 per cent cap will include foreign directinvestment (FDI), investments by non-resident Indians and persons of Indianorigin (PIOs) and portfolio investment.Until now, foreign investment of up to 20 per cent was permitted in radiounder the Portfolio Investment Schemes under the Foreign Exchange Management(Transfer or Issue of Security by a Person Resident outside India)Regulations, 2000 while FDI was not permitted.The rules have now been changed in the light of a changed scenario even asthe government prepares to launch the second phase of the FM radiobroadcasting services.BBC Worldwide hasn't said in its application who it intends to partner inthe FM radio business.Last December, BBC Worldwide signed an arrangement with Bennett and ColemanLtd, publishers of Times of India and Economic Times, to publish the 29magazines in the Times' stable, including Femina and Shipping Times through a 50:50 venture called Worldwide Media.The Times group has a FM radio venture called Radio Mirchi, which operatesin seven cities, including Mumbai and Calcutta.However, it is not known whether BBC Worldwide will pick up a stake in theventure or find another partner.Radio Mirchi is planning to come out with an initial public offering, whichwill be the first by a FM station. It has already filed a red herringprospectus with the Sebi.The company plans to offer 12 million shares with a face value of Rs 10 eachat a premium to be decided through a book-building process. The book-runninglead managers to the issue are JM Morgan Stanley Ltd and Enam FinancialConsultants Pvt Ltd.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1051122/asp/business/story_5505790.asp

AIRs 24X7 Music Channel from Trichy and Lucknow

Hyderabad November 13, 2005 1:36:03 AM IST]
A 24-hour channel in Hindustani and Carnatic Music will be launched shortlyby All India Radio (AIR), which also plans concerts at prominent open publicplaces to popularise classical music in the country.Lucknow for Hindustani classical and Trichy for Carnatic music would be thehub of the 24X7 music channels, which would be launched ''anytime'', AIRDeputy Director General (South Zone) G Jayalal told the media here today.AIR, in collaboration with the New Delhi Municipal Corporation, proposed tohold classical music concerts at public gardens and prominent open spaces,for which the Prasar Bharati (PB) Board had given its consent recently.Flanked by Hyderabad Station Director Dr Gopalakrishna and Programmer MsVedavathi, AIR's Southern Chief said Archives (South) would release onNovember 13 Audio Cassettes and Audio Compact Discs of four popular Teluguplays. The plays - ''Kanyasulkam'', the all time socially relevant play byGurajada Appa Rao, ''Varavikrayam'', another play on dowry written byKallakuri Narayan Rao, ''Ganapathi'' rated as the best literary comedy byChilakamarthi Laxminarasimham Panthulu and ''Pandavudyoga Vijayalu'', pennedby Tirupathi Venkata Kavulu - would be released on the occasion of''Broadcasting Day''.Union Information Minister S Jaipal Reddy and K S Sarma, the CEO of PB,would be present on the occasion.The event would be recorded due to the national mourning and relayed byAkashvani Centres from December 17 to January 23, 2006.
http://news.webindia123.com/news/showdetails.asp?id=160754&cat=India

Second phase of FM radio starts rolling

Nivedita MookerjiFriday, November 11, 2005 22:51 ISTNEW DELHI:
Over 100 applications have been made to the government, seekingentry to the second phase of private FM radio service.Among those who have submitted their pre-qualification bids, include MusicBroadcast Private Ltd (MBPL), Bennett Coleman, Hindustan Times, Bhaskargroup, Jagran group and Reliance, among others. The deadline for submittingpre-qualification bids was Friday.While only 42 applications had come in till Thursday, the rest weresubmitted on Friday. The government has thrown open the second phase of FMradio for 338 frequencies (radio stations) across 91 cities.Technical evaluation of these bids, including security clearances from thehome ministry, will take around two months, it is learnt.Financial bids have to be submitted in January. While the last date forfinancial bids for the 'A plus' and 'A' category cities (big cities acrossthe country) is January 6, for cities and towns in the north, the deadlineis January 13. For eastern Indian cities and towns, the deadline is January20, for western cities, it is January 27, and for the south, it is February3.Every applicant and related entities must bid for only one channel per city,as per the tender document.Also, channels allocated to an applicant and related entities should notexceed 15% of the total number of channels in India. Subsidiaries ofapplicants in the same city will be disqualified, and so will be the holdingcompany of the applicant company in the same city.Foreign investment will be restricted to 20% of the paid-up equity of thecompany. Also, one Indian entity must hold more than 50%, excluding theequity held by scheduled banks and other public financial institutions. Alldirectors on board must be Indians, as per the tender. Even all the keyexecutive officers of the applicant entity must be resident Indians.Financial bids will have a one-time entry fee, deposit of an amountequivalent of 50% of financial bid, and performance bank guarantee in favourof the I&B ministry equivalent to 50% of financial bid. To apply for allcategories of cities, a company must have a net worth of Rs 10 crore, for Aplus and A class cities Rs 3 crore, for B category, Rs 2 crore; for C class,Rs 1 crore; and for D class, Rs 50 lakh.Making a shift from a licence era to revenue-sharing, the government hasspecified the annual revenue share at 4% or 10% of the reserveone-time-entry-fee (OTEF) for a city, whichever is higher. Annual fee willbe paid on quarterly basis.While FM bidders must operationalise within 18 months of issue of LoI, theymay need to opt out in case of delay. But, the tender has stated, "in theevent of default in operationalisation of a channel being attribuateble todelay beyond reasonable period by Becil/Prasar Bharati, WPC, the prescribedtime limit will be extended." Co-location on Prasar Bharati towers ismandatory for FM companies, and Becil, a PSU under the I&B ministry, willintegrate the infrastructure for radio operations.As for content, news and current affairs will not be allowed, and 50% ofprogramming on a channel must be produced in India, according to the FMtender.The first phase of FM radio privatisation took off five years ago.
http://dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=9431&CatID=4

New FM Channels in Ranchi & Jamshedpur

NAVTAN KUMAR Ranchi, Nov. 9:
Good news for the people of Ranchi and Jamshedpur: the All India Radio (AIR) has decided to give four FM channels, to be run by private agencies, to each of the cities. Official sources said the Union ministry of information and broadcasting has invited tenders, the last date for which was November 7. Three parties have applied and a decision will be taken soon, added sources.
The tenders were floated as part of the Union ministry's massive expansion plan of the FM radio broadcasting services. According to the plan, the government intends to allocate 338 channels to private parties in 91 cities across the country. The operations will, however, be restricted to entertainment-based programmes. The four channels will be in addition to the existing FM channel (103.3 MHz) in Ranchi, which mainly broadcasts Vividh Bharati programmes.
An official said: "The expansion plan was mooted after the Prasar Bharati decided radio culture is on the revival path in India. FMs are popular and have become a part of life in the bigger cities. They air melodious songs and also provide local information, trains, bus or flights timings, forecasts weather, traffic situation and other such things"
So far, FM is yet to hit Jharkhand "in the true sense", he pointed out, as only limited time is allotted for local stations. However, the official noted, the audience research wing is trying to make the existing slots more lively and entertaining.
"We have already introduced programmes on the existing FM channel. We are also in the process of selecting good anchors. Our main target is young people in the age group of 18 to 35," the official pointed out. Sources said Firayalal - a famous departmental store in the capital - and Radio Sheetal has applied for the Ranchi tenders.
Interestingly, the ministry had invited tenders two years ago, but did not get any response. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1051110/asp/jamshedpur/story_5458903.asp