Special incentives to set up FM stations in North East & J&K

The Vision 2010 conference organised by AROI (The Association of Radio Operators of India), which was held on November 12 in the Capital, saw private radio operators in full attendance.

Raghu Menon, secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting congratulated the industry on coming together for the first-ever official gathering of private radio broadcasters. He shared that the government regards radio as a powerful medium, on the basis of the strength that it commands. The medium reaches everyone; it's affordable and can be consumed at any time of the day.

With the third phase of radio licensing on the anvil, Menon said that there was a need to understand that policies, whether of government or the private players, are dynamic; and that the best policies evolve with time. He stated that the pace of evolution of broadcasting policy in the country has to keep pace with the evolution of the society.

Menon shared key highlights of the policy changes proposed in the third phase of radio licensing. He explained that the government's aim was to further increase the reach of radio by taking it to smaller towns. For this, it would offer special incentives to players who set up operations in the north-east, Jammu & Kashmir and other island territories.

In these areas, the first three years' fixed license fee for radio operators would be halved; the variable revenue they have to pay the government, too, would be half of what they are charged currently in other markets.

Additionally, if any operator wanted to use infrastructure facilities of Doordarshan or All India Radio (AIR), there would be a 50 per cent concession in rentals. These benefits would also be extended to existing operators, who want to move to these territories, once the bidding for the third phase of radio licensing begins.

Second, Menon stated that there is a move to remove restrictions on the number of stations that a company can own, reducing costs for the operators. Multiple frequencies would allow operators to distinguish themselves from others and give them an opportunity to increase both listenership and viewership. News would be allowed on FM radio, but in a measured manner; and as of now, the government proposes that FM players source news from AIR.

Menon argued, "A lot of ministries and departments have expressed reservation over FM industry broadcasting news. Thus, the transition in this case has to be gradual; keeping in mind the sensitivities involved and lack of local regulatory authorities."

Other regulatory issues relate to increasing the FDI (foreign direct investment) from current 20 per cent to 26 per cent; Menon said that this was subject to close examination of how the radio operators had utilised the existing cap of 20 per cent.

As far as the industry's demand for extension of license regime from 10 years to 15 years is concerned, Menon shared that the government was sensitive towards the financials required by the radio operators. Therefore, the matter was under consideration, but there were no immediate plans to revise it.

On the music royalty row, Menon expressed the government's desire to be a negotiator between the music companies and radio operators. He also shared that the HRD ministry was looking at making appropriate changes in the Copyright Act to ease things out for both the parties.

Menon then moved on to suggesting some areas that the radio players need to pay attention to. He expressed unhappiness over lack of initiatives by the industry to tap and promote local content, culture, ethos and talent. He cautioned against the occasional over- enthusiasm of a few RJs, who sometimes exceed their brief and end up hurting the sentiments of a group or community.

He concluded, "One does not have to treat any policy as an end in itself. There is always scope to learn and improve as one grows. And the radio broadcasters should have no qualms that the government could be restrictive in their growth. The government is committed towards developing the Indian broadcast industry as one of the best in the world."