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    HC admits pleas of broadcasters, Trai gets a week to respond

    Synopsis

    Admitting petitions from (IBF) and top broadcasters, the two-judge bench of justice SC Dharmadhikari and justice RI Chagla, allowed Trai, to respond within a week. The court will hear the matter on January 22.

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    MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday admitted petitions of top television broadcasters and the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) and asked regulater Telecom Regultory Authority of India (Trai) to respond in a week.

    Admitting petitions from (IBF) and top broadcasters, the two-judge bench of justice SC Dharmadhikari and justice RI Chagla, allowed Trai, to respond within a week. The court will hear the matter on January 22. Meanwhile, as the petitions are accepted, the broadcasters are planning not to comply with the amendments to the new tariff order (NTO), which they challenged in the court.

    Apart from the IBF, broadcasters like Star and Disney India, Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEE), Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN), TV18 and Viacom18, and the Films & Television Producers Guild of India had also filed individual petitions seeking quashing of the new amendments and issue a stay order in the mean time.

    As per the new amendments notified on January 1, broadcasters have to issue a revised rate card of their channels, in compliance with the new regulations by January 15.

    The distribution platform operators (DPOs), (a term used for cable and DTH operators) are given 15 days to revise their packages. Ultimately, consumers will have one month to select channels or bouquets of their choice and the new rates will be effective March 1. However, multiple broadcasters told ET off the record that they are planning to not file revised prices. In the high court, countering the primary grounds of petitions filed against the regulator, senior counsel Venkatesh Dhond said that most of the petitioners are indulging in “scare mongering” and Trai is seeking one week’s time to file its reply.

    “There is a concentrated effort to move to the court, just a day before the deadline of January 15,” argued Dhond. He further added that all the petitioners have filed their case on the same date on January 13 and the regulator has received the copy of the plea only in the evening.

    “The change will come in effect from March 1 and only the prices need to amend by January 15. The broadcasters knew of this deadline since January 1.”

    Action plan
    Broadcasters plan not to comply with the amendments to the new tariff order which they challenged in court.


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