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Private FM Radio Stations: Government of India's Policy on Phase II of Expansion of FM Radio Broadcasting Services.

Article Excerpt
In India, All India Radio - the public service broadcaster, had monopoly on Radio Broadcast, till a couple of years back. In May 2000, the Government of India opened the Sector for participation by the private FM broadcasters and offered 108 frequencies in 40 cities for open tender bidding. At present, 21 private FM stations are on the air in 12 cities.

Now The Government of India, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has formulated a policy on expansion of FM radio broadcasting services through private agencies. This is also known as Phase - II of expansion of FM radio broadcasting.

The salient features of policy for expansion of FM radio broadcasting services through private agencies (Phase - II) are: -

Process Of Granting Permission:

The entities that plan to operate FM Stations in India will have to bid for the license. The permission shall be granted on the basis of One-Time Entry Fees (OTEF) quoted by the bidders (Closed Tender System). The detailed tender notice has not been issued yet, but the same is expected soon.

Eligibility

General Criteria

Only Companies registered in India under the Companies Act, 1956 can bid for license for operating Private FM Channels. However, subsidiary Company of any Applicant Company or Company under the same management shall not be allowed to participate in the tender process for the license. Further Companies associated with or controlled by any religious or political body or advertising agency will also not be allowed to tender for the license.

The existing Private FM Station operators (existing licensees), who exercise their option to be considered for Phase 2, including those licensees who are eligible for automatic migration for channels already operational by them, shall be eligible to be considered for the pre-qualification round for fresh tendering under Phase 2, subject to their fulfilling the prescribed eligibility criteria.

Financial Criteria

Minimum Net Worth required for one channel per center in all regions:

D category Centers: Rs. 5,000,000.

C category Centers: Rs. 10,000,000

B category Centers: Rs. 20,000,000

A or A+ category Centers: Rs. 30,000,000

All Centers: Rs. 100,000,000

Each company may intimate...