Prasar Bharati invites fresh bids for DD-Metro

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, JUNE 23. Having found no takers in its recent effort to auction primetime slots on DD-Metro, the Prasar Bharati, on Friday, invited fresh bids for hour-long slots on the channel without stipulating a floor price this time round.

Though the decision to call for fresh bids without a floor price was apparently taken within a day of the expiry of the deadline for the earlier auction on Monday, the announcement was made only on Friday. Up for the grabs are four hourly slots between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. with 600 seconds of free commercial time (FCT) per slot per day.

Last time, the Prasar Bharati had invited bids for primetime on Metro, the time band had been divided into four one- hour slots with a floor price of Rs. 22.5 crores, Rs. 32.5 crores, Rs. 42.5 crores and Rs. 17.5 crores respectively. Not one company bid for any of the three slots in the 7-10 time band, and the last slot attracted one bid - forcing the Prasar Bharati to call for fresh bids without a floor price.

As per the telecast schedule, bids have been invited for a period of three years. While those bidding for the 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. slot will have to have programmes ready to go on air from September 11, 2001, the telecast schedule for the 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. slot begins on October 10, 2001 and that for the 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. slot on September 3, 2001.

Only Hindi programmes will be aired in the slots up for the grabs, and the terms and conditions stipulate a 10 per cent annual increase in the bid amount quoted. The last date for submission of bids is July 3. Pre-qualification bids will be opened at 3-30 p.m. on July 4, and financial bids the following day at the same hour.

Though Prasar Bharati has relaxed its terms, the HFCL- Nine Broadcasting India Ltd. (HNBIL) - the company behind the 7- to-10 p.m. Nine Gold slot on DD-Metro - stuck to its decision not to bid for primetime slots on the channel, maintaining that there was no change in the unrealistic non-financial terms of the contractual arrangements proposed by Doordarshan.

The company - which claims to have increased DD- Metro's viewership in less than one year - has questioned Doordarshan's decision to reserve the right to terminate the contract without notice and ascribing any reason.

The company is also critical of the ``hold back'' clause for re- runs of the programmes for a year after the play out of the final episode as this could date them by more than two years before replay and, thereby, reduce their value. Further, the HNBIL is opposed to Doordarshan's intention to use programmes without any financial consideration on DD World as it would reduce the value of any international sale for the shows.

Scouting for agency

With many a cable operator side-stepping theCable Television Networks (Regulation) Amendment Act (CTNRA), 2000, vis-a-vis screening of DD-1, DD-2 and a regional channel on the prime band, the Prasar Bharati is once again scouting for an agency to monitor and ensure proper distribution of Doordarshan channels on cable networks.

With Doordarshan's contract with Modi Entertainment Network - which has been acting as a watchdog for the public broadcaster in 27 cities for the past one year - slated to end this month-end, the Prasar Bharati has invited fresh quotations from companies for the purpose.

Besides acting as a watchdog, the selected firm will also have to ensure that the cable operators in the 27 cities - primarily, the major centres which are surveyed to calculate television ratings - take digital signals of DD-1 and DD-2 from satellite. They will have to procure, distribute, install and maintain commercial grade digital satellite receivers/IRDs required for both DD-1 and DD-2 at major cable head ends on a turnkey basis.

Earlier this week, the Prasar Bharati had issued a statement asking television viewers to inform local Government authorities if they did not receive signals of DD-1, DD-2 and a regional language channel on prime band as is mandatory according to the CTNRA. The officials who can be approached in this connection include the District Magistrate, the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, the Commissioner of Police and the head of the local kendra.

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