Broadcast Bill may be introduced in Budget Session

[khurramdar]

Broadcast Bill may be introduced in Budget Session
The Government is keen that the long-pending Broadcast Services Regulation Bill should be introduced in the Budget Session commencing later this week and continuing in early May.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said over the weekend that “I have given commitment to the Parliament that before the Session ends, I should be able to give a blueprint of the Broadcast Bill.”

Soni also indicated that the Bill would avoid any controversy by steering clear of words that appeared to offend any television channels or appeared to sound like censorship, regulation, or control.

The Ministry is keen that the Broadcast Services Regulation Bill should provide for an independent regulator and a Content Code, particular for channels that are out of the ambit of any Code.

The “Indian Broadcasting Foundation has a certain code, but there are 500-plus channels in the country, and everybody may not be within the parameters of such a code. We have to have some mechanism to address concerns if things go beyond a certain limit,” she said, explaining the need for a body to regulate television content.

Soni said there were channels in various centres that did not even come of normal carriage, and some did not follow the Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act 1995, while some do not even have downlinking/ uplinking permission.

The content in some of the reality shows also causes concern and channels individually as well as collectively should set up a self-regulatory mechanism for such shows.

Referring to her request to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) about whether more channels can be permitted, she said it was most important to find out whether the applicant had any experience in media, and “whether the applicant is financially sound enough to run a channel.”

Earlier, a senior Ministry official told indiantelevision.com that a task force had been set up under the chairmanship of the Secretary in the Ministry, Raghu Menon, and had already held a few internal meetings.

The task force â€" which comprises representatives from the Indian Broadcasting Foundation, the Broadcast Editors Association, and the News Broadcasters Association among others - would now meet stakeholders including consumers, representatives of the print media, civil societies, and editors ‘to understand their concerns’.

"Self-regulation has some limitations," the official added without elaborating, while referring to the Content Code and the Regulatory Body formed by the News Broadcasters Association.

It was expected that this task force would complete its work by March. The official said the issues under discussion were not merely content, but also quality of service, carriage fee and service charges. Thus, the entire responsibilities that the independent regulator would have to bear would be finalized.