The Channel | 2003 | September

10 / 48

Global Brief
The latest news from the international broadcasting industry
10 | the channel
Star shines less brightly in India
From Shruti S, the AIB’s special correspondent in Delhi
On 22 August, the Indian government amended its five-month old policy on foreign
direct investment (FDI) in news channels wanting to uplink from India. The new
development came in the wake of the controversies kicked off by STAR News, STAR
India’s news channel controlled by Rupert Murdoch. The earlier guideline had capped
the FDI component in a channel’s equity at 26 per cent, while the constitution of the
Indian partners’ stake was not clearly defined. It was, however, made amply clear that
the editorial control should rest in the hands of Indians.
STAR News chose to be oblivious to the
intention of the guideline, though. Mr.
Murdoch for quite some time was seeking
to get the editorial reins of STAR News in
his hands, if NDTV, the company that was
providing content to the channel till March
this year, is to be believed. NDTV promoter Dr. Prannoy Roy, a respected journalist
with well-established credentials, has been on record that his company decided to
part ways with STAR News the day Mr. Murdoch insisted on having a direct control
on editorial policies.
Post the break-up with NDTV, STAR News approached the Union Ministry of
Information and Broadcasting with a proposal to launch a company called Media
Content and Communications Services (MCCS) with a total paid-up capital of only
Rs 40 million (around $850,000). It was proposed that MCCS should provide news
content to STAR News. The size of the capital had the media smelling rats in the
proposal, particularly in the light of the fact that the channel’s senior executives had
told the media that they had invested around Rs 1000 million (around $21 million) in
its revamp in March.
To confound the matters further, STAR India, which is a 100 per cent subsidiary of
News Corp, proposed to hold 26 per cent equity in MCCS, while distributing the
remaining 74 per cent among a motley group of Indian shareholders. Most of these
shareholders had connections with STAR India in some way or the other. STAR News’
pitch was further queered by Kumarmangalam Birla, one of the most respectable
business tycoons in India, who surrendered his proposed stake in MCCS within days
of the announcement of his name.
All hell broke lose in the media with the developments. Questions such as
where would the new entity source its future investments from and who would
support its infrastructural investments
were raised. Without losing any time,
STAR India revived a shell company
called Touch Telecontent and it was
declared that the latter would provide
infrastructural support to MCCS.
The complications in the matter forced the
government to take a tough stance on the
issue. STAR India was asked to come clear
on allegations of “corporate veils” and
“dummy investors”. The group clearly
couldn’t counter the objections raised by
the media and the government.
But the entire development did one good to the industry. The government was forced
not only to review its media policy but it learnt its lessons too. In its new clarification
issued August 22, it clearly spelt that 51 per cent equity in a news channel has to be in
the hands of one Indian partner. This 51 per cent will be exclusive of the equity held
by banks or financial institutions.
STAR News has been given a month’s time to conform to the new norms. The group
reportedly is actively in talks with a renowned media house. Results of the talks will
not be known for a month, though.
BBC to open archive to public
The BBC plans to open its archive to make
what the Corporation describes as a
“treasure trove of material” available to
everyone. Greg Dyke, the BBC director-
general, made the announcement at the
Edinburgh International Television
Festival on 24 August.
“Up until now this huge resource has
remained locked up, inaccessible to the
public because there hasn’t been an
effective mechanism for distribution,”
said Dyke. “But the digital revolution and
broadband are changing all that. For the
first time there is an easy and affordable
way of making this treasure trove of BBC
content available to all.”
The BBC Creative Archive would make
selected BBC material universally
available for private not commercial use
in the UK. Outlining the plan to open up
the BBC’s rich archive, Dyke gave the
example of a child using broadband at
home, school or in a public library, to
access the BBC material to help do their
homework and projects. “They search for
real moving pictures which would turn
their project into an exciting multi-media
presentation,” Dyke explained. “They
download them and, hey presto, they are
able to use the BBC material in their
presentation for free.”
The BBC Creative Archive is just one example
of the kind of public value initiatives that
would come with the second phase of the
digital revolution, Dyke said.
“I believe that we are about to move into
a second phase of the digital revolution,
a phase which will be more about public
than private value; about free, not pay
services; about inclusivity, not exclusion.
In particular, it will be about how public
money can be combined with new digital
technologies to transform everyone’s
lives,” he added.
News Xchange gets top names
The EBU-backed news conference, News
Xchange, has secured two internationally-
renowned speakers for its 2003
Conference. Former World Health
Organisation head, Gro Harlem Bruntland,
and international investor, George Soros,
will be providing high-level input into
the two day event taking place in
Budapest on 6 and 7 November. The AIB
will be at News Xchange.
People
Fox News has announced that Scott Novell
is to be the first bureau chief at its European
news bureau in London. Novell starts on 8
September and will manage the editorial
output from the 15-person team. Novell
has worked for Fox for six years, most
recently as the New York bureau chief.
Will the sunrise over Delhi obscure
a Star?
The Channel - supported by