IndianMascot
Core Member
In its follow-up consultation paper on the issue of direct-to-home (DTH) licence renewal, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has proposed that the licence fee for DTH services be charged at 8 per cent of the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) and would exclude service and sales tax.
This proposal will have positive implications on the DTH companies who are hard hit by the current licence fee structure for their services. They are required to pay an annual fee equivalent to 10 per cent of their fiscal gross revenues.
Trai has also suggested that the definition of ‘control’ should be more comprehensive and it is not enough to just prescribe a 20 per cent cross-holding cap between DTH, broadcasting and TV channel distribution entities. The provisions in the DTH guidelines pertaining to cross-holdings may, thus, be suitably modified, Trai said.
Besides, the sector regulator touched upon a whole ambit of other issues including interoperability of set-top boxes (STBs) and migration fee. Incidentally, Trai is working on cross-media restrictions at a much broader level which will include the cross-holding regulations for the DTH sector.
It may be recalled that over a month back, Trai had issued a consultation paper on the issue of DTH licence renewal following the expiry of Dish TV’s licence. The supplementary consultation paper was issued Thursday following requests from industry stakeholders urging the sector regulator to take up a comprehensive review of the existing DTH licence conditions. The last date for offering comments on the consultation paper is 25 November.
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This proposal will have positive implications on the DTH companies who are hard hit by the current licence fee structure for their services. They are required to pay an annual fee equivalent to 10 per cent of their fiscal gross revenues.
Trai has also suggested that the definition of ‘control’ should be more comprehensive and it is not enough to just prescribe a 20 per cent cross-holding cap between DTH, broadcasting and TV channel distribution entities. The provisions in the DTH guidelines pertaining to cross-holdings may, thus, be suitably modified, Trai said.
Besides, the sector regulator touched upon a whole ambit of other issues including interoperability of set-top boxes (STBs) and migration fee. Incidentally, Trai is working on cross-media restrictions at a much broader level which will include the cross-holding regulations for the DTH sector.
It may be recalled that over a month back, Trai had issued a consultation paper on the issue of DTH licence renewal following the expiry of Dish TV’s licence. The supplementary consultation paper was issued Thursday following requests from industry stakeholders urging the sector regulator to take up a comprehensive review of the existing DTH licence conditions. The last date for offering comments on the consultation paper is 25 November.
Wish to read further, ----------->