India turns down Nine bid for longer TV deal

NEW DELHI: Kerry Packer's Nine Broadcasting India is in danger of being unplugged as government broadcaster Doordarshan (DD) has turned down its requests to allow it to run the three-hour prime time slot on DD Metro for an uninterrupted 10 years. Under current arrangements, Nine is required to bid for the slot each year. Anil Baijal, chief executive of Prasar Bharati, the regulatory body controlling DD, said it will be calling for fresh bids after Nine rejected its offer of an 18-month extension.Nine is believed to have sweetened its bid by offering a fee plus a share of revenue. Nine's chief executive, Ravina Raj Kohli, said: "We see ourselves as the best partners for DD to make Metro an entertainment powerhouse, and to fully realise the channel's potential." According to industry sources, Nine's record USdollars 26 million bid for DD Metro was an acknowledgement of the advantages of state patronage. DD enjoys a monopoly over terrestrial airwaves, and a legislative edict ensures that cable operators carry at least three DD channels, which translates to an audience of 33 million people. Branded as "Nine Gold", Nine's time band on DD Metro features locally-produced Hindi language dramas, 26 of which made it into the list of the country's top 50 entertainment shows. The company won three Radio & TV Practitioners' Association of India awards this year, and under Nine's management of its slots, DD Metro has made five times the revenue it earned from the slots last year. Kohli said heavy investments in programming are needed to compete with Hindi entertainment satellite channels like STAR Plus and Sony Entertainment Television. With Nine only expecting to break even in six years, she said a longer contract was crucial. But India's broadcast regulatory body is adamant that no single private programmer should hold a monopoly over a Doordarshan channel. It has been speculated that the Doordarshan arrangement is more experimental than strategic, less about entertainment and more about needed cash transfusions, as the public broadcaster has a mandate to develop the industry. Back-room work on Packer's USdollars 640 million enterprises in India was conducted with controversial stockbroker Ketan Parekh, who is now in jail for alleged stock market manipulation. Insiders say the past association with Parekh is of additional concern to the Government. However, James Packer, chief executive of Consolidated Press Holdings, continues to emphasise the company's ambitions for Nine. "We want to build Nine Broadcasting into the biggest entertainment conglomerate in India. Let the opportunities come, and the capital will be available." With Nine having built a brand presence in the market, industry analysts speculate that it could set up its own satellite channel, in the same way that Discovery Channel India has done.

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