(26 November 2005 4:00 pm)

MUMBAI: After BBC, it is the turn of Germany's international broadcaster Deutsche Welle to evince interest in India.

DW is keen to enter the television and FM radio space in India, according to a report by PTI.

"India is an important country and we are looking for partnerships here," DW Director-General Erik Bettermann said.

DW was open to investing in the country if the right opportunities and partners came along, the report said. The company had revenues of about   300 million last year.

Bettermann, however, expressed concern over some of the restrictions on news and current affairs for foreign broadcasters. "Free press is a pre-condition for democracy. Open the sector for foreign broadcasters. It is the trend worldwide," he said.

During his visit to Delhi, Bettermann held meetings with top officials of public broadcasters All-India Radio and DD. He welcomed the government's decision to allow 20 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in FM radio.

DW may look for a content tie up with an Indian radio partner, offering programmes on sports, culture and lifestyle. The German network, funded by the federal government, transmits multilingual feed including in Hindi.

PTI quoted Thomas Barthlein, a senior official of DW, as saying that the broadcaster was speaking to direct-to-home (DTH) service providers Zee and Prasar Bharati for making their TV channels available on the platform.