Indiantelevision.com Team

(14 May 2007 8:00 pm)

NEW DELHI :The Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP) has still not received any reply from newspapers who have refused to publish advertisements of public service, as required in clause 18 (f) of the Advertisement Policy.

The newspapers stopped publishing the advertisements following a directive from the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) to member newspapers not to publish advertisements of PSUs and Autonomous Bodies at DAVP rates.

Meanwhile, DAVP sources told indiantelevision.com that the number of advertisements released both to the print and the audio-visual media has come down over the previous year, although advertisements amounting to Rs 3.07 billion were released by the Government during 2006-07 - around Rs 1 billion to the audio-visual medium.

DAVP, which is the nodal agency for the purpose, released a total of 150,965 advertisements during the year, of which 130,787 went to the audio-visual media.

The number of advertisements released in 2005-06 was 156,850 (133,471 to the audio-visual media) and 115,137 in 2004-05 (92,903 to the audio-visual media). However, the expenditure has gone up from around Rs 1.67 billion in 2004-05 to just over Rs 2.91 billion a year later.

The release of advertisements is guided by the Print Advertisement Policy which came into effect from June one last year and the Audio-Visual Advertisement Policy which became effective from 10 November.

According to the new Audio-Visual Advertisement Policy, Ministries/Departments are no longer obliged to advertise on Prasar Bharati Channels if they want to advertise on private channels. While making media plans, sufficient weightage has to be given to regional channels. Broad distribution of advertisements in monetary terms was set at national channels 70 per cent and regional channels 30 per cent. Provision has been made for review of rates if TAM rate varies by more than 50 per cent continuously for six months period.

DAVP will no longer take any departmental charge, as in the case of print media ads. The Empanelment Advisory Committee constitution has changed and is headed by the cost advisor in the finance ministry, as in the case of the rate structure committee for press advertisements.