News Broadcasting
SC not to interfere in BCCI-DD deal
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today in an interim order observed that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Prasar Bharati and Sony should keep detailed accounts of the revenue earned through the telecast of the cricket matches.
This also indicates that the court has refused to intervene on the application moved by Zee Telefilms last Friday questioning BCCI’s announcement regarding upcoming cricket fixtures.
According to a statement issued by Zee, the apex court’s ruling has been given “so that if the final decision is in favour of Zee than its commercial interests could be protected on the basis of the revenue accounts filed by the parties.”
Proceedings under Zee’s writ petition continue where the status of BCCI as “State” is being debated presently.
It was on Thursday that the BCCI announced that live feeds would be produced by Ten Sports network for BCCI, while “telecast, distribution and marketing” would be done by Sony Entertainment Network on a “revenue sharing basis”.
The arrangement was done for three events, the India-Autralia four Test series, the India-Pakistan Platinum Jubilee match on 13 November and two-test series between India and South Africa in November-December.
Two days later, following national broadcaster Doordarshan’s threat to go to court, the Indian cricket board chose to go along with DD in place of Sony, thereby ensuring the removal of government interference.
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
