News Broadcasting
Trai for cut in DTH revenue share
NEW DELHI: Broadcast and cable regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is likely to come to the aid of direct-to-home television services operators in the country by suggesting a two per cent cut in an annual revenue sharing with the government.
Trai, which is increasingly coming in for criticism from the industry for delaying action on various important issues, is also likely to suggest that a clause on ‘must provide’ (making available TV channels to all platforms on a non-discriminatory basis) be first tried out in the DTH sector.
But, point out sources in Trai, a suggestion on the ‘must provide’ clause may come with a rider that to be fair to all it could be made applicable when there are two licensees in the field of DTH or two operators with operational services in the country.
This recommendation, as being anticipated by officials of the information and broadcasting ministry would also go a long way in giving a fillip to the proposed DTH service of Indian pubcaster Doordarshan. The ministry officials also expect that Trai would submit its recommendations on this subject very soon.
The regulator after having studied DTH models globally, has come to the conclusion that such business ventures have long gestation period and, therefore, some relaxation could be given by the government.
A suggestion to the government, which need not necessarily accept all recommendations from the regulator, may be that the annual revenue sharing of 10 per cent be reduced to eight per cent of the adjusted gross revenue. This would mean instead of paying the government 10 per cent on gross revenue, a DTH operator could subtract expenditure incurred on things like transponder leasing, spectrum fee and sale of hardware, if any.
According to the existing DTH guidelines, a licensee shall pay an annual fee equivalent to 10 per cent of its gross revenue as reflected in the audited accounts of the company for that particular financial year within one month of the end of that fiscal.
However, if the government agrees on this recommendation on clipping the revenue share percentage, then DTH operators would have to maintain separate records of all streams of revenue.
Considering that entertainment tax is a state issue and differs from region to region, Trai is likely to suggest that any such tax levied on a DTH service be at par with the prevalent norms in the cable industry and not put at a higher level because of niche-ness of a DTH service.
At the moment, entertainment tax is not levied on a DTH service at most places, but increasingly states like Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh have woken up to this untapped source of revenue for the state exchequer.
As in the case of FM radio, the regulator is also likely to state, without committing anything, that the government could review the various foreign investment caps put in place for a DTH venture.
As per present DTH guidelines, total foreign equity holding, including FDI/NRI/OCB/FII in the applicant company should not exceed 49 per cent. Within the foreign equity component, foreign direct investment (FDI) is not to exceed 20 per cent. The quantum represented by that proportion of the paid up equity share capital to the total issued equity capital of the Indian promoter company, held or controlled by the foreign investors through FDI/NRI/OCB investments, shall form part of the above said FDI limit of 20 per cent.
Further, the guidelines also state that broadcasting companies and/or cable network companies shall not be eligible to collectively own more than 20 per cent of the total equity of applicant company at any time during the license period. Similarly, the applicant company cannot have more than 20 per cent equity share in a broadcasting and/or cable network company.
Trai sources, however, have pointed out that such recommendations relating to DTH and other industry issues are still being fine-tuned and changes may be effected in the final copy as “its a dynamic process where several concerns are still being addressed.”
News Broadcasting
Senior media executive Madhu Soman exits Zee Media
Former Reuters and Bloomberg leader says he leaves with “no regrets” after brief stint at WION and Zee Business
NOIDA: Madhu Soman, a veteran of global newsrooms and media sales floors, has stepped away from Zee Media Corporation after a short stint steering business strategy for WION and Zee Business.
In a reflective LinkedIn note marking his departure, Soman said his time within the network’s corridors was always likely to be brief. “Some chapters close faster than expected,” he wrote, signalling the end of a nearly two-year spell in which he oversaw both editorial partnerships and commercial strategy.
Soman joined Zee Media in 2022 after more than a decade abroad with Reuters and Bloomberg, returning to India to take on the role of chief business officer for WION and Zee Business. His mandate was ambitious: bridge the newsroom and the revenue desk while expanding digital and broadcast reach.
During the stint, Zee Business reached break-even for the first time since its launch in 2005, while WION refreshed programming and strengthened its digital footprint across platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
But Soman suggested the cultural fit proved uneasy. Describing himself as a “cultural misfit”, he hinted at deeper tensions between editorial instincts shaped in global newsrooms and the realities of India’s television news ecosystem.
Before joining Zee, Soman spent more than seven years at Bloomberg in Hong Kong as head of broadcast sales for Asia-Pacific, expanding the company’s news syndication business across several markets. Earlier, he held senior editorial roles at Reuters, overseeing online strategy in India and managing Reuters Video Services from London.
His career began in television and wire reporting, including a stint with ANI during the 1999 Kargil conflict, before moving into digital publishing as India’s internet media landscape took shape.
Now, after nearly three decades in broadcast and digital media, Soman is leaving Delhi NCR and returning to his hometown, Trivandrum.
Exhausted, he admits. But unbowed. And with one quiet line that sums up the journey: he didn’t sell his soul — because some things, after all, are not for sale.
