10+2 ad cap: Relief for b'casters till next hearing on March 13, 2014

The Delhi High Court has come to the rescue of the broadcasters who are airing ads in excess of the 12-minute per clock hour cap to support their revenue and protect their business model. 

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) cannot take coercive action against the erring broadcasters, at least till 13 March 2013. That is the date the case will come up for hearing and the future of the ad cap regulation will be decided afresh. 

While providing interim relief, the High Court bench, headed by Chief Justice NV Ramana and Justice Manmohan, has in the same breath directed the broadcasters to submit weekly reports stating their ad duration schedule to the TRAI as per the prescribed format. This will keep them under the watch of the sector regulator and even mean retrospective penalty if the court ruling goes against them. 

“This (interim relief) doesn’t mean that the regulation is stayed by the court,” TRAI counsel Saket Singh said. 

Broadcasters will, however, have more to hope for. They can now expect a stay order in their favour. If they manage to get that, they will have longer time till the court gives a verdict. “The High Court will be overloaded with a long list of pending cases and it will take a lot longer than the TDSAT to give a verdict,” said a media lawyer. 

The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) had heard the arguments and rejoinders made by the parties for three weeks at length. “It will be highly unlikely to get such successive dates from the Delhi High Court, considering the number of pending cases,” a legal expert opined. 

Broadcasters will also get more time to take corrective measures. This will mean more planning time and more preparedness. “Digitisation should settle in before the ad cap regulation gets implemented,” said a senior TV executive. 

The broadcasters—News Broadcasters Association (NBA), music broadcasters (9XM, Mastiii, B4U Music and MTunes), E24 and Sun TV Network—had moved the High Court on Monday, after the TDSAT dismissed the case last week following a Supreme Court order. 

The broadcasters have, in their petitions, submitted that the TRAI has no jurisdiction over ad duration and have also taken note of the fundamental rights under the Constitution of India. 

“Our contention is that this [ad cap] regulation deserves to be struck down because the TRAI does not have the required statutory and regulatory power to regulate ad duration,” NBA counsel Anup J Bhambhani told TelevisionPost.com. “The ad regulation also infringes on the broadcasters’ right to free speech under Article 19(1)(A) and their right to carry on their business under Article 19(1)(G).”

Source: http://cablequest.org/news/legal-news/item/3842-10-2-ad-cap-relief-for-b-casters-till-next-hearing-on-march-13,-2014.html