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<ul><li><keyword id="3441386" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sony-pictures-networks-india-private-limited" source="Orion">Sony Pictures Networks India Private Limited</keyword> (SPNI) and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd have entered a definitive agreement to merge ZEEL with and into SPNI and combine their linear networks, digital assets, production operations and program libraries.</li><li><keyword id="599253" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="punit-goenka" source="Orion">Punit Goenka</keyword> will lead the combined company as its Managing Director &amp; CEO. </li><li>The majority of the board of directors of the combined company will be nominated by the Sony Group and will include the current SPNI Managing Director and CEO, NP Singh.</li></ul>Sony Pictures Networks India Private Limited (SPNI) and <keyword id="381258" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zee-entertainment-enterprises-ltd-" source="Orion">Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.</keyword> (ZEEL) today announced that they have signed definitive agreements to merge ZEEL with and into SPNI and combine their linear networks, digital assets, production operations and program libraries. The agreements follow the conclusion of an exclusive negotiation period during which ZEEL and SPNI conducted mutual due diligence. After closing, the new combined company will be publicly listed in India. The closing of the transaction is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including regulatory, shareholder, and third-party approvals. Under the terms of the definitive agreements, SPNI will have cash balance of USD $1.5 Bn (assuming an INR:USD exchange rate of 75:1) at closing, including through infusion by the current shareholders of SPNI and the promoters (founders) of ZEEL, to enable the combined company to drive sharper content creation across platforms, strengthen its footprint in the rapidly evolving digital ecosystem, bid for media rights in the fast-growing sports landscape and pursue other growth opportunities. SPNI is an indirect subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (SPE). Under the transactions contemplated by a non-compete agreement, SPE, through a subsidiary, will pay a non-compete fee to certain promoters (founders) of ZEEL, which will be used by such promoters (founders) to infuse primary equity capital into SPNI, entitling the promoters (founders) of ZEEL to acquire shares of SPNI, which would eventually equal approximately 2.11% of the shares of the combined company on a post-closing basis. After the closing, SPE will indirectly hold a majority 50.86% of the combined company, the promoters (founders) of ZEEL will hold 3.99%, and the other ZEEL shareholders will hold a 45.15% stake. Punit Goenka will lead the combined company as its Managing Director &amp; CEO. The majority of the board of directors of the combined company will be nominated by the Sony Group and will include the current SPNI Managing Director and CEO, NP Singh. On closing, Singh will assume a broader executive position at SPE as Chairman, <keyword id="833633" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sony-pictures-india" source="Orion">Sony Pictures India</keyword> (a division of SPE) reporting to Mr. <keyword id="212528" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ravi-ahuja" source="Orion">Ravi Ahuja</keyword>, SPE’s Chairman of Global Television Studios and SPE Corporate Development. The combination of ZEEL and SPNI is expected to achieve business synergies and given their relative strengths in scripted, factual and sports programming, respective distribution footprints across India and iconic entertainment brands, the combined company should be well-positioned to meet the growing consumer demand for premium content across entertainment touchpoints and platforms. The seamless blend of rich expertise in content creation, deep consumer insights and success across entertainment genres is expected to drive the combined company’s ability to accrue higher shareholder value. Under the stewardship of the Sony Group, a global leader in consumer technologies, gaming and entertainment, the combined company is expected to be able to better compete with the world’s largest streaming players. As part of the definitive agreements, the promoters (founders) of ZEEL have agreed to limit the equity that they may own in the combined company to 20% of its outstanding shares. This construct does not provide the promoters (founders) of ZEEL any pre-emptive or other rights to acquire equity of the combined company from the Sony Group, the combined company or any other party. Any shares purchased by the promoters (founders) of ZEEL, must be in compliance with all applicable laws including any pricing guidelines. Commenting on this development, Punit Goenka, MD &amp; CEO, ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. said, “It is a significant milestone for all of us, as two leading media &amp; entertainment companies join hands to drive the next era of entertainment filled with immense opportunities. The combined company will create a comprehensive entertainment business, enabling us to serve our consumers with wider content choices across platforms. I am immensely grateful to the teams at ZEEL, SPE and SPNI for their efforts, that swiftly led us to this point within the stipulated timelines. This <keyword id="42411" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="merger" source="Orion">merger</keyword> presents a significant opportunity to jointly take the businesses to the next level and drive substantial growth in the global arena. I look forward to working with the guidance of the esteemed members of the combined company’s board to unlock the potential of this merger, and I wish <keyword id="1436102" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="n-p-singh" source="Orion">N.P. Singh</keyword> all the best in his new role at SPE. His contribution to the Indian media &amp; entertainment industry has been invaluable. I am most certain that our collective wisdom, rich experience and expertise will lead to a more value accretive and exciting company for our shareholders and employees, and a more engaging one for our customers and partners.” “Today marks an important step in our efforts to bring together some of the strongest leadership teams, content creators, and film libraries in the media business to create extraordinary entertainment and value for Indian consumers,” said Ravi Ahuja, SPE’s Chairman of Global Television Studios and SPE Corporate Development. “I want to thank Punit and his team at ZEEL and the small army of people at SPE and SPNI who have worked so hard to get us to this point. I especially want to thank NP Singh, who presented us with the idea to explore this merger well over a year ago. N.P. has done extraordinary work building SPNI to what it is today, and we look forward to continuing our work with him in his new role after closing.” MD &amp; CEO, SPNI, N.P. Singh, added, “This merger will create a company that’s best in class and will redefine the contours of the media and entertainment industry. As a representative of SPE on the Board of the new merged company, it will be my endeavour to provide strategic guidance and support to the company’s operating team in achieving our vision. I am also excited at the opportunity of being appointed, Chairman, Sony Pictures India, to oversee SPE’s investments and craft a wider footprint for Sony in India.” SPE was advised on this transaction by Morgan Stanley, KPMG Corporate Finance, and Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas &amp; Co. ZEEL was advised by KPMG, JP Morgan, Trilegal and Boston Consulting Group.

Sony and Zee Entertainment sign definitive agreements to merge, Punit Goenka to lead combined company as MD & CEO

The Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) has submitted its initial probe report on the Levana Suites hotel fire, recommending action against 22 engineers and zonal officers for allegedly conniving with the builder and turning a blind eye to illegal construction activity. The building now faces demolition since it was illegally constructed. The fire on Monday left four people dead, while seven others suffered burn injuries. The LDA has also lodged an FIR at the Hazratganj police station against <keyword id="14907942" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="mukesh-jasnani" source="Orion">Mukesh Jasnani</keyword> of M/S Bansal Construction and his partners for carrying out commercial activity of running a hotel on a residential plot. LDA Vice-Chairman Indramani Tripathi constituted the probe committee headed by the Authoritiy's Secretary <keyword id="3246340" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="pawan-kumar-gangwar" source="Orion">Pawan Kumar Gangwar</keyword> to fix accountability for the incident and the report was submitted late on Monday night. After the initial probe, the committee found engineers posted in 'Zone six' (which includes Hazratganj) since July 2, 2017 responsible for the incident. The 22 engineers/zonal officers indicted by the LDA inquiry team include executive engineers Arun Kumar Singh, O.P. Mishra (both retired), superintending engineers <keyword id="5155996" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="zahiruddin" source="Orion">Zahiruddin</keyword> and <keyword id="277708" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="kamaljeet-singh" source="Orion">Kamaljeet Singh</keyword>, assistant engineers O.P. Gupta, Rakesh Mohan, Radhey <keyword id="162719" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="shyam-singh" source="Orion">Shyam Singh</keyword>, Vinod <keyword id="359036" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="kumar-gupta" source="Orion">Kumar Gupta</keyword>, Amar Kumar Mishra, <keyword id="367444" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="nagendra-singh" source="Orion">Nagendra Singh</keyword> and Ismail Khan. Similarly, the junior engineers include Rajeev Kumar Srivastava, J.N. Dubey, J.D. Singh, Ravindra Srivastava, Udaiveer Singh, <keyword id="1250764" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="mohammad-ismail-khan" source="Orion">Mohammad Ismail Khan</keyword>, Anil Mishra, P.K. Gupta, <keyword id="14907940" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="sushil-kumar-varma" source="Orion">Sushil Kumar Varma</keyword>, Ambrish Sharma and <keyword id="14907941" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="ranganath-singh" source="Orion">Ranganath Singh</keyword>. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/karnataka-govt-releases-300-crore-to-manage-flood-situation-in-bengaluru/articleshow/94018181.cms">Karnataka govt releases ₹300 crore to manage flood situation in Bengaluru</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/rupee-has-held-its-own-despite-sharp-depreciation-in-other-currencies-rbi-governor/articleshow/94015738.cms">Rupee has held its own despite sharp depreciation in other currencies: RBI Governor</a>

22 engineers, officers found guilty in Lucknow hotel fire probe

<ul><li>The <keyword id="384988" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Broadcasting-Foundation">Indian Broadcasting Foundation</keyword> has sought Government’s support to deal with the economic crises in the <keyword id="142287" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="television-broadcast">Television Broadcast</keyword> Sector as a fallout of the COVID-19 outbreak.</li><li>In a letter to <keyword id="119642" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Prakash-Javadekar">Prakash Javadekar</keyword>, Minister for Information and Broadcasting, IBF has made some requests that will bring some relief to the broadcast industry.</li><li>IBF’s press release suggests that the broadcasting business has been hit both on the demand and supply side which has not only led to cash flow problems but has also resulted in existential crisis for many of IBF’s members. </li></ul> The Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF), has sought Government’s support to deal with the economic crises in the Television Broadcast Sector as a fallout of the COVID-19 outbreak in the country. In its letter to Prakash Javadekar, Minister for Information and Broadcasting, IBF has made the following requests: 1. Regulatory moratorium for the sector for at least next 18 months. 2. Phased resumption of production activities. 3. Extension of moratorium period for GST payment. 4. Mandating Digital Payments of Subscription and Advertising dues to Broadcasters. 5. Advisory to DPOs in respect of release of payment of subscription fees for the period upto 29th Feb 2020. 6. Waiver of Processing Fee and Temporary live uplinking fee for live sporting events for a period of one year from the resumption of normal business activities. 7. Increase in time period of one year to two years for operationalization of new channels which have been granted permission. 8. Suspension of requirement of Performance Bank Guarantees in respect of channels sought to be launched for a period of one year. 9. Waiver of Carriage Fee due to Prasar Bharati for 3 months (April, May and June) for FTA Channels on Prasar Bharati’s Free Dish Platform. 10. Deferment of payment due to Prasar Bharati for Free Dish carriage by 31 March 2020 be deferred until July 2020. 11. All pending refunds even exceeding Rs. 5 Lacs should be urgently processed. 12. The 1st installment of advance tax (due on 15 June 2020) should be done away with and taxpayers be allowed to pay the 2nd instalment (due on 15 September 2020) directly without any interest liability. 13. The due date for deposit of TDS for the months of March and April 2020 should be extended to 31 May 2020 without any interest liability. 14. Extension /waiver of permission for FX payments for foreign satellite transponder hiring. 15. Lower rate of TDS from 10% to 2% on subscription revenues. 16. Payment of stamp duty on agreements should be deferred upto expiry of ninety (90) days’ from the date of lifting of nation-wide lockdown. 17. Allow discharge of GST reverse charge obligation through GST input credit rather than paying in cash. 18. Extend all existing stay of income tax demand for next 6 months without any new hearing. Speaking about IBF's request to the government, <keyword id="826998" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="N-P-Singh">N P Singh</keyword>, President-IBF said, “The outbreak of the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown have posed several challenges for the Television Broadcast Sector. With complete cessation of production of television shows, cancellations of live sporting events and scheduled advertisements, advertisement bookings nosediving by ~50%; delays in payments by advertising agencies/advertisers and distribution platform operators, the Broadcast sector is facing the brunt of the slowdown." “Moreover, while we welcome the compliance and statutory relaxations granted by the Government in its latest notification of April 15, the Broadcast Sector is seeking a stimulus package from the Government in the form of economic relief and regulatory flexibility so that all Broadcasters especially the smaller businesses can be helped to get back on track. IBF has also requested the Government for reduction in GST rate on Digital services (B2C), automatic refund of input credit and immediate processing and issuance of Lower withholding order (LTDS).” IBF’s press release suggests that the broadcasting business has been hit both on the demand and supply side which has not only led to cash flow problems but has also resulted in existential crisis for many of IBF’s members. IBF members’ cash flow difficulties are further compounded because payments from Bureau of Outreach &amp; Communication (BOC) and other State Government Advertising Agencies/Advertisers running in several hundreds of crores have not been received and IBF has sought MIB’s intervention in expediting these payments. The Government has notified “Print and Electronic Media including broadcasting, DTH and cable services” as one of the “Essential Services” during the lockdown period. However, with employees unable to go to work because of commute restrictions and production schedules halted for programming across the sector, providing uninterrupted entertainment and news to the viewers is posing a challenge to broadcasters. "IBF has submitted a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) on prevention/safety measures for organized, safe and sustainable re-start of Content Production, Media Operations, Transmission and General Office Operations in the TV Broadcast Sector to the PMO, Niti Aayog and MIB,” said Singh. He added, “The SOP will help the sector to move quickly towards normalcy and we certainly hope that the Government would consider it favourably.” The directions of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has not percolated to the District level officers, as a result, the employees involved in the day to-today operations of the broadcasting industry are facing problems in commuting to their work place. This needs to be urgently looked at by the respective State Governments to ease out the operations after strictly following the Standard Operating Procedures as envisaged in the IBF Submission to the Government and also other stringent measures undertaken by the Central and State Governments.

IBF seeks economic relief and rehabilitation package for broadcast sector

Mumbai, Apr 20 () Advertising bookings on TV channels have halved because of the COVID-19 pandemic and there are delays in payments from brands as well, an umbrella body of broadcasters said on Monday. The outbreak has also halted production of ongoing shows, cancellation of live sporting events like the IPL and also scheduled advertisements, the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) said. The body has written to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar, seeking a slew of relief or stimulus measures for the industry. "The outbreak of the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown have posed several challenges for the television broadcast sector," its president N P Singh said. Singh added that there has been a complete cessation of production of television shows, cancellations of live sporting events and scheduled advertisements, advertisement bookings nosediving by 50 per cent, and also delays in payments by advertising agencies/advertisers and distribution platform operators. He said the sector is seeking a stimulus from the government in the form of both economic relief and also regulatory flexibility so that all broadcasters, especially the smaller businesses, can be helped to get back on track. The demands made include a reduction on the Goods and Services Tax rate on digital services, automatic refund of input credit and immediate processing and issuance of Lower Withholding order (LTDS), he said. It also includes a "regulatory moratorium" for the sector for 18 months, phased resumption of production activities, waiver of processing fee and temporary live uplinking fee for live sporting events for a period of one year, suspension of requirement of performance bank guarantees for channels to be launched for a period of one year. AA SHWSHW

Covid-19: Broadcasters say ad bookings on TV channels halved

The <keyword id="58687" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bharatiya-Janata-Party">Bharatiya Janata Party</keyword> (BJP) has released a list of '<keyword id="6457266" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="star-campaigners">Star Campaigners</keyword>' for <keyword id="6357783" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="West-bengal">West Bengal</keyword> and Assam Assembly polls. Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> will lead the party's campaign in both the states. Actor Mithun Chakraborty, who joined the BJP at the Prime Minister's rally on Sunday, has been made one of the star campaigners of the party in West Bengal. On March 9, in a letter to the <keyword id="6359191" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="election">Election</keyword> Commission, BJP National General Secretary and Rajya Sabha member Arun Singh submitted the list of 40 star campaigners to the poll body. "List of leaders of the BJP who would be participating in election campaigning pertaining to the Assembly elections in the state of West Bengal (Phase-I)," Singh wrote. Similarly, Singh also submitted a list of star campaigners for Assam Assembly polls. Apart from Modi and Chakravorty, BJP's list of star campaigners for West Bengal includes party chief J.P. Nadda, Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Arjun Munda, <keyword id="197418" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dharmendra-Pradhan">Dharmendra Pradhan</keyword>, Smriti Irani and Babul Supriyo. These apart, chief ministers <keyword id="43254" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Yogi-Adityanath">Yogi Adityanath</keyword> and Shivraj Singh Chouhan would also seek votes for BJP candidates in West Bengal. Others names include Manoj Tiwari, Locket Chatterjee, Roopa Ganguly, Shanawaz Hussain. Kailash Vijayvargiya, Dilip Ghosh, Suvendu Adhikari, Rajib Banerjee, Arvind Menon, Amit Malviya. Actress Payal Sarkar and Srabanti Chatterjee, who recently joined the BJP, have also been made star campaigners of the party in West Bengal. In a separate list of start campaigners for Assam, the BJP named Modi, Nadda, Shah, Gadkari, B.L. Santosh, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, Himanta Biswa Sarma, state President Ranjeet Kumar Dass, Narednra Singh Tomar, Jitendra Singh, Irani, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur chief ministers Prema Khandu and N. Biren Singh, Yogi Adityanath and Chouhan. Names of local leaders are also included in the list of star campaigners in Assam along with Poonam Mahajan, Tiwari and Ravi Kishan. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/checkout-review-of-oppo-fitness-band-related-to-design-performance-price-and-battery-life/articleshow/81423414.cms">Oppo Band Style review – getting the basics right with a twist of flair</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/international/news/narendra-modi-joe-biden-yoshihide-suga-and-scott-morrison-are-set-to-meet-for-the-first-ever-quad-leaders-summit-on-march-12/articleshow/81424117.cms">The first-ever leaders summit of the QUAD may be another signal that it's ready for something more formal</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/how-to-check-share-allotment-status-of-mtar-technologies-ipo/articleshow/81424102.cms">MTAR Technologies IPO: Here is how to check share allotment status</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/enterprise/news/tcs-cfo-explains-how-the-role-of-a-finance-head-has-been-changed-by-the-pandemic/articleshow/81423884.cms">EXCLUSIVE: TCS CFO explains how the role of a finance head has been changed by the pandemic</a>

Actor Mithun Chakraborty one of BJP's 'star campaigners' in Bengal assembly elections

New age <keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword> actors are sporting like never before! Take for instance <keyword id="710" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sonam-Kapoor">Sonam Kapoor</keyword>, who have been utterly trolled last week at <keyword id="6366702" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Cannes">Cannes</keyword>. Her crime? Wearing an <keyword id="349033" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Elie-Saab">Elie Saab</keyword> dress. Well, that wasn’t just a dress. That was a giant furry big fat dress. 
 
The internet breaking dress had become a laughable stock in a few hours after the photo was posted. 
 However, Sonam was far from being offended. She posted the memes that mimicked her with Sponge Bob and her ‘hairy’ father <keyword id="6354700" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Anil-Kapoor">Anil Kapoor</keyword>. And then she bombed the conclusion with a post script. P.S. I felt like a <keyword id="16712" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="princess">princess</keyword> just so you know. 
 Earlier we have noticed how actors would get furious of being made fun for their wardrobe disaster. But now, the new Bollywood is cool about it. While <keyword id="114453" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arjun-Kapoor">Arjun Kapoor</keyword> and <keyword id="46346" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ranbir-Singh">Ranbir Singh</keyword> had the guts of being publicly roasted by humour group <keyword id="6468924" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="All-India-Bakchod">All India Bakchod</keyword> (AIB), Sonam has shown her sporting attitude. 
 
Here’s how she retored: 
 
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
	
		This is hilarious.. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/photo?src=hash">#photo</a> credit <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mtvindia?src=hash">#mtvindia</a> P. S. I felt like a princess just so you kno… <a href="http://t.co/qkbZb9k47n">http://t.co/qkbZb9k47n</a> <a href="http://t.co/OUFJKQ7FIS">pic.twitter.com/OUFJKQ7FIS</a>
	— Sonam Kapoor (@sonamakapoor) <a href="https://twitter.com/sonamakapoor/status/603716747548561408">May 28, 2015</a> 
	 </blockquote>
(Image: Twitter)

Sonam retorted to Canne’s wardrobe disaster trolls sportingly

Filmmakers <keyword id="3162130" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="vinod-bhanushali" source="Orion">Vinod Bhanushali</keyword> and <keyword id="6354782" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sandeep-singh" source="Orion">Sandeep Singh</keyword> have come together to bring on-screen the life of late Prime Minister <keyword id="47100" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="atal-bihari-vajpayee" source="Orion">Atal Bihari Vajpayee</keyword>. The biopic is titled 'Main Rahoon Ya Na Rahoon, Yeh Desh Rehna Chahiye - ATAL'. The film is an adaptation of the book 'The Untold Vajpayee: Politician and Paradox' by renowned author Ullekh N.P. Talking about the film, Vinod said, "I have been a great fan of Atalji all my life. A born leader, a statesman par excellence, a visionary. Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji was all the above. His contribution to our nation-building is unparalleled, and it is our great honour that Bhanushali Studios Ltd is bringing his legacy to the silver screen." Adding to that Sandeep Singh shared, "Being a filmmaker, I feel that cinema is the best medium to communicate such untold stories, that will unveil not only his political ideologies, but his humane and poetic aspects, that made him the most loved leader of the opposition as well as India's most progressive Prime Minister." The makers, who are scouting for the actor to portray the role of Atalji, will soon announce the actor and director of the film. Scheduled to go on floors in early 2023, the film will be released on Christmas 2023, which marks the 99th birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee. 'Atal' is presented by Bhanushali Studios Limited and Legend Studios, and is produced by Vinod Bhanushali, Sandeep Singh, Sam Khan, Kamlesh Bhanushali and Vishal Gurnani, and co-produced by Juhi Parekh Mehta, Zeeshan Ahmad and Shivv Sharma. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/education/news/coaching-classes-and-edtechs-make-the-most-false-claims/articleshow/92518895.cms">Parents beware: Coaching classes and edtechs make the most false claims</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/gadgets/news/realme-techlife-watch-r100-review/articleshow/92515922.cms">Realme TechLife Watch R100 review – decent performance with some room for improvement</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/paytm-is-on-the-cusp-of-a-cup-and-holder-breakout-explaining-the-rally/articleshow/92517971.cms">Paytm is on the cusp of a ‘cup and holder breakout’ — explaining the rally</a>

Atal Bihari Vajpayee's biopic is on the works based on the book, The Untold Vajpayee

NP Singh explains how capping the prices under TRAI's latest amendments will impact broadcasters and consumers in the long-run

<ul><li>On January 1, 2020, TRAI issued a few amendments to the New Tariff Order and Interconnection Regulations for the Broadcast industry. </li><li>After broadcasters spent over Rs 1000 crore to implement the NTO passed in Feb’ 19 and lost more than 13 to 15 million subscribers, the key stakeholders of the industry gathered in Mumbai today to challenge the latest TRAI amends. </li><li>Television experts think the New Tariff Order pan out to be counterproductive as it would affect the content quality, take away the choices consumers have now, hit revenues, employment and take away the fundamental right to monetise their content in the manner they choose. </li></ul>Key broadcasters united on January 10 in Mumbai, under the aegis of Indian Broadcasting Federation, to discuss the consequences of new Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) order that restricts pay-TV charges and could impact employment, economic growth, profitability of broadcasters and the quality of content that the industry produces. Senior executives such as The Walt Disney’s Uday Shankar, ZEEL’s Punit Goenka, Discovery’s Megha Tata, Viacom18’s Sudhanshu Vats, TV Today’s Aroon Purie, and Star and Disney’s K. Madhavan came together to highlight how the regulator’s intervention at the fundamental level could prove detrimental for the entire economy. To implement the NTO passed in February 2019, the collective cost that broadcasters bore was more than Rs 1000 crore. They also lost more than 12 to 15 million subscribers in the process. While the consumers and the industry were still grappling with the shift, NTO 2.0 could worsen the situation, leading to smaller channels shutting down. <div type="Video" msid="73196599" hostid="261" title="NP Singh explains how capping the prices under TRAI's latest amendments will impact broadcasters and consumers in the long-run" thumbUrl="https://denmark.timesinternet.in/cmslite/api/app/images.jpg?msid=73196599"></div>

 “As broadcasters, we expect a stable regulatory regime, which is necessary to enable long-term business planning and a strategic approach towards investments. This is absolutely critical to enable us to provide the best of content to our consumers, more so in these times of rapid technological change,” said NP Singh, MD &amp; CEO, Sony Pictures Networks India and President - IBF. Lack of Insights He thinks that a 40% reduction from Rs 19 to Rs 12 for creating bouquets, has no backing of consumer insights and serves no ‘logical rationale.’ This could directly affect the quality and cost of content that is offered to the consumers. In a competitive market like broadcast, channel pricing should be determined through open market forces “IBF believes the latest amendments will severely impair broadcasters’ ability to compete with other unregulated platforms and adversely affect the viability of the pay TV industry,” added Singh. TRAI’s decision will come in force from March 1. Hampers Freedom TV Today’s Purie said, “A regulator’s job is to facilitate, enable and encourage growth, not strangulate. They are killing the golden goose which lays the egg.” He further said that content is not an essential commodity. Therefore, the market forces should be free to run it according to their will. Drawing an analogy, he added, “These regulations are like tying our feet and asking us to swim.” Too Soon to Meddle; Proves NTO 1.0 Missed Depth Uday Shankar said that the implications are so disruptive, that it has forced all of the broadcasters to come together. He thus questioned the very need of implementing another NTO in such a short span of time. He also questioned if there was a need for another regulation, which implies that the previous tariff lacked depth and planning. The broadcasters also pointed out the dichotomy of NTO; while on one side it aims to bring the prices down for consumers, on the other, it restricts discounting completely. On top of that, 60% of the cut goes to distributors, as they charge Rs 106 as Network Capacity Fee (NCF). What is the Agenda? Viacom18’s Sudhanshu Vats, highlighting the success of previous NTO, said that 70% of the consumers bought a bouquet from DPOs, a crore and a half of the audience opted for NTO, month-on-month churn showed how consumers are making choices, 94% of the audience were aware about the shift, and transparency was achieved. Vats, therefore, questioned the fundamental need for another NTO. “Micro-managing in a diverse country like India is impossible. Why is there a desire to serve a standard thalli to our sector? In every other sector, there are wide options; there is a shirt from Rs 100 rupee to Rs 10,000 and above. India is a very heterogeneous country and that plays out even more in media with the complexities, genres, languages and events. Therefore, there will be different choices made by different people, so this entire thing of keeping it consistent is not in the interest of the industry,” said Vats. No Feedback from the Stakeholders Questioning the fact that TRAI had taken enough feedback from the industry stakeholders and also the need to further reduce the prices in our country, Megha Tata said, "India is already the cheapest market in the world. There are 100s of channels and there is no evidence of market failure or high channels price compared to other developed economies that warrants TRAI fixing a cap on prices, discounting and the number of bouquets one can form.” The new amendment also begs the question -- has TRAI taken considerable feedback from all the broadcasters before coming up with this amendment order? A progressive policy framework must be impartial to all stakeholders in the ecosystem. The new change will impact the equilibrium of stakeholders," concludes Tata.

Why India's top broadcasters believe the latest TRAI amendments will severely impair the industry

Table tennis star Manika Batra and cricketer Deepti Sharma were among those who were presented the <keyword id="127507" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Sports-Awards">National Sports Awards</keyword> by President <keyword id="6354561" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ram-nath-kovind">Ram Nath Kovind</keyword> on Saturday. Commonwealth Games gold medallist Batra, alongwith Indian women's hockey captain Rani Rampal and 2016 Rio Paralympics gold medallist Mariyappan Thangavelu were presented the <keyword id="9847721" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rajiv-Gandhi-Khel-Ratna-Award-">Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.</keyword> Deepti meanwhile was conferred the Arjuna, as were Atanu Das (archery), Chirag Shetty (badminton), Vishesh Bhriguvanshi (basketball), Manish Kaushik and Lovlina Bograhain (boxing), Sawant Ajay Anant (Equestrian), Sandesh Jhingan (football), Akashdeep Singh(hockey), Deepak (kabaddi), Kale Sarika Sudhakar (kho kho), Dattu Baban Bhokanal (rowing), Saurabh Chaudhary and Manu Bhaker (Shooting), Madhurika Suhas Patkar (table tennis), Divya Kakran and Rahul Aware (wrestling), Shiva Keshavan (luge), Suyash Narayan Jadhav (para swimming), Sandeep (para athletics) and Manish Narwal (para shooting). Shooting coach Jaspal Rana, who is credited with overseeing the careers of the likes of Saurabh and Manu and thus playing a major role in India's recent dominance in the sport, is among nine coaches who have been conferred the Dronacharya Award in the regular category. Yogesh Malviya (Mallakhamb), Jude Felix Sebastian (Hockey), Kuldeep Kumar Handoo (Wushu), and Gaurav Khanna (Para Badminton) were also conferred the Dronacharya. Meanwhile Dharmendra Tiwary (archery), Purushotham Rai (athletics), Shiv Singh (boxing), Romesh Pathania (hockey), Krishan Kumar Hooda (kabaddi) and Vijay Bhalchandra Munishwar (para powerlifting) received the Dronacharya Lifetime award. Kuldip Singh Bhullar (athletics), Jincy Philips (athletics), Pradeep Shrikrishna Gandhe (badminton), Trupti Murgunde (badminton), N Usha (boxing), Ajit Singh (hockey), Manpreet Singh (kabaddi), J Ranjith Kumar (para athletics), Satyaprakash Tiwari (para badminton), Manjeet Singh (rowing), Late Sachin Nag (swimming), Nandan P Bal (tennis) and Netarpal Hooda (wrestling) were conferred the Dhyan Chand Award. The Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Awards were conferred to Anita Devi (Land Adventure), Col Sarfraz Singh (Land Adventure), Taka Tamut (Land Adventure), Keval Hiren Kakka (Land Adventure), Satendra Singh (Water Adventure) and Late Magan Bissa (Life Time Achievement). Panjab University won the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy. Pune's Army Sport Institute, Lakshya Institute, Delhi's ONGC, Air Force Sports Control Board, and International Institute of Sports Management (IISM) in Mumbai were conferred the Rahstriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar.

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