June 22, 2012 – It doesn’t look good. Late on Wednesday the ministry of information and broadcasting extended the June 30 deadline to digitise all TV homes in the four metros. The new deadline is October 31.
“This is the first big step on a slippery slope,” says Uday Shankar, CEO, STAR India and president of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF). “We don’t doubt the commitment of the minister and ministry to bring digitisation. But we have seen that one extension usually provides the grounds for many extensions. It is very disappointing.”
Yogesh Radhakrishnan, managing director and CEO, Media Network and Distribution, echoes that with a rider. “Sure it is disappointing, but three months will not make a difference. The fact is that it is happening,” says he.
“Four to six months doesn’t matter, as long as the process is on,” agrees Sameer Manchanda, chairman, Den Networks.
Read more: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/digitisation-delay-is-notgood-sign/478162/
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