Four Indian broadcasters halt 70 associated television channels in Nepal over Rs 1 billion dues

KATHMANDU, Aug 7: A number of Indian television broadcast companies have stopped relaying their products in Nepal for the past one week citing the delay in dues settlement by cable service providers.

The popular Indian entertainment networks including Star, Sony, Zee and Colors have halted their broadcasting in Nepal. Nepali service providers are reported to have left with clearing dues worth around Rs 1 billion to the Indian companies. “The transmissions have been disrupted due to problems seen in financial transactions between channel broadcasters and their local distributors,” reads the notice displayed by the concerned service providers.

Gajendra Kumar Thakur, spokesperson for the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, said the Indian channels have been disrupted after the companies concerned have refused to abide by the ‘À la carte’ price system enforced by the government since last year.

À la carte’ stands for 'Pay Television' service in which consumers can watch selective premium channels by paying a separate fee. Unlike earlier when consumers could view all the television channels after paying for a lump sum package while they did not have the right to choose the channel, the pay system allows people to watch only the channel of their choice by paying a fee.

Thakur said the line ministry has stopped recommending the foreign exchange to pay to the Indian broadcasters for over a year after the companies failed to abide by the government rule. “As a result, Nepali service providers have been unable to pay to the Indian broadcasting companies,” he added.

Two Nepali companies Net TV and Mega Max Digital have been working as local distributors of the aforementioned four Indian television channels. While Net TV looks after distribution of Star and Zee related television programs, Mega Max Digital has been assigned as distributors of Sony and Colors television shows. These four broadcasters have been relaying 70 television channels in Nepal.

At a time when a number of internet service providers have been providing combined services related to internet and television channels, Nepali television operators have been demanding the government to unbundle these two services. According to them, the current problem can be solved if the concerned companies provide television service only by taking a fee fixed by the government.