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| Edited By: Nivedita Mookerji |Source: DNA |Updated: Mar 29, 2018, 05:42 AM IST
Big Products, a division of Anil Ambani's Reliance Big Broadcasters Pvt Ltd, has been shortlisted for a joint venture with public broadcaster Prasar Bharati to produce and beam the Commonwealth Games in October 2010 for a global audience.
Big Products' expression of interest for broadcasting the Games was in consortium with Inter Public Marketing Services Shanghai Ltd and Tokyo Broadcasting Systems. Besides Big Products, there are four other companies in the race for producing and broadcasting the Games, according to a senior representative in the information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry. They are Nimbus Communications Ltd (in partnership with Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), Nimbus Sports International Pvt Ltd (in consortium with International Sports Broadcasting, USA), Satellite Information Services Live, UK, and International Games Broadcasting Services, Switzerland.
The five private bidders were shortlisted earlier this week out of a total of 10 entities. One of these five will finally make the cut for producing and broadcasting the Games for a global audience.
The financial implications of these ventures have been worked out before giving legal clearances, an I&B ministry source pointed out. As per norms, broadcasters selected for producing and beaming the Games must have requisite experience in covering global events like Olympics, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.
As for India, while Prasar Bharati is the host broadcaster, commercial arrangements with other broadcasters are not being ruled out. The Commonwealth Games broadcast budget has been set at Rs 240 crore.
DNA, in the edition dated June 8, had reported that the government was reviewing the bids for broadcasting the 2010 Commonwealth Games even as an informal decision was taken earlier on who would do the job. This newspaper had also reported that five bids from private players had been shortlisted by host broadcaster, Prasar Bharati, for outsourcing the Games telecast. "One of the hopefuls is believed to be a large business house with interest in the media sector," the newspaper had added.
After taking charge as the I&B minister, Ambika Soni had identified coverage of the Commonwealth Games as a priority area for the government. An empowered committee, comprising top officials of Doordarshan and All India Radio, is looking into the Commonwealth Games telecast issue.
While there were protests all around against Prasar Bharati outsourcing the event coverage to a third party, top officials pointed at the mandate of the Commonwealth Organising Committee that the TV broadcast of the Games should be in high-definition format. On its own, Prasar Bharati may not be able to meet this criterion, they argued. Now, the government is working on introducing hi-definition TV in the metros, to begin with.
Prasar Bharati had invited expressions of interest for coverage of the Games earlier this year, following which the I&B ministry's parliamentary panel member Hanan Mollah had sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention in the matter. Mollah said the step to outsource the coverage of the Games was against national interest.
One for the world Big Products' expression of interest for broadcasting the Games was in consortium with Inter Public Marketing Services Shanghai and Tokyo Broadcasting Systems.
Four others in the race are Nimbus Communications Ltd, Nimbus Sports International Pvt Ltd, Satellite Information Services Live, UK, and International Games Broadcasting Services, Switzerland.
