Pakistan Television (PTV) shelves cable TV network project
ISLAMABAD- The Pakistan Television (PTV) has shelved a plan to launch cable TV network, providing facilities to view 100 TV channels.
The licence which the PTV management has acquired from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for launching these channels after paying a fee of Rs 1.5 million, will become invalid next month.
It was valid only for one year and the PTV was supposed to get it renewed every year, a source in the PTA said. The sources said that the PTV was required to pay a renewal fee of Rs 75, 000 every year, if the project was to be continued.
The source said the project has been shelved due to financial constraints as the equipment which the PTV had to install for transmitting these channels was very costly.
The pressure of religious elements who had opposed the project and termed it a bid to spread obscenity in society, was stated to be another reason for shelving the project.
The PTA had issued the licence to the PTV under section 5(2) (0) of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Reorganization) Act, 1996, and rule 3 of the Cable Television Operation Rules, 2000, framed under Section 57 (1) of the Act.
Initially some hundred channels were to be shown on the PTV network but the number of channels could have been increased gradually, a senior official of the PTA said.
Source: Dawn
Date:6/25/2001
” 
” 
” 
” 
