Private FM radio channels are to be introduced in Alappuzha, Kanhangad, and Palakkad in the ensuing third phase of expansion of the operation of channels. The three towns have been included on the list of new locations announced by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for launching channels. Kavaratti in Lakshadweep and Port Blair in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands are also among the places where new FM services are to be launched.
Reserve price
TRAI has set a reserve price for the allocation of channels to private operators as part of the policy of expansion of FM channel service. The channels will be auctioned in the electronic mode to prospective bidders. The reserve price will be the minimum price for the bidding for each city.
The reserve price is Rs.4.23 crore for Alappuzha and Rs.1.5 crore each for Kanhangad and Palakkad. The minimum fee for Port Blair will be Rs.25 lakh while that of Kavaratti will be Rs.5 lakh, according to TRAI recommendations on reserve price for auction.
TRAI has set the prices in pursuance of a directive from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, which has selected the list of cities for introduction of the service. In all, 831 FM channels spread across 264 cities are to be auctioned under the new phase.
The reserve price for the channels in respective cities has been fixed by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in accordance with the recommendations prepared by the latter. The reserve price has been arrived at based on factors such as population of the city, per capita Gross State Domestic Product and listenership of FM radio.
Private participation
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting opened up the FM radio broadcasting for private participation in 1999. As many as 243 FM Radio channels became operational in 86 cities during the first two phases of the policy on FM channels. The third phase pertains to the introduction of private FM radio channels in 253 new cities/towns each with a population of more than 1 lakh and 11 other cities/towns with a population less than 1 lakh in the border areas of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) and the North East (NE) region.
Under the new phase, cities/towns have been categorized into 5 categories. Accordingly, metros come under A+ category and cities with population above 20 lakh under A.
Those cities with population between 10 lakh and 20 lakh come under group B while those with population of 3 lakh to 10 lakh come under C and 1 lakh to 3 lakh under D. Alappuzha falls under C category while Kanhangad, Palakkad, Port Blair and Kavaratti fall under group D, under the new classification.
