The Broadcasting Coordination Council approved the bill to amend Article 27 of the Broadcasting Code and presented its appraisal to the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology. The draft law is aimed at avoiding the delay in starting to provide program services through electronic communications networks used based on contract by specifying reasonable time limits for the purpose. The period of one year is kept for the other broadcasters, IPN reports.

Article 27 lit. d) of the Broadcasting Code stipulates that the broadcast license is withdrawn if the holder does not start to provide the program service within a year of the issuing of the license. This period is considered reasonable if the broadcaster builds an own electronic communications station/network and studio where to produce the program service. According to the ICT Ministry, if the broadcaster provides programs through an electronic communications network used on a contract basis, the time limit should be much shorter, of up to three months. In the period the broadcasters can negotiate the conditions of the contract with the network provider.

After obtaining broadcast licenses for using the capacity of Multiplex A, most of which were issued on April 1, 2016, while the last three on June 7, 2016, by February 8, 2017 only 8 of the 15 broadcasters holding licenses signed contracts with the provider of the multiplex that has seven unoccupied slots.

Consequently, the delay in providing program services not only causes damage to the multiplex provider (about €40,000 a month), but also prevents other interested broadcasters that haven’t yet obtained a license from providing programs through the multiplex.