The Union Cabinet has accepted the proposal of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to amend the exisisting policy Guidelines for Uplinking and Downlinking of TV channels, including changes in the net-worth requirements for running at TV channel, rollout guidelines, . The amendments will result in changes in the eligibilty criteria of the companies intending to operate TV channels in India. The Cabinet has decided on the following: 1. Increase In Net Worth Criteria: Net worth criteria for Uplinking of non-news and current affairs channels and Downlinking of foreign channels has been changed from Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 5 crore for the first channel and Rs 2.5 crores for the channels added later. For uplinking of 'News and Current Affairs' channels the net worth has been gone up to Rs 20 crores from Rs 3 crore for the first channel and Rs 5 crorefor the channels added later. The net worth criteria for teleports would remain Rs 3 crores for the first teleport and Rs 1 crore for every additional teleport. What this means: Higher net-worth requirements mean that more funds will be required to start a TV Channel, which means that more channels may need to raise funds soon. Given the number of channels awaiting approval, this is probably a way to try and ensure that the queue doesn't get much longer. 2. Operationalizing TV channels within one year from the date of permission: The companies are required to make their TV channels operational within one year from the date…
