Centre approves amendments to private FM Phase-III guidelines

The government has also accepted the long pending demand of the radio industry to remove the 15% national cap on channel holding

The Centre has amended the policy guidelines for the expansion of private FM radio stations by simplifying the financial eligibility norms to allow participation of companies with net worth of Rs 1 crore in the bidding process for category ‘C’ and ‘D’ cities.

The decision, taken by the Union Cabinet at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, also decided to remove the three-year window period for restructuring of FM radio permissions within the same management group during the license period of 15 years.

The government has also accepted the long pending demand of the radio industry to remove the 15 per cent national cap on channel holding, an official statement said here on Tuesday.

The three amendments to the Policy Guidelines on Expansion of FM Radio Broadcasting Services through Private Agencies (Phase-III) together will help the private FM radio industry to fully leverage the economies of scale and pave the way for further expansion of FM radio and entertainment to Tier-III cities in the country, it said.