Unfazed by the law
Cable networks still get away with copyright infringement

The cable networks continue to show the latest releases irrespective of the stringent punishment provided for the infringement of copyright in the recently amended Cable Network Regulatory Rules...

Arun Jaitley, minister for Information and Broadcasting, had written to all the state governments to enforce the new advertising code strictly. But no one seems to be minding, neither the implementing authorities at the state level nor the cable operators who know the film industry is not united enough to nab them red-handed.

At the recent meeting Maharashtra’s CM, Vilasrao Deshmukh, deputy CM, Chhagan Bhujbal and Arun Jaitley had with the film personalities, Pahlaj Nihalani and others had directly blamed the Hindujas and Siti Cable, the two biggest cable networks in the country for the blatant infringement on copyright in showing the latest releases. However, Ashok Mansukhani, of Hindujas In Cable Net, and RK Singh, of Siti Cable, who were present at the meeting, are said to have kept mum.

The hide and seek continues. The latest news is, Jaitley has called a meeting in New Delhi of the big sharks in the cable industry. Last week, representatives of the small cable television networks in Delhi met Jaitley and expressed their inability to control the showing of objectionable advertisements and follow the code since these were telecast through satellites over which they have not control. The minister is reported to have said that he would hold the channels responsible for the infringement of the advertising code.

Since most of the trade bodies were busy with their annual general body meetings, they have not been able to study closely the provisions of the amended Cable Network Regulatory Rules. Though the film industry had set up an anti-piracy cell, it is not functioning in an organised and effective manner like the one set up by the music industries headed by Julio Rebeiro.

The net result is that today, piracy on cable goes on unhindered despite the legal provisions. According to film industry circles, this is so because the curbing authority, including the police commissioners and district magistrates, is not seriously taking up the matter as it should.

Today, the cable industry has become a multi-million business. According to the National Research Survey, 28 million homes have cable connections through 45,000 cable networks. Even if one takes Rs 100 as subscriber fee per connection, cable networks are earning Rs 280 million per month and annually Rs 3,360 millions or Rs 336 crores. Obviously, it is the second largest earning industry after the film industry which is estimated to be earning Rs12000 crores.

Admittedly, the cable industry has fattened at the cost of the motion picture industry because its main software is films. Since very few state governments, which are the implementing authority in curbing the infringement of copyrighted materials, have been able to bring them under their control, cable operators have been blatantly showing the latest released films on their cable networks, adversely affecting the theatrical collections which includes entertainment tax levied by the state governments and thus depriving both the film producers as well as the governments of the legitimate income from films.

Ironically enough, a licence to operate a cable network is granted by the Telecommunication department while the state governments collect merely the entertainment tax based on the number of subscribers the network has. For instance, the government of Maharashtra has not licenced or registered any cable operators but it has imposed Rs 30 per month per subscriber as entertainment tax. Invariably, the cable operators are not showing the exact number of subscribers to avoid the tax. Since the cable operators are not controlled by the state government under any law, it cannot check the emergence of mushrooming cable networks.

Obviously, when there is business worth millions of rupees in cable networks, with nothing much to spend on its software, Hindujas and Zee’s Siti Cable entered this business. According to industry sources, 70 per cent of the cable networks in Mumbai are controlled by Hinduja’s In Cable. The Siti Cable is also a big player in Maharashtra and Goa. Both these networks are not only powerful in Mumbai but also in other cities in the country. If they want, they can stop the illegal activities but it seems they do not want to do so. The small cable operators blame the big sharks in the business and the big business networks blame the smaller flies. This game of passing the buck is continuing merrily.

Mohan Nair, of Siti Cable, who took over as its regional director recently, denied the allegation but said that he was not concerned with what had happened in the past. He admitted that some of the cable operators were showing the latest released films. “I entirely agree that illegal screening of films should be stopped. I am going to take strict action against any cable operator under our control if he infringes the copyright. If you have to be in this business, you have to be disciplined. Even if the subscribers want us to show the latest films, we should not submit to their demands. I have stopped showing films through our networks. There may be a few aberrations. It will take some time to correct them,” he said.

Nadir Ali, of 7-Star Cable Network, which operates in the western suburbs of Mumbai, said that his network was not showing the latest releases. He also denied having any connections with either In Net or Siti cable. “I am independent,” he said.

“After the amendments were made, some small cable operators in Delhi had met Arun Jaitley, minister for information and broadcasting and had pleaded that they should not be held responsible for the prohibited ads beamed by the satellite channels but the onus should be on the broadcasters. Cable operators have been assured that the rules will apply only to the broadcasters and not to the franchised cable operators. It is unfortunate that instead of encouraging the cable network industry to grow in a free and fair atmosphere, the Government is putting a lot of restrictions. What is wrong in showing adult films after 11 and midnight when the children normally go to sleep? Why should adults be deprived of adult fare if they are interested in it? In my opinion the entire exercise of bringing cable bill so hurriedly was only to see that the cable operators showed Doordarshan programmes not merely two main channels and one regional channel but also forcing them to keep two terrestrial channels free for showing last-minute programmes of Doordarshan,” Nadir Ali pointed out.
Asked whether he is contemplating to oppose the restrictions provided for in the cable bill, Nadir Ali said he was consulting his legal advisor to find out whether any of the provisions in the cable bill are bad in law and go against the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution.

Ashok Mansukhani, chief of In Cable Net, avoided answering questions when contacted. He had also kept mum when producers had openly accused his company indulging in the piracy of latest released films since In cable controls majority of the cable operators in Mumbai.

Be that as it may, advertisement of banned items like liquor, cigarettes, tobacco are still being shown through cable networks. So also the screening of adult movies including FTV channel is continuing. As regards showing DD channels, including DD1, DD2 and Regional channels, not all the cable operators are adhering to the latest amendments. It is not easy to wipe out the wrongs and irregularities being indulged in by the cable operators just as it was not possible to do so in the case of video piracy when it was rampant. In a vast country like India, where cable operators exist even in a small village of 100 houses, to control piracy becomes an extremely difficult task. What is required is a positive approach to the problem whereby producers can sell their cable rights after a specified period from the date of release of their films and make the cable rights legal.

MSM Desai