UNDER SECTION 26(2) OF THE COMPETITION ACT, 2002

1. The present information has been filed by Dish TV (hereinafter referred to as 'Informant') under Section 19 of the Competition Act, 2002 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') against Prasar Bharti alleging abuse of dominant position.

2. The brief facts of the case, as given by the Informant, are as under:

2.1 The Informant is a Direct to Home (DTH) Service Provider operating under the License dated September 16, 2003 issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India.

2.2 Doordarshan is the National Broadcaster engaged in broadcasting of various programs throughout the country through different channels.

2.3 The Informant has alleged that it had requested Prasar Bharti for airing its advertisements on DD National channel on commercial basis but the same was returned with the remarks "the commercial advertisement of private DTH platform are not allowed for telecast on Doordarshan". As per the Informant, the advertisement sought to be telecast does not fall under any of the prohibited categories specified under the Advertisement Code of Doordarshan.

3. The authorized representatives of the Informant Company appeared before the Commission on 25.11.2010 and made submissions to substantiate the information. The Informant also filed written submission on 03.12.2010. The Informant in its written submissions has raised the following points:

3.1 The Prasar Bharti had been constituted under the Prasar Bharti (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990. It is engaged, inter alia, in the commercial activities of broadcasting various TV programme including advertisements. Hence, it is covered under the definition of "enterprise" under Section 2(h).

3.2 Prasar Bharti also runs a free to air DTH platform after obtaining necessary license/permission from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt, of India and, thus, the said DTH service stands at the same footing as the service provided by the Informant.

3.3 Doordarshan is one of the largest broadcasting organization in the world in terms of infrastructure, studio and transmitters and it reaches 92% population of the country through a network of 1413 terrestrial transmitters, C-band satellite and DTH service.

3.4 Doordarshan is regularly telecasting the advertisement of private service providers such as mobile phone service providers viz. Airtel, Vodafone etc. in addition to BSNL & MTNL which are State owned enterprises. Further, it is also regularly telecasting the advertisements of other private products and services such as soaps, cements, steel, milk products etc.

3.5 There is no prohibition in the Advertisement Code of the Doordarshan for telecasting the advertisements of the private products or services.

3.6 The Informant has alleged that Prasar Bharti is involved in an anti competitive conduct with a view to promote and monopolize the DTH market for its own DTH service namely DD Direct Plus.

3.7 The Informant has submitted that all the other broadcasters, except Doordarshan, are regularly telecasting the advertisements of all DTH operators without any discrimination. This is to ensure that the public at large is apprised of this latest satellite based digital delivery technology so as to enable them to access various subscription based and free to air channels disseminating news, views, current affairs, educational programmes and entertainment etc. to masses.

3.8 The Informant has alleged that refusal to telecast its advertisement violates fundamental rights of the Informant. It also deprives the consumer of the latest information about the products and services available in the market.

4. The Commission considered all the relevant material placed on the record and the written submissions filed by the Informant in its ordinary meeting held on 21.12.2010.

5. It is noted that Prasar Bharti [a body established by the Prasar Bharti (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990] is entrusted with the primary duty