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| Southern producers queer IPL in-theatre telecast pitch |
| Pradipta Mukherjee / Kolkata Feb 24, 2010, 00:47 IST |
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UFO Moviez and Crown Infotainment, the companies that have won the rights for in-theatre telecast of IPL-III, have run into a conflict with producers’ associations in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
The producers feel the alternative content (in this case, IPL matches) will make a dent in their earnings. They also argue that under the Cinematograph Act, 1952, it is mandatory for content played in theatres to be censored. “IPL matches are not censored,” they say.
UFO Moviez, the largest digital satellite cinema network in the country, has won the in-theatre rights for 10 years at Rs 330 crore. There are about 13,000 theatres in India — multiplexes and single-screens — out of which 30 per cent are in the south.
Charuhas Satam, strategic advisor to UFO Moviez, said: “The producers’ associations in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu have taken a monopolistic attitude. They are saying all content shown in multiplexes and single-screen theatres should be censored. They are wrong. We should be able to resolve the matter soon.”
Satam was harping on a Ministry of Information and Broadcasting order dated September 24, 2007, which exempts eight items, including recording of sports events telecast live in India. Other exemptions are recordings of animation programmes telecast in India, purely educational programmes or films for levels of CBSE school curriculum up to Class V, except in sex education, as well as exemptions for compilation of songs from films certified as ‘U’.
Trade insiders say UFO Moviez would need more than two years to break even. It is eyeing Rs 30-35 crore revenue in the first year itself.
UFO Moviez has signed on more than 700 theatres for screening IPL matches this year. Satam said: “We would have 1,000 theatres by March 10.”
Multiplex chains are unfazed by the issue. Rishi Negi, COO, Fame Cinemas, said: “We are committed to screening the matches. Our business will not be hit because we have only three properties in Karnataka and none in Tamil Nadu.”
INOX Leisure, for instance, has five properties in South India. A spokesperson for INOX said: “Although there is not much of a Hindi movie line-up during IPL this year, we would screen regional films in South India, if we cannot show IPL.”
Cinemax feels its business will not be hit, since the regional movie market in the South is enough to compensate. “We have just one theatre in Hyderabad. So, business will not be hit,” said Devang Sampat, VP-marketing and programming at Cinemax.
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