Soccer unaffected by TV cutbacks
Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Millions of Indonesian soccer fans will still be able to enjoy live matches of their favorite foreign teams on television, even though national TV stations have to cut their air time to support the government's energy conservation drive.
All live league matches contracted between Indonesian television stations and foreign parties are exempted in the new ministerial decree that requires transmission cuts.
RCTI will continue relaying the live matches of the Italian, Spanish and British leagues, while SCTV, TV7 and TPI TV stations will keep broadcasting live other foreign leagues' matches and other international championships.
In addition, Indonesians, who are mostly Muslim, will continue to enjoy Islamic programs that are aired live annually by all television stations during Ramadhan.
The two exemptions are stipulated in Ministerial Decree No. 11/2005 issued by Minister of Information and Telecommunications Sofyan Djalil on Monday to implement the presidential decree on an the energy-saving drive.
The ministerial decree, which is in effect for six months, requires all TV and radio stations to sign off from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.
During Ramadhan, TV stations are allowed to start their programs at 3 a.m. as Muslims take their pre-dawn meals.
The decree states that the measures were taken in line with the rising world oil prices that could lead to a national energy crisis.
TV and radio stations said they would comply with the ministerial decree to support the government-sponsored energy conservation drive.
Gilang Iskandar, deputy corporate secretary of RCTI, said that despite increasing protests, his company accepted the decree to help boost the nation's sense of crisis.
Despite the possibility of decreasing income, TV stations would be able to improve efficiency and conserve energy by cutting their air time by four hours, he said.
"We will lose our income from tobacco ads which are usually screened at night, but we will be able to save our operation costs, shorten our working shifts and economize on the use of our equipment," he said, citing that his firm pays between Rp 30 million and Rp 50 million per hour for its operational costs.
Many have objected to the ministerial decree, which they say would deprive the public of access to information and entertainment.
TV7 spokesman Moko Pamungkas concurred and said his company did not calculate its losses, "because it is for the sake of our national interests".
MetroTV chief editor Don Bosco Salamun said his TV station would make no significant savings but the management had decided to abide by the decree to fully support the campaign.
"MetroTV ends with the Headline News Program minutes after 1 a.m. But, it will be on air for any breaking news," he said.