Soccer unaffected by TV cutbacks
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.