Ancom - Licitatia pentru multiplexurile de televiziune digitala intra în rundele primare

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Licitatia pentru multiplexurile de televiziune digitala intra în rundele primare

20.05.2014

“Having analysed the initial bids submitted by the two operators in the auction for the digital television multiplexes, we assessed that primary rounds are required, as the two bidders’ aggregated initial demand exceeds the number of available multiplexes. Thus, the auction rounds will start on 5 June 2014”,announced Eduard Lovin, ANCOM’s Regulation Executive Director, during the 18^th edition of the Communications Day.

The bidding operators are RCS & RDS S.A. and the National Broadcasting Company S.A.

The competitive selection procedure requires that each bidder submits an initial bid, indicating the number of multiplexes it wishes to purchase. Where the demand exceeds the number of available multiplexes, primary rounds will be organised until the demand no longer exceeds the supply. Where, upon the completion of the primary rounds, no bidder won some of the multiplexes, ANCOM may decide to organise an additional primary round to which all the bidders qualified in the tender stage may participate. The multiplexes in the UHF band – except for the multiplex under the free-to-air broadcasting obligation – will be allocated to the winners by means of an allocation round.

The auction rounds will be held at ANCOM’s premises – Bucharest Regional Division in 4 Lucian Blaga Street, Block M110, Sector 3, Bucharest, where each bidder is allocated a room endowed with a telephone, fax machine and wireless Internet access.

ANCOM will auction out five multiplexes, four in UHF and one in VHF, in the DVB-T2 standard. The winner of the first multiplex in UHF (MUX 1) will have the obligation to broadcast free-to-air, under transparent, competitive and non-discriminatory conditions, the public and private television stations that are currently broadcast in analogue terrestrial system, in accordance with the provisions of the Audiovisual Law.

Moreover, according to the Strategy elaborated by the Ministry of Information Society, this multiplex will have to ensure a coverage, in fixed reception, of 90% of the population and of 80% of the territory by 31 December 2016, as the only multiplex, out of the five available, bearing such coverage obligations. For the other multiplexes (MUX 2, MUX 3, MUX 4 and MUX 5), the operators will have the obligation to launch in operation - by 1 May 2017 - at least 36 emission stations for each of the networks corresponding to these multiplexes, installed one in each allocation area.

All the multiplexes will be granted for a 10-year period, while the licences will enter into force starting from 17 June 2015. The winners will have the obligation to pay the licence fee resulted following the auction no later than 90 calendar days after the result is announced.

In Romania, the digital switch-over shall be completed by 17 June 2015, according to the 2006 Geneva Agreement signed by Romania and to the strategy approved by the Government. On 17 June 2015, all analogue terrestrial broadcasting will be switched off and replaced by the digital terrestrial broadcasting of radio and TV programmes and related multimedia services.