NCTR's biased attitude speaks of its inaction
"It is very difficult to name the December 2010 event organized by the state regulator "a competition," President of Yerevan Press Club (YPC) Boris Navasardyan said when commenting on the frequency tender held by the National Commission on Television and Radio (NCTR).
The results of a survey conducted by the YPC from March to June 2011 revealed sad findings about the competition. The survey was conducted with the support of Friedrich Ebert Foundation.
Boris Navasardyan noted in his speech that they had frequently offered their help to the NCTR but the latter always refused the offer.
"During the ten years of its activity the state regulator has been unable to hold a single fair and transparent tender, which means that the NCTR is not an independent structure. This is not a novelty, however the NCTR does not take any measures to change the situation," said the YPC president.
YPC expert Mesrop Harutyunyan says it is necessary to review the legislation to see whether the NCTR provided equal footing to all TV companies or displayed a biased attitude to them.
Note that the NCTR refused to provide the competition packages and documents saying they contain confidential information.
Harutyunyan says that the YPC has repeatedly offered the NCTR to put the bids to public discussions, and include the company's rating as a criterion for evaluating its bid.
"In the competition A1+ received only two points. The picture would have been different if the state regulator took into account different criteria," said Harutyunyan.
Commentator of Aravot daily Anna Isaelyan says A1+ was denied a broadcasting license after allegedly submitting fraudulent documents. The NCTR has posted on its website some financial documents from the company's bid which contain "fake" information whereas the bids of other companies which do not contain any flawless document are deemed as "commercial secret" by the state regulator.
"The biased attitude of the state regulator speaks of the NCTR's negligence and inaction," Isaelyan added.
A1+, represented by Meltex Ltd., received only two points from the NCTR compared with 44 points for the company representing ArmNews, a TV station that currently alternates its news programs with half-hourly retransmissions from the pan-European news channel EuroNews.
Since its closure in April 2002, "A1+" television Company has participated in a dozen government-run tenders on broadcast licensing, and has been refused a license on every occasion by the NCTR.
