Sao Paulo, Brazil. The Brazilian Ministry of Communications has announced that it will offer a large number of new radio and TV broadcasting licenses this month. A total of 610 franchises will be up for grabs, including 400 for FM radio and 150 for AM.
Ministry spokesman Francisco Mendonca says that the licenses will be awarded on the basis of technical merit rather than political influence. This would be a sharp break from the current practice. Of the 2,944 existing radio broadcast licenses in Brasil today, 40% are directly or indirectly held by politicians.
This is the first time new frequencies have been offered in Brasil since the late 1980’s. Decisions on who gets the new licenses will not be made until after municipal elections early in October.
“This is to avoid any suggestion or rumors that concessions are being awarded politically,” Mendonca said. “The government eliminated a provision allowing for personal criteria in awarding concessions and replaced it with competitive criteria to make it more democratic.”
Speak Your Mind
You must be logged in to post a comment.