Business hit Marans stand to lose big in TV empire.

HOUSE-MD

Contributor
Joined
16 Oct 2012
Messages
3,195
Reaction score
1,209
The politically powerful DMK family that till recently enjoyed power in Tamil Nadu and the Centre, is now finding the going tough – with even its business interests taking a hit.

Maran brothers' cable business company, Kal Cables – a multi-system operator – stands to lose big as the Central government's order of closure begins to kick in.

The Chennai Corporation has begun a crackdown against multi-system operators, including Kal Cables, for defaulting on rent from the cable operators, most of who subscribe to Maran's company, leading to TV blackouts in many areas in Chennai.

The AIADMK was quick to laud the developments. Former finance minister and senior AIADMK leader C Ponnain said, "The decision was late but the closure order has restored the moral and constitutional rights of all TV channels in Tamil Nadu. Instead of TRAI, Sun TV was deciding everything and it destroyed all other channels."

Chennai mayor Saidai Duraisami said that previous DMK government turned the other eye to help the Marans profit and pay no rent to the civic body.

Chennai has 44% of the total households in Tamil Nadu having a cable TV connection. Of this number, Kal Cable has more than half the share. It used to have the majority share till AIADMK came back to power in 2011 and the Jayalalithaa government revived government cable TV company, Arasu Cable TV Corporation.

Before 2011, when DMK was in power, the Sun group had virtual control of the entire Tamil Nadu television business, which now has fallen to less than half, TV industry sources said. On Friday, the Maran brothers were also named in the CBI charge sheet in the Aircel Maxis deal case as well.

DMK leaders were not reachable for comment till the time of writing the report.

--
PS: This isn't the same news as license gone, but discussed on a large scale of their other business that are slowly being hit as a result of various other issues. Lets discuss anything other than license issues here as we have another good topic discussing it which can be the perfect venue for license related updates.. Lets put news about their other business like DTH, mobile network etc. Fans who don't like to see these news often may move to other useful discussions.
--

Ref: HT
 
Sun TV group's TV transmission business in a fix.
-----------------------------------------------

A day after the Maran brothers - Kalanithi Maran and Dayanidhi Maran - promoted Kal Cables Pvt Ltd got a breather from the Madras High Court, fresh trouble has started for them as well as for their direct-to-home (DTH) business.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Friday filed a charge sheet in a Delhi court against the Maran brothers and Sun Direct TV, the company which offers DTH service to around nine million subscribers.

The charge sheet, booking them for criminal conspiracy and under the Prevention of Corruption Act in the Aircel-Maxis deal, was filed before special CBI Judge O.P. Saini, who will hear the matter Sep 11.

The matter relates to sale of mobile telephony operator Aircel to Maxis, owned by T. Ananda Krishnan, in 2006 wherein Aircel's original owner C. Sivasankaran had alleged that he was pressured to sell as his firm was denied licences.

The CBI has alleged quid pro quo saying that in return, the Malaysian company invested around Rs.650 crore in Sun Direct, owned by the Maran family.

According to the website of Sun Direct, a joint venture between the Sun TV group and Malaysia's Maxis group, it has over nine million subscribers and started operations in 2007.

While the DTH subscribers may not face service disconnection, the lakhs of households here who have taken connection from the local cable operators affiliated to Kal Cables are facing the prospect of their TVs going blank.

Firstly the information and broadcasting ministry had cancelled the MSO licence given to Kal Cables Aug 20. The company was one of the 17 MSOs so dealt with.

The central government had ordered Kal Cables to run a scroll informing the subscribers that its service would be cut in 15 days time.

The Madras High Court Thursday however allowed Kal Cables not to run that scroll while posting the case for Sep 2.

According to the ministry, the licence to Kal Cables was cancelled as the home ministry denied security clearance to the company.

The company was given licence to operate in Chennai in 2012 and a provisional licence to operate in other parts of Tamil Nadu in 2013.

The central government, which did not give any reason for the home ministry's refusal to grant the security clearance, is expected to submit this to the court.

Officials of Kal Cables were not available for comments when contacted by IANS.

According to P.Shakilan of Tamizhaga Cable Operators Association, the Chennai city has around 40 lakh satellite channel subscriber base.

"Of that 10 lakh will be direct-to-home (DTH) subscribers and 30 lakh cable TV subscribers," Shakilan told IANS.

Out of the 30 lakh cable TV subscribers, nearly 15 lakh will be with Kal Cables and the balance shared by other MSOs like TCCL and others.

Queried about the fate of households who receive the signals from cable operators affiliated to Kal Cables, he said: "There are other cable operators affiliated to other MSOs from whom the connection could be obtained."

However there are around 1.5 lakh households with STBs connected to Kal Cables and the fate of their investment in the equipment is unknown.

If the court decides in favour of the central government, then it will be a big setback for the Sun TV group in the city as it would have to depend on other MSOs to reach its channels to households.

Kal Cables was sort of a captive arm for the Sun TV group of channels in the city and an entry barrier for other competing channels.

The other trouble that Kal Cables is now facing is from the Chennai Corporation that has started removing the cables for non-payment of right-of-way fee by the cable operators.

Meanwhile the Tamil Nadu government has been urging the central government to expedite the issue of Digital Addressable System (DAS) licence to Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV Corporation (TACTV) at the earliest.

In July, Chief Minister J.Jayalalithaa in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requested him to issue the licence at the earliest, noting she strongly suspected "that the non-issuance of the DAS license to TACTV by the previous UPA government was only to facilitate particular private business interests, as other licences were issued at the same time".

--

Ref: Business Standard
 
சென்னை: தென்னிந்தியாவின் முன்னணி தொலைக்காட்சி நிறுவனமானது அடுத்தடுத்த நெருக்கடிகளால் மிகப் பெரியவை சரிவை நோக்கி பயணிக்கத் தொடங்கியிருப்பதாகவே கூறப்படுகிறது. திமுக ஆதரவுடன் தொடங்கப்பட்ட சன் டிவி. அதன் பின்னர் அத்தனை அதிகார பலத்தையும் பயன்படுத்தி வலுவான அஸ்திவாரம் போட்டு பிரம்மாண்ட சாம்ராஜ்யத்தை உருவாக்கிக் கொண்டது. இந்த சன் டிவி சாம்ராஜ்யத்தை மக்கள் அதிகம்பேர் விரும்புகிறார்கள் என்ற கட்டமைப்பை உருவாக்க கேபிள் தொழிலிலும் குதித்தது. எஸ்.சி.வி. என்றாலே இதர கேபிள் ஆபரேட்டர்கள் நடுநடுங்கும் வைக்கும் அளவுக்கு ஏகபோகம் கொண்டதாக இருந்தது எஸ்.சி.வி.

கேபிள் டிவி ஆபரேட்டர்கள் மட்டுமல்ல.. பிற மாநில முன்னணி ஊடக நிறுவனங்களும்தான்.. தமிழில் ஒரு தொலைக்காட்சி தொடங்கினால் எஸ்.சி.வி. தயவு இல்லாமல் எதுவும் செய்ய முடியாது.. அவர்கள் நம்மை முடக்கிவிடுவார்கள் என்று அஞ்சியே ஒதுங்கிப் போயிருக்கும் வெளிமாநில ஊடக நிறுவனங்கள் ஏராளம்..

இந்த வழக்குகள் ஆக முடிந்தமட்டும் எவ்வளவு காலத்துக்கு இழுத்தடிக்கப்படுமோ அவ்வளவு காலத்துக்கு ஜவ்வாக இழுக்கப்பட்ட கதைதான் அரங்கேறிக் கொண்டிருந்தது.. இப்போது காலமும் மாற காட்சிகளும் அதிரடியாக மாறிக் கொண்டிருக்கின்றன.

ஏர்செல் மேக்சிஸ் வழக்கு பதிவு செய்யப்பட்டு ஆண்டுகள் பல உருண்டோடியும் உச்சநீதிமன்றம் கடிந்து கொண்ட பின்னரும்கூட குற்றப்பத்திரிகை கூட தாக்கல் செய்யப்படாமல் இருந்து. இப்போது எந்த நேரத்திலும் குற்றப்பத்திரிகை தாக்கல் செய்யப்படலாம் என்கிற நிலை உறுதியாகி இருக்கிறது.

இதனால்தான் இதுநாள் அவரை எதுவும் நடக்காது என்று கருதிக் கொண்டிருந்த தயாநிதி மாறன் இனி எதுவும் நடக்கலாம் என்று விழுந்தடித்து உச்சநீதிமன்றத்தில் போய், குற்றப்பத்திரிகையில் என் பெயரை சேர்க்கக் கூடாது என்று ஒரு மனுவைப் போட்டு வைத்திருக்கிறார்.

ஏற்கெனவே மலேசியா ஆவணங்களை விட்டுவிட்டு இருக்கின்ற ஆதாரங்களை வைத்து நடவடிக்கை மேற்கொள்ளுங்கள் என்று சொன்னதே உச்சநீதிமன்றம். இருந்தாலும் கதவைப் போய் தட்டியிருக்கிறார் தயாநிதி மாறன்.. தாழ் திறக்குமா என்பது இனிதான் தெரியவரும்.

அத்துடன் ஏர்செல் மேக்சிஸ் வழக்கில் நீண்ட இழுத்தடிப்பினால் உச்சநீதிமன்றம் அதிருப்தியில் இருக்கிறது,, இதனால் குற்றப்பத்திரிகை தாக்கல் செய்யப்படும் நிலையில் தயாநிதிக்கும் கலாநிதிக்கும் ஜாமீன் கிடைக்குமா என்பதெல்லாம் பெரும் சந்தேகம். இதனால் சன் டிவி குழுமம் சரிவை சந்திக்க ஆயத்தமாகும் நிலைக்கு தள்ளப்படும்.

இந்த நிலையில் சன் டிவியின் வருவாய்க்கு கவச குண்டலமாக இருந்த எஸ்.சி.வி.க்கு ஆப்பு வைத்திருக்கிறது மத்திய அரசு. எஸ்.சி.வி. முடங்குவதன் மூலம் பல இடங்களில் சன் குழும தொலைக்காட்சிகளின் ஒளிபரப்பே இல்லாமலேயே போவதற்கு அதிக சாத்தியங்கள்.

அப்படி நிகழும் நிலையில் சன் டிவியின் ரேட்டிங் என்பது படுபாதாளத்துக்கு போய் படுக்கத் தொடங்கும்.

ரேட்டிங் குறைந்து போனால் மெல்ல மெல்ல சன் டிவியில் இருந்து விளம்பர நிறுவனங்கள் விலகி எந்த தொலைக்காட்சி ரேட்டிங்கில் முன்னணியோ அங்கே வரிசையில் காத்திருக்க போய்விடும். இதனால் சன் டிவியின் வருவாய் முழுவதுமாக அடிபட வாய்ப்பிருக்கிறது.

சன் குழுமத்தைப் பொறுத்தவரையில் சன் டிவியின் வருவாயில்தான் கேடிவி, சன்நியூஸ், ஆதித்யா இன்ன பிற அத்தனையும் ஓடிக் கொண்டிருக்கிறது.

அதாவது சன் டிவிக்கான பெரும்பான்மையான கட்டமைப்பையே இதர சேனல்களும் பயன்படுத்தி வருகின்றன. கேடிவி, சன் நியூஸ், ஆதித்யா ஆகியவற்றுக்கு அறைகளும் பணியாளர்களும் உண்டே தவிர பெரும்பான்மை கட்டமைப்பும் வருவாயும் சன் டிவியைச் சார்ந்ததுதான். அதனால் பிரதான மூலவரின் வருவாய் படுத்தால் இதர சேனல்களின் கதி கேள்விக்குறியாகிவிடும்.

இதற்கு அப்பால் ஏர்செல் மேக்சிஸ் வழக்கில் பிரதான பங்கு வகிப்பது சன் டிவியின் டிடிஎச்தான். இவ்வழக்கில் சன் குழுமத்துக்கு எதிரான தீர்ப்பு வரும் நிலையில் சன் டிடிஎச் முடக்கப்படவும் கூடும் என்றும் கூறப்படுகிறது.

சன் டிடிஎச்சும் முடக்கப்பட்டால் ஒட்டுமொத்தமாக சன் டிவி சாம்ராஜ்யம் சரிந்து போவது தவிர்க்க முடியாத ஒன்றாகிவிடும் என்கின்றனர் வர்த்தக வல்லுநர்கள்.

--

Source: The ONEINDIA
 
The story of Marans: Sun King and his brother

In under three decades the Maran brothers have created one of the strongest media houses in the country. The man who led this journey is 50-year-old Kalanithi Maran, chairman and managing director of the Sun Group.

His media conglomerate dominates the southern television market, with 33 channels in four languages that reach more than 95 million households. The Sun Group owns the largest chain of TV channels in India. The group’s other business interests include direct-to-home broadcasting, 45 FM radio stations, two daily newspapers and six magazines. Last year, Kalanithi Maran acquired the Indian Premier League’s Hyderabad cricket franchise and named it Sun Risers.

The Bombay Stock Exchange-listed Sun Television Network controls most of the estimated Rs 13,848.13 crore media business of the group, according to exchange data. Kalanithi Maran also entered the airline business in 2010 by buying SpiceJet, whose market capitalisation is estimated at Rs 685 crore. (SUN’S BUSINESS INTERESTS)

Kalanithi, whose name means treasure trove in Sanskrit, studied at Chennai’s Don Bosco school and Loyola College. He went on to the University of Scranton in the United States to study business administration. In 1987, he returned and joined his father’s magazine, Kungumum. His first venture was Poomalai, a monthly news video capsule. The big opportunity came with cable television and Sun TV raced on to become the giant of south India's media.

Kalanithi Maran was president of his college students’ union and led an agitation on the issue of Sri Lankan Tamils. Politics runs in the blood of the eldest son of Murasoli Maran, a former Union Cabinet minister and nephew of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) supremo M Karunanidhi, a key ally of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance.

When Murasoli Maran died on November 23, 2003, Karunanidhi wept bitterly on losing his “conscience keeper". In the 2004 general elections, Karunanidhi offered the DMK ticket for the Chennai Central Lok Sabha constituency to Kalanithi Maran, whose heart was by then set on business. He turned down the offer and the ticket went to his brother Dayanidhi. “I have no inclination or interest in politics. I only observe politics," Kalanithi Maran had told Outlook magazine in 2000.

But politics did interfere. In 2007, Dinakaran, a newspaper owned by Kalanithi Maran, published a survey that ranked his brother as the best performing minister from Tamil Nadu in New Delhi, ahead of P Chidambaram of the Congress, Anbumani Ramadoss of the Pattali Makkal Katchi, and TR Baalu and others of the DMK. Sun TV would play Dayanidhi Maran’s speeches ad nauseam. That upset a lot of people. Later that year Dinakaran published another survey rating Karunanidhi’s younger son MK Stalin higher than his elder brother M K Alagiri.

Enraged Alagiri supporters vandalised the Dinakaran offices. The Marans were on shaky ground. Dayanidhi Maran had no option but to step down as telecom minister and Karunanidhi replaced him with Andimuthu Raja. The DMK, with Karunanidhi’s blessings, launched Kalaignar TV to take on Sun TV. Sharad Kumar, a former Sun TV employee, was hired to run it. And Arasu Cable Corporation was formed to take on the Kalanithi Maran-owned Sumangali Cable Vision.

The Marans patched up with their grand-uncle just before the 2009 general elections. Dayanidhi Maran got the DMK ticket for Chennai Central again, won the election and became the textile minister.

Then in June 2011, a month after the All Indian Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) came to power in Tamil Nadu, nine cases of cheating and intimidation were filed against Sun Pictures and its then chief operating officer Hansraj Saxena, who spent almost two months in police custody.

Dayanidhi or Daya

Before he became a minister in the UPA government, Dayanidhi Maran was happy to run Sumangali, a multi-system operator for the Sun Group, and an amateur radio station. Dayanidhi Maran has a fetish for luxury cars, wears expensive suits and frequently holidays abroad. He became Karunanidhi’s mediator whenever he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Things took an intriguing turn on June 6, 2011, when maverick businessman C Sivasankaran came to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) headquarters in Delhi and said he had been forced to sell his telecom venture, Aircel, to Maxis in 2005 by the Maran brothers. Dayanidhi Maran refuted the allegations and told reporters in Chennai that Sivasankaran was a billionaire and “nobody can force anyone to sell his business". Sivasankaran, he added, had put Aircel up for sale even before he became telecom minister in May 2004.

Earlier, in January 2011, the Justice Shivaraj Patil probe report on the appropriateness of procedures followed by the department of telecommunications in issuing telecom licences and spectrum during 2001-09 had found Aircel’s applications for spectrum in six telecom circles were stuck when Dayanidhi Maran was minister. It was also alleged that state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd did not provide interconnectivity to Aircel during that time.

In October 2005, Maxis had got into the act of buying Aircel. The CBI, in its first information report filed in October 2011, alleged that Sivasankaran had received a call from Dayanidhi Maran instructing him to “work with Maxis on the issue". Subsequently, it added, Sivasankaran met Kalanithi Maran in Chennai on November 11, 2005. In December, Sivasankaran announced he was selling Aircel to Maxis.

That was not the end of the matter. It came to light that Astro All Asia Networks, a company related to Maxis, had invested Rs 629 crore in Sun Direct, the direct-to-home arm of the Sun Group. This included a premium of Rs 549 crore. During this time, Kalanithi Maran and his wife Kaveri were issued shares at par.

In June 2007, Enam Securities estimated the enterprise value of Sun Direct at between Rs 3,456 crore and Rs 4,039 crore. The CBI was of the opinion that at that time Sun Direct’s value was around Rs 400 crore. It was yet to start operations, and even Tata Sky, which had 50 per cent of the country’s direct-to-home market, was valued at a lesser Rs 2,500 crore. In July 2011, Dayanidhi Maran was dropped from the Union Cabinet. In October 2011, the Maran home at Chennai’s Boat Club Road was raided by the CBI.

Sivasankaran was not the only businessman who ran afoul of the Marans. Ratan Tata, the then chairman of Tata Sons, had told the public accounts committee of Parliament probing allocation of spectrum for second generation mobile services that his group had “a chemistry problem" with Dayanidhi Maran. Tata never spelt it out, but it was widely speculated that the Maran brothers wanted Tata to join hands for direct-to-home TV but Tata was not agreeable.

Business Standard
 
HOUSE-MD said:
இதற்கு அப்பால் ஏர்செல் மேக்சிஸ் வழக்கில் பிரதான பங்கு வகிப்பது சன் டிவியின் டிடிஎச்தான். இவ்வழக்கில் சன் குழுமத்துக்கு எதிரான தீர்ப்பு வரும் நிலையில் சன் டிடிஎச் முடக்கப்படவும் கூடும் என்றும் கூறப்படுகிறது.

சன் டிடிஎச்சும் முடக்கப்பட்டால் ஒட்டுமொத்தமாக சன் டிவி சாம்ராஜ்யம் சரிந்து போவது தவிர்க்க முடியாத ஒன்றாகிவிடும் என்கின்றனர் வர்த்தக வல்லுநர்கள்.

--

Source: The ONEINDIA

What would happen for "90 lakhs" sun direct subscribers if sun direct stopped..?
:rofl :D :rofl :D :rofl :D

"As you sow, so you reap"
 
aravindan said:
What would happen for "90 lakhs" sun direct subscribers if sun direct stopped..?
:rofl :D :rofl :D :rofl :D

"As you sow, so you reap"

Looks like its going towards this only. :k
 
Beyond that, the main role in the Aircel Maxis case titiectan of Sun TV. In this case, the level of judgment against Sun Group, said that the Sun DTH may be disabled.

Sun, Sun TV empire collapsed titieccum disabled as a whole is going to be one inevitable trade experts say.

I convert in English.
 
বিয়ন্ড যে, সূর্যের টিভি এয়ারসেল, Maxis ক্ষেত্রে titiectan প্রধান ভূমিকা. এই ক্ষেত্রে, সূর্য গ্রুপ বিরুদ্ধে রায় স্তর, সূর্যের ডিটিএইচ নিষ্ক্রিয় করা হতে পারে.

সূর্য, সান টিভি সাম্রাজ্য একটি সম্পূর্ণ titieccum প্রতিবন্ধী এক অনিবার্য বাণিজ্য বিশেষজ্ঞরা বলে হতে যাচ্ছে ধ্বসে পড়ে.
 
Bishnu15 said:
Beyond that, the main role in the Aircel Maxis case titiectan of Sun TV. In this case, the level of judgment against Sun Group, said that the Sun DTH may be disabled.

Sun, Sun TV empire collapsed titieccum disabled as a whole is going to be one inevitable trade experts say.

I convert in English.

They have launched more own shops for Sun direct subscribers in the name of "SUN SHINE" in TN to increase their subscriber base..

Their investments in SUN Direct is huge interms of shops or infrastructure like TPs..

DTH portability like feature is not available at present which could save SUN direct subscribers atleast in future..

Ultimately public will be the sufferer if something like that happens..

So better people think before going for Sun direct for sometime now..

And moreover Sun group deserved this aftermath.. ;)
 
FYI , technically SUN Group & SUN Direct DTH are different groups. Even If SUN Direct goes , it will not effect SUN Group as SUN Group do not have even single share in SUN Direct.
 
Back
Top Bottom
AdBlock Detected

We get it, advertisements are annoying!

Sure, ad-blocking software does a great job at blocking ads, but it also blocks useful features of our website. For the best site experience please disable your AdBlocker.

I've Disabled AdBlock