NEW DELHI: The foreign direct investment (FDI) for FM Radio should be increased to 49 per cent, and for teleports, DTH, HITS, mobile and cable television networks to 100 per cent, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said in its recommendations today.

In the recommendations issued just a day after it was asked by the Government to expedite its views, TRAI also conceded a long-standing demand of news and current affairs television channels by recommending that they should be permitted 49 per cent FDI.

TRAI’s recommendations in essence stuck it their earlier Consultation Paper on the subject issued on 30 July.

The final recommendations have been issued after an open house and the responses of 24 stakeholders on the Consultation Paper.

However, TRAI said that in the cases of both FM Radio and news channels where the existing limit is 26 per cent, clearance would be through the Foreign Investments Promotion Board (FIPB).

In the case of teleports, DTH, HITS, mobile and cable television networks where the limit was 74 per cent, TRAI said that it can be raised to 100 per cent of which 49 per cent would be automatic and the rest would be through FIPB.

No change had been recommended in the case of downlinking of TV Channels and uplinking of general entertainment (non-news) channels where the upper limit is 100 per cent through FIPB.

The Authority recommended that with the enhancement of FDI limits in respective segments of broadcasting sector, the other security/terms in the foreign investment policy and other license/permission conditions in the respective segments of the broadcasting sector should continue to apply.

TRAI said the Government should ensure that the process of FIPB approval is streamlined and requests for FDI are processed in a time bound manner.

Currently, the FDI limit in carriage services is 74 percent, of which 49 percent is permissible through the automatic route. Any FDI beyond 49 percent has to go through the FIPB route. The same FDI limits and approval route were prescribed for broadcast carriage services and telecom services on the ground that both are infrastructural services akin to each other and there is a growing convergence between the broadcasting and telecom infrastructures.