18. 09. 2003

B92 “not responsible” for restricted coverage

BELGRADE, September 18, 2003 – Following the publication of allegations against this company by Nedelje Telegraf, and the republishing of this by other media, B92 claims its right to publication of the following reply, which is prescribed as an obligation by the Public Information Act. ”The information published by you alleging ’shady political-financial games’ in connection with the broadcast rights for Champions League football is completely incorrect. ”B92, bidding in conformity with the rules of the UEFA, won the right to broadcast Champions League matches for three years. In the course of the tender procedure, UEFA was fully informed about the coverage of our television station and our capacity to meet the strict requirements for media coverage of this first-class sporting event. Thus the very fact of them signing a contract with us demonstrates our suitability. ”The amount paid for the television rights is, of course, a business secret, but the figure bandied about in the media is many times in excess of the real sum. What is not a secret, and which anyone can easily check is the state valuation of B92 for the purposes of the recent auction of part of the company’s social capital. The figure published by you in the headline of this article is absolutely incorrect. ”The contract with UEFA awards B92 the rights to television broadcasts of Champions League matches on the territory of Serbia and Montenegro including, naturally, Kosovo. In no way has Kosovo been separated out from this agreement. On the contrary, the company which broadcasts the Champions League in Kosovo acquired the rights to do so from us, and not directly from UEFA. ”It is certainly true that B92 spoke to Radio Television Serbia – among other broadcasters – seeking commercial offers of assistance with technical services for one part of this operation. RTS refused to make such an offer. ”In the end B92, alone and independently, with the assistance of local experts and in conformity with the strict demands of UEFA, succeeded in broadcasting the match between Partizan and Porto. The best denial of your published assertion that we are incapable of doing this is the satisfaction of viewers both here and in Portugal. ”The repetition of inaccurate or tendentious information is aimed at playing down the effort invested in improving the quality of TV B92’s programming and compromising the reputation of this company at a time when the allocation of national network licences is approaching,” said RTV B92 director Sasa Mirkovic. It is obvious that the intention of some of the largest electronic media is to maintain the privileged position they acquired under the patronage of the Milosevic regime, and which they have clung to since the democratic changes of October, 2000. This lobby group sees B92 as an awkward rival which will continue to fight for its place and for changes in the media sphere. B92 has done everything in its power to make its program available to the widest possible audience. Despite its intentions, the company has been unable to cover the entire territory of Serbia for the last three years because this is not legally possible. This is in no way B92’s responsibility. B92 has all the necessary resources to increase its coverage, but is unable to do this because the responsible bodies have not taken the decisions which would make this legally possible. The European Commission, the Council of Europe and the OSCE have all issued warnings about this situation and a number of local professionals and organisations, including the Council for Combating Corruption, have also protested. Despite this the Government and the Parliament are not willing to correct the obvious errors in the election of members of the Broadcast Agency Council which have led to this situation. Because of this, the status quo endures, to the detriment of most of our media and their audience.