Hungary

[HU] National Radio and Television Board Distributes Licenses for Local Broadcasters

IRIS 1998-8:1/28

Gabriella Cseh

Budapest

The Hungarian Act I of 1996 on Radio and Television broadcasting (Media Law), which came into force in February 1996, set up a series of deadlines to be followed by the National Radio and Television Board (NRTB, or Board) for the conclusion of licensing contracts with local broadcasters. According to these deadlines, the Board already should have concluded licensing contracts with those local broadcasters that had received licenses for definite or indefinite time period prior to the 1996 media law ( see, Paragraph 146 section 4 of the Media Law).

In early Summer of this year, the NRTB finally started the licensing procedure with those 52 local broadcasters, which submitted their application for 37 frequencies and received licenses for a definite time period prior to the 1996 media law has been passed. On 31 August 1998, 11 contracts were still pending at the Board.

In the meantime, on 15 May 1998, NRTB has invited public tenders for 52 local and one regional frequencies which are currently used by broadcasters with studio licenses issued for an indefinite time. 69 bids arrived for the local and 6 bids for the regional invitations. NRTB announced it would make all decisions by midSeptember this year.

On 6 July 1988, NRTB invited public local broadcasting tenders for 38 frequencies and 65 bids arrived. NRTB plans to render all decisions by the middle of October.

The Board announced the next public tender on 6 August 1998, offering 4 television and 6 radio frequencies in the Budapest area and one radio frequency located in Debrecen city. Bids should have arrived on 7, 8. and 15 September 1998. The Board wants to make its decisions by the end of October.

Next steps in the area of local frequency distribution for the Board will include announcement of public tenders for free frequencies which were formerly used by local broadcasters but were not won by any of them. After the completion of the entire bidding process and the conclusion of licensing contracts - according to Paragraph 107 section 1 of the Media Law - Hungary's media map will be drawn for about a decade or more.