Concessions: Tele Säntis also files a complaint
Complaints continue to pour in against the DETEC’s licensing decisions. Now Tele Säntis has also filed a complaint with the Federal Administrative Court. DETEC had rejected the broadcaster’s application for an independent regional television station serving Region 11 in Eastern Switzerland and instead awarded the license to Tele Ostschweiz.
Complaints continue to pile up against the awarding of licenses by the Uvek. Now
Tele Säntis has appealed to the Federal Administrative Court. The Uvek had rejected the broadcaster's application for an independent regional television station for the coverage area of Region 11 Eastern Switzerland (cantons of St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden and parts of the canton of Thurgau) and granted the license to Tele Ostschweiz.
"The decision of the Uvek of October 31, 2008 in the matter of Tele Säntis AG and TVO AG is being contested due to the incorrect assessment of the qualification and selection criteria, which are to be qualified as violations of the law, but also as exceeding or abusing the scope of discretion and the improper exercise of the official freedom of decision," writes Tele Top, which launched the TV project Tele Säntis, in a press release on Thursday.
In the appeal, the previous decisions of the Uvek, Bakom and even the Federal Council and the Federal Supreme Court on safeguarding the diversity of opinion and offerings in Eastern Switzerland are cited as a comparison. It is incomprehensible why the Uvek concludes in the contested decision that "the applicant TVO AG documents that it does not endanger the diversity of opinion and offerings", after the Federal Council explicitly presents the example of St. Gallen (Radio Aktuell, Tele Ostschweiz and St. Galler Tagblatt) in the dispatch on the total revision of the RTVA as a "potential impairment of journalistic diversity", the press release continues.
Tele Säntis also complains that competitor Tele Ostschweiz made unauthorized improvements to the licence application during the submission procedure. It is regrettable, also in view of the licensing of the practically identical application from Tele Top in coverage area 10 (cantons of Zurich, Thurgau and Schaffhausen), that obviously for political reasons the licensing in the two important coverage areas 10 and 11 was not allowed to be awarded to the same broadcaster, the statement concludes.
Tele Säntis has appealed to the Federal Administrative Court. The Uvek had rejected the broadcaster's application for an independent regional television station for the coverage area of Region 11 Eastern Switzerland (cantons of St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden and parts of the canton of Thurgau) and granted the license to Tele Ostschweiz.
"The decision of the Uvek of October 31, 2008 in the matter of Tele Säntis AG and TVO AG is being contested due to the incorrect assessment of the qualification and selection criteria, which are to be qualified as violations of the law, but also as exceeding or abusing the scope of discretion and the improper exercise of the official freedom of decision," writes Tele Top, which launched the TV project Tele Säntis, in a press release on Thursday.
In the appeal, the previous decisions of the Uvek, Bakom and even the Federal Council and the Federal Supreme Court on safeguarding the diversity of opinion and offerings in Eastern Switzerland are cited as a comparison. It is incomprehensible why the Uvek concludes in the contested decision that "the applicant TVO AG documents that it does not endanger the diversity of opinion and offerings", after the Federal Council explicitly presents the example of St. Gallen (Radio Aktuell, Tele Ostschweiz and St. Galler Tagblatt) in the dispatch on the total revision of the RTVA as a "potential impairment of journalistic diversity", the press release continues.
Tele Säntis also complains that competitor Tele Ostschweiz made unauthorized improvements to the licence application during the submission procedure. It is regrettable, also in view of the licensing of the practically identical application from Tele Top in coverage area 10 (cantons of Zurich, Thurgau and Schaffhausen), that obviously for political reasons the licensing in the two important coverage areas 10 and 11 was not allowed to be awarded to the same broadcaster, the statement concludes.
