GoM to meet on Jan 19 to decide on form of auction for FM-III

New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) A Group of Ministers (GoM) headedby Pranab Mukherjee will meet on January 19 to decide on theform of auctioning for FM phase III radio.

The GoM would deliberate on whether to opt for theconventional open auction or clock auction model withe-assistance for the next round of FM radio stations.

"The GoM would meet on January 19. The meeting which wassupposed to be held in December last year was cancelled due tothe unavailability of the members of the GoM," Information andBroadcasting Minister Ambika Soni told reporters on thesidelines of a function here.

Sources said soon after the auction model is decided, theI and B ministry will announce the FM-III policy that willthrow up about 800 new radio stations in small towns withspecial focus on border areas of Jammu and Kashmir and thenorth-east.

The clock auction model was first used in the Spectrumallocation. Generally, in this model, the auctioneer beginswith a high asking price which is lowered until someparticipant is willing to accept the auctioneer''s price.

The FM-III policy includes the provision of broadcastof news and current affairs as reported by Prasar Bharati. Italso aims to cut down infrastructure costs by 50 per cent.

The Minister also gave away the Vivekananda NationalAwards to numerous personalities including sarod maestro ustadAmjad Ali Khan and actor Vidya Balan here.