IPL will possibly back out from strict media norms
April 5th, 2008Given the strong stand of media and possibility of a blackout - IPL bosses might decide to ease the media norms earlier laid down by them.
On Friday, Lalit Modi, the IPL commissioner, called up Alok Gupta, president of the influential Editors’ Guild of India - which earlier in the day had condemned the restrictions - and indicated he didn’t want a media boycott. It is also believed that Modi indicated the IPL was working on amendments to the terms and conditions.
The IPL had indicated a possible softening of stand on Thursday when IS Bindra, a member of the governing council, told Cricinfo the league was ready to discuss the issue with all parties involved to reach an amicable solution.
One of the factors behind the IPL’s stringent terms is a feeling of discontent in the BCCI - which controls the IPL - over not having the rights to, or control over, photographs taken by the news agencies at earlier matches played in India. That, it is believed, prompted the inclusion of the clause giving the IPL rights to all photographs taken at all matches.
As reported earlier, the contentious clause deals with IPL’s right to use all pictures taken at its grounds for free and without restrictions; the commitment by news organisations to upload on the IPL site, within 24 hours, all images taken at the ground; and the restriction of web portals’ access to images without prior permission from the IPL.
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Bindra explained that the restrictions on web portals’ access to images was a fallout of the IPL having sold web portal rights for the event to a company based in North America for US$50 million.
Along with the Editors’ Guild of India, the Sports Journalists’ Federation of India had also issued a statement expressing “alarm and concern” over the IPL’s conditions and asked that the “unfair and unethical restrictions being placed on the media be withdrawn unconditionally”.
Even if a little late better sense always prevail and hopefully we will emerge with a win win situation as one cannot do with the other.
Tags: editors guild, IPL, IPL Media norms, media restrictions, sports journalistsPosted in Cricket News, IPL News |