Romania’s National Audiovisual Council (CNA) has given RCS&RDS permission to convert five local stations into the regional TV network Digi 24.
According to Mediafax, this follows the regulator’s decision to amend local into regional licences in Constanta, Craiova, Iasi, Oradea, Timisoara, Brasov, Galati and Cluj that RCS&RDS received on March 15, 2012.
However, in three of those cities – Brasov, Galati and Cluj – the stations have been broadcasting for less than a year and the change in licence will only come into effect once this time has passed.
The regional network Digi 24 will allocate 90% of airtime to its own productions, with the remaining 10% being split equally between programming relayed by and shown directly on Digi Sport.
Programming will be overwhelmingly (85%) information-based, with educational/cultural (10%) and entertainment and other programmes (5%) accounting for the remainder.
Razvan Frinculescu, the head of the licensing office at CAN, ahs hinted that Digi 24 may be awarded must-carry status on cable networks.
The regulator approves such a list at the beginning of each year.