The troubled Bulgarian TV channel TV7 has been temporarily removed from the country’s DTT multiplex for what has been termed “non-fulfillment of contractual obligations”.
Capital reports that the obvious reason is non-payment of broadcasting fees to NURTS, the multiplex operator.
Although the size of these fees is confidential, sources have revealed that one particular broadcaster pays around BGN15 million (€7.64 million) a year for the retransmission of three channels, while another market player has managed to negotiate of fee of BGN8 million a year.
Fees for TV7 and its sister channel News7 would have been negotiated when they were still owned by Tsvetan Vassilev.
News7 was removed from the multiplex in July this year, also for the non-payment of fees, and remains only available on cable and satellite.
NURTS is itself in financial difficulties and was acquired by the Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC) earlier this year.
It reported a loss of BGN34.5 million on revenues of BGN33.5 million and was over BGN7 million in the red this September.
