   
|
|
NEWS ON
ORT
I.
Government accuses ORT of failure to pay debts.
The chief Russian
government spokesman blamed the ORT television [Russian
Public TV], in which the state has 51 per cent of stock,
of failing to timely pay its debts and refuted ORT
allegations that it was the government to blame for the
plight of the company.
Last week an
arbitration court appointed an interim administrator to
the ORT which many observers interpreted as the first
step to bankruptcy. Earlier a presidential
decree was signed which opened a 100m-dollar credit line
in four tranches to ORT. The first tranche was
reportedly disbursed. However, the ORT leadership
said the government was not fulfilling the decree.
“The
government fully and timely fulfils the presidential
decree on the support to ORT and there are no grounds to
accuse it of any delays,” government spokesman Igor
Schchegolev told a briefing on [on 2nd February].
At the same time,
he said, the leadership of ORT “failed to timely
fulfil the necessary preparatory work,” which
resulted in delay in the fulfilment of the decree.
After the
arbitration court decision, ORT anchorman Sergey Dorenko
attacked Prime Minister Yevgeniy Primakov on [30th
January], saying his family was in control of the Russian
air business. Minutes later, Schchegolev denied the
allegations.
On [2nd February]
he refused to further comment on the situation.
“It is not a cinema festival here and I am not a
critic,” he said and added there was “nothing
new” in attacks on the leaders of the state and
noted politicians.
ITAR-TASS news agency
(World Service), Moscow, February 2, 1999
II. ORT head
denies difficulties over receivers’ arrival.
“The
commencement of work of the receiver at the Public
Russian Television [ORT] has not yet caused any
additional complications in the company’s operation,
including in broadcasting,” ORT general director
Igor Shabdurasulov said.
Shabdurasulov
spoke after a meeting with the receiver who was appointed
[on 29th February] by the Moscow arbitration court.
He noted that
their meeting revealed a number of legal and procedural
issues which need clarification, including organizational
and technical approaches towards problems that arise from
the court’s ruling.
At the same time,
Shabdurasulov said that “ORT operates as usual and
continues to pay debts to creditors as much as its means
allows it.”
He stressed that
“these means are limited by the size of the first
tranche of a government credit and the first, so far very
modest, returns from the selling of airtime by the
newly-created ORT advertising service since the beginning
of the year.”
ITAR-TASS news agency
(World Service), Moscow, February 1, 1999
III. ORT
settles terms for 100m-dollar loan.
Russia’s ORT
television channel signed an agreement [on 27th January]
with Vneshekonombank [bank for foreign economic
relations] on a 100m-dollar credit line, ORT general
director Igor Shabdurasulov told Interfax [on 29th
January].
The loan was
granted against ORT shares as a pledge for fulfilling a
decree on government support for ORT signed by Russian
President Boris Yeltsin at the end of December
1998. Shabdurasulov said that the loan will be
disbursed in five portions during three months. The
size of the tranches may vary but not the total
sum. Shabdurasulov said that on 1st January, ORT
debts slightly exceeded 100m dollars. After getting
the first tranche, ORT started paying its debts and on
[28th and 29th January] sent hundreds of payment orders
to creditors. “We have a tremendous number of
partners who have become creditors,” he said.
Shabdurasulov
also announced that a week ago ORT signed a pledge
agreement with the State Property Ministry. By
order of the ministry, ORT shares are evaluated by Kvinto
Consulting, an independent corporation. Next week
it may submit its conclusions to the government about the
share price and the number of shares that will correspond
to 100m dollars. An appropriate number of shares
will be pledged to Vneshekonombank. Half of the
shares will come from the federal package and the rest
from private stakes. “ORT has started
receiving small sums for advertising in 1999, because now
the broadcasting company itself is responsible for
commercials,” Shabdurasulov said.
“We hope
that if the situation stabilizes and the market revives,
it will be the source of income which, on the one hand,
will allow us to continue paying our creditors, and on
the other, let the company survive because the loan is
not sufficient for us to live through this year,” he
said. “ORT should be looking for additional
revenue,” he said. The presidential decree
accepts the proposal of the Russian government on opening
a Vneshekonombank credit line and binds the State
Property Ministry to hand over to Vneshekonombank part of
government-owned shares. The shares are given
without the right to manage or control them, including
their sale or voting on them.
Interfax news agency,
Moscow, January 29, 1999
IV. ORT
wants hold on bankruptcy proceedings.
The management of
Russian Public TV [ORT] has sent to the Moscow
arbitration court an appeal asking to postpone for the
time being the consideration of a bankruptcy petition
against the company. We have learnt this from
the ORT director-general, [Igor] Shabdurasulov.
The petition was
filed by the international association “What?
Where? When?” clubs [organizers of general
knowledge quiz shows].
According to
Shabdurasulov, the company plans to begin paying off its
debts from the credit it is to receive from the
government.
Ekho Moskvy radio,
Moscow, January 28, 1999
V.
Government promises ORT 100m-dollar loan.
It transpired [on
28th December] that the credit [to Russian Public
Television (ORT)] totals about 100m dollars for a year
(for two years at best).
It is unlikely that ORT will be able to repay this
credit from its own earnings over the next year.
According to the ORT general director, Igor
Shabdurasulov, the company’s income from advertising
in 1999 will, at best, amount to 60-80m dollars, whereas
the pre-crisis forecast for 1998 was in the area of 200m
dollars.
‘Segodnya,’
Moscow, December 29, 1998
VI. TV head
says ORT to get loan against its assets.
Head of Russian Public
TV (ORT) Igor Shabdurasulov on 28th December told Ekho
Moskvy radio that the TV channel had run out of
funds. He said, however, that bankruptcy was not
looming. Thanks to Yeltsin’s and government
support, ORT will be able to borrow against the
company’s assets, Shabdurasulov said. He
praised the idea of public councils to help supervise the
channel but cast doubt on the way they were
appointed. The following are excerpts from the
Russian Ekho Moskvy radio report; subheadings added
editorially:
[Interviewer]
Our
guest is Igor Shabdurasulov, general director of Russian
Public Television [ORT]. Hello.
[Igor Shabdurasulov]
Hello.
ORT said to have no money left
[Q]
The
first question. We all understand that you are
general director and not chief accountant. Still,
you have probably assessed today’s balance.
How much money does Russian Public TV have today, in the
kitty?
[A]
Russian
Public Television has nothing in the kitty at the
moment. I can say that for sure. The small
earnings we manage to make do not stay in the kitty,
because, as you know, New Year is coming up and we are
trying to provide New Year programmes as best we
can. All this costs money, so there is nothing in
the kitty.
As for when it
became clear that we had no more money—we learned
this right after 17th August. Debts started to
snowball catastrophically and income to plummet with the
same speed. The main source of income is
advertising. Most advertisers reacted instantly to
the situation and withdrew, or payments were delayed, and
a chain reaction followed.
[Q]
Some
economists and people in show business are saying that
the advertising market is at its best now, that adverts
have improved tremendously and that the advertising
market is pushing its way through this crisis, and there
are even figures to show this.
[A]
I do not know
about these figures. I would be pleased if they
turned out to be true. Our calculations are much
more pessimistic. I have already spoken about
this. We carried out market research. As an
example—if there had been no crisis after 17th
August and we had had a reasonably calm year, we could
have earned over 200m dollars from advertising. I
will put figures in the dollar equivalent to simplify
things. That is the volume of advertising we had
planned for 1998. But in 1999, we can make at the
most between 60m and 70m dollars—that’s the
market at its best for you. If you want to call a
75-per-cent reduction a market at its best, so be it.
Yeltsin pledges support for ORT
[Q]
Let’s
move on to a more cheerful subject. I understand
the president is taking you under his wing. It was
clear to everybody that he was not just talking about
television in general, but the first channel [Russian
Public TV] in particular. What did he promise you?
[A]
I would
not describe the president’s meeting with heads of
the three television channels in these terms. All
we were asking him for is his understanding and some
moral and political support. It was obvious that
relations between the authorities and the media were
strained in the autumn. So, the president
reiterated his principal position, saying that the media
are an important factor in Russia’s political scene
and that as a guarantor of the constitution, he intended
to protect the freedom of speech and the press in the
future, just as he has always done before. He was
not talking about television alone, but about the media
in general, including radio, printed publications and
news agencies. That was what we were talking
about. We did not talk about money at this meeting.
ORT to borrow against its assets
[Q]
Nevertheless,
we heard a lot of talk and information about some
presidential decree being drafted.
[A]
This
decree has already been issued. As I was saying,
this is not a government decision because Russian Public
TV has been set up by a presidential decree. The
system of state support envisaged by this new decree
involves using the company’s shares as a collateral
for obtaining credits. Hence, the presidential
decree. The plan is quite simple: we are
getting a credit against the company assets, and we offer
company shares—from the state and the private
portfolios in equal amounts—as a collateral for this
credit.
[Q]
How many Russian
Public TV shares are owned by the state?
[A]
Fifty
one per cent, that is, the controlling interest.
[Q]
So, the
government wants to use its shares to help you?
[A]
We are
doing this on an equal basis. Our creditor,
Vneshekonombank, is a state bank, so the state gets
double insurance. Suppose we even fail to repay the
credit on time, the state will keep our shares and lose
nothing. The state shares will remain intact while
private shares will be taken over by the state.
[Q]
Igor
Vladimirovich, what will Russian Public TV owe the state
in exchange for this protection, support or whatever you
want to call it?
[A]
Looking
back at the meeting with the president, the
president—and I have to do him justice—did not
say a word about us having to do anything in respect of
our programming or socio-political coverage. He did
not say a single word about it.
[Q]
Well,
even if the president did not say anything himself, there
will be, or there are already other people who will tell
you.
[A]
That is
quite possible.
[Q]
In your
view, what can Russian Public TV give in exchange for the
state’s financial support?
[A]
I cannot
answer your question. I think that—[changes
tack] You will remember one Nina Andreyeva [an
anti-perestroika political activist under Gorbachev in
the late 1980s] who said: I cannot give up my
principles.
[Q]
Of
course I remember. Who can forget her!
[A]
Well,
nobody is going to sell out. We are not going to
sell out . . . .
Our principle is
very simple: we have to present an objective
picture of events. It is absolutely true that
sometimes we fail and make mistakes. In fact, only
those who do nothing can avoid mistakes in our difficult
situation. We are not ashamed, we are prepared to
face objective criticism. But we will not go along
with any faultfinding. Nor will we pay with
political loyalty for any form of support from whatever
quarters. I can guarantee that Russian Public TV
will not turn into a flattering television.
Public councils praised
[Q]
What is
your attitude towards the idea that public councils
should be set up?
[A]
My
attitude is very positive. Moreover, this council
was set up at our television as early as last spring,
even though it has held only a few meetings. The
council is made up of scientists and culture
representatives chosen on recommendations from the State
Duma, the Federation Council, the executive, that is the
government and the presidential administration. I
take a very positive view of it because quite a few sound
ideas are born in discussions. But there is one
fundamental condition: the council is for advising
rather than for issuing orders or instructions. So
I take a positive attitude within this framework and I am
prepared to cooperate in full with the council.
[Q]
Igor
Vladimirovich, there must be some educational or
professional criteria for a person to become a member of
such a council?
[A]
Ideally,
this would be great but unfortunately, the situation
today is such that the council is formed on a different
basis. Various branches of power are represented on
a quota basis. What can we do? In this
instance, we have to go along with what has been decided,
and therefore we do not object. . . .
All TV channels said to get president’s backing
[Q]
I will
simply read out a passage: today the head of the
presidential administration who is also secretary of the
Security Council, Nikolay Bordyuzha, started preparations
relating to Boris Yeltsin’s instructions on the
provision of support for Russian television
channels. Tomorrow Bordyuzha is to meet [head of
VGTRK] Mikhail Shvydkoy. Is Bordyuzha to meet you
before the New Year?
[A]
Maybe, I
do not know. We are permanently keeping in touch.
[Q]
Frankly
speaking, I would like to hear your comments on the
president’s words “preparations and support for
Russian television channels.”
[A]
It is
very straightforward. At the meeting, the president
said that he understands the difficult situation not only
of Russian Public TV but also of other, primarily federal
television channels, which today include the state-owned
Russia TV channel and [commercial] NTV. Therefore,
in our presence, head of presidential administration
Nikolay Bordyuzha was instructed to study practical
options of support for Russian Public TV and other
channels. This appears to be the essence of the
report that you have just read out. We agreed that
as of [28th December], Nikolay Bordyuzha would have a
range of meetings with heads of these channels and study
the financial and economic aspects of the
situation. He will look at what the state can do to
support the channels because it is obvious that, while
being an absolutely state-owned channel, VGTRK, too, has
great financial difficulties. . . .
Duma’s threats to journalists played down
[Q]
That is
mind-boggling, I am sorry to say. The State Duma
has recently demanded that the parliamentary
correspondents of three leading TV companies should be
stripped of accreditation. So, does this mean that,
in order to implement the president’s instructions,
Bordyuzha must send a letter to the State Duma:
don’t touch our independent correspondents?
[A]
No, it
is not as simple as that. There are two reasons why
he does not need to send such a letter: first, this
is not the first or even the second time when
correspondents are stripped of their accreditation.
Second, if one of our journalists is stripped of
accreditation, we will send another one. If the TV
company as a whole is stripped of accreditation—as
you know, there has been a precedent—naturally, we
will sue, but then, the deputies themselves will also be
badly affected, because the country must know its
heroes. Without us, heroes will sink into oblivion.
[Q]
. .
.Your enemies maintain that you, and NTV, for that
matter, pose the main threat to information security and
that you are the cause of half the country’s woes.
[A]
. . .As
for information security, the main thing is
obvious. We cannot have a united state, whether
federal or unitary, without a federal communications
network, I mean a television or radio network. That
is precisely what we are trying to do. Russian
Public TV has 12,000 transmitters throughout the
country. We are obliged to reach every person and
every village on Russian territory. Incidentally,
the cost of maintaining this network accounts for half
the Russian Public TV’s entire budget. So
there you are. Without single information space,
there will be no state.
Ekho Moskvy radio,
Moscow, December 28, 1998
VII. ORT
faces new bankruptcy lawsuit.
The major Russian
ORT [Russian Public TV] channel faced a new bankruptcy
lawsuit on [21st December] just days after the previous
one was dropped.
This time the
lawsuit was filed for debts by the “First Sight
Love” programme filmed by the international quiz
club association “What, Where and When.”
ORT, once the
biggest Soviet channel 1 network, is now a privatized
company in which the state owns 51 per cent of
stock. ORT is widely rumoured to be influenced by
media tycoon and its shareholder Boris Berezovskiy.
[On 18th
December] the arbitration court dropped a lawsuit of the
Moscow bankruptcy commission against ORT after the
federal bankruptcy commission interfered.
However, ORT
president Igor Shabdurasulov admitted that the decision
“did not eliminate the (debt) problems faced by the
company.” He added that much would depend on
how the government interacts with the ORT.
Also of late
ORT’s chief commercials provider Sergey Lissovskiy
has been charged with tax dodging by the Russian tax
police.
ITAR-TASS news agency
(World Service), Moscow, December 21, 1998
VIII. ORT
head appeals to president for help.
The situation
around the ORT company has been commented on by the
managing director of the television company, Igor
Shabdurasulov.
[Shabdurasulov]
[On 16th
December], the ORT television company has been placed in
absolutely unthinkable conditions of
existence. Every day there is an increasing
legal, financial and every other sort of wave of pressure
on the company. I know precisely that the existence
of ORT, the existence of ORT in its current state, is a
subject of haggling for the left-wing majority in the
State Duma even over such an important issue as the
adoption or rejection of next year’s budget.
I am also aware
that despite the frequent assurances by the leadership of
the government about its desire to help the company, for
almost a month now, no specific decisions have been
taken. And I do not believe that these actions,
which are being taken against the ORT company by various
Moscow city structures, by both executive and court
structures, are taking place without the
knowledge—as a very minimum, without the
knowledge—of Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov.
Therefore, I have
taken the decision to send a letter to the president of
Russia, to the president, who recommended me for the post
of managing director of the company, to the president of
Russia, who is the guarantor of our constitution, to the
president of Russia who has always openly defended
freedom of speech in our country.
Russian Public TV,
Moscow, December 16, 1998
IX.
Government tries to reassert influence over ORT.
On 8th December
Sergey Dorenko, widely believed to be under the patronage
of one of Russia’s richest man, Boris Berezovskiy,
was dismissed as Russian Public TV (ORT) head of news and
presenter of ORT’s main evening news bulletin,
“Vremya.” The dismissal suggests Prime
Minister Yevgeniy Primakov is beginning to gain influence
over the broadcasting media.
The government’s action to remove Dorenko, an
outspoken critic of the government, has seriously
weakened the political position of Berezovskiy, who has
an 11-per-cent stake in ORT, and enhanced state influence
over the media ahead of the parliamentary and
presidential elections scheduled for 1999-2000.
The Russian newspaper ‘Segodnya’ said on
19th November that a recent court case against ORT
ostensibly brought by the network’s creditors was
actually initiated by the government. For months
now, it has been trying to seize editorial control at the
national TV network, given the state has a controlling
51-per-cent stake in the company. (see editorial
analysis in World Media, 27th November).
Privately-owned
newspapers indicated Berezovskiy and other media owners
perceived the legal action and Primakov’s recent
statements about the need to take “emergency
measures” to be directed against them.
According to the
Russian press, the Communist-dominated Duma, Russia’
s lower house of parliament, has stipulated that it will
not pass the 1999 budget unless the government reasserts
its control over the broadcasting media and removes
Berezovskiy’s supporters from ORT.
Neither the
“Vremya” broadcasts of 8th and 9th December nor
the main news programmes on other major TV channels made
any mention of Dorenko’s dismissal, suggesting that
behind-the-scenes manoeuvring is continuing.
BBC Monitoring
Research, December 10, 1998
|
