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The Prime Minister Maia Sandu Supports the Recovery of the National Frequency of TVR, Which Was ‘Taken Abusively’

20 September 2019
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Prime Minister Maia Sandu stated, in a Facebook post, that she would provide support to the Romanian public TV channel in obtaining the national frequency. The Prime Minister said that the Government received a letter from TVR, which requests the Broadcasting Council (BC) to provide the channel with a frequency that would allow to broadcast at national level. Recently, the owner of the TV channel Canal 2 announced the renunciation of the national frequency and recommended to give it to the television broadcaster TVR.

‘We believe that all the interference of the former governments in the issues concerning the broadcasting frequency of TVR caused a great injustice, both to the Romanian TV channel and to the citizens of the Republic of Moldova, and that the frequency, which was taken abusively, must be returned to TVR. It is time to make justice and we will offer all the support to the Romanian public TV channel in order to recover the national frequency’, wrote Maia Sandu on Facebook.

Recently, the Telestar Media company, which owns the licenses for Canal 2 and Canal 3 TV channels, announced he renunciation of the national frequency on which Canal 2 broadcasts. The owner of the company, Oleg Cristal, who was also the political adviser of the former leader of the Democratic Party, Vladimir Plahotniuc, recommended the BC to offer the national frequency of Channel 2 to the TV channel TVR Moldova. At the same time, Cristal stated that he had information about the attempt to take the national frequency from Canal 2 in favour of another TV channel, ‘which promotes interests foreign to our country’. The portals affiliated with the Democratic Party previously wrote about the intention of Accent TV, affiliated with the socialists, to rebroadcast the Russian channel Pervii Canal.

Televiziunea Romana (Romanian Television) took note of the press release of Telestar Media SRTv and announced that it would take all official steps to recover the national frequency that would allow to broadcast the programs of TVR Moldova across the Republic of Moldova.

Previously, Televiziunea Romana broadcast in the Republic of Moldova using the state frequency No 2. However, on 27 September 2007, the BCC granted this frequency to 2 Plus TV channel (the old name of Channel 2). In November the same year, TVR challenged the BCC's decisions in the court, requesting their repeal and the payment of damages, but lost the case in the courts of the Republic of Moldova.

In 2008, TVR challenged the Moldovan Government at ECHR, but subsequently withdrew its application, following an amicable agreement with the authorities from Chisinau. Thus, on 1 December 2014, the TVR Moldova grid was launched.

Note that once the Republic of Moldova will switch completely to the digital signal, which is planned for 1 March 2020, it will give up the analog signal and the state analog frequencies will no longer be relevant.

PHOTO: TVR