MUMBAI: Radio and related area heads have expressed the hope that 2011 will indeed see the rollout of Phase 3, and will not become yet another year of waiting, like 2010, for the Radio industry.

In a Radio session at Ficci-Frames, focusing on the next big opportunity for private FM Radio in India, Phase 3, which promises to unleash 800 frequencies across 300-odd towns, Prashant Panday (MD & CEO – ENIL), Tarun Katial (CEO – RBNL), Harrish M Bhatia (CEO – My FM), Rahul Gupta (Director – Radio Mantra), L V Krishnan (CEO - TAM) and Salil Pitale (ED – Investment Banking, Enam Securities), discussed the opportunities and hurdles  Panday, moderating the discussion, observed that Phase 3 is eagerly awaited this year as its advent finally make private FM Radio a truly national phenomenon by ensuring there is a Private FM station in every Indian town with a population of one lakh or above. It will also allow multiple frequencies in the bigger towns, thereby opening up the door for content genre expansion, and with the license period being extended to 15 years, will encourage each one of us to make more investments into the medium....

Rahul Gupta said the Government's iteration of the Phase 3 policy would decide how his – and other – Radio companies approach Phase 3. He felt the e-aution system would hurt the case of Radio further because it might encourage unrealistically high bids, but Prashant Panday felt that the current operators, wiser due to experience, were not likely to fall into the overbidding trap this time round  However,..  Panday told RadioAndMusic.com, The number of frequencies has to go up in the major markets, and the final impact Phase 3 will have on the medium depends upon the auction process decided by the government – it shouldn't burden the industry with too much license fees -- and the final decision on music royalties payable by Private FM Radio."

Salil Pitale observed that while there have been several positives recently -- with the 15-year licenses standing out -- the method for strategic exits for financial investors remains an area of worry  Harrish Bhatia said the music royalties payable by FM  needed to be firmly resolved without any ambiguity, and Tarun Katial said it is vital the government acts with a sense of urgency that is far greater than what has been shown so far.

Speaking on the inherent resilience of the medium, Tarun Katial said, Radio is significantly better thatn TV and print. It gained more during the recession compared to any other medium. Metros definitely grew bigger – it proved to be a medium of choice....

Harrish Bhatia did not see the dearth of talent as a big hurdle, saying the industry had overcome the same problem when Phase 2 began, by training new talent, and it was equipped now to do the same even better.

Harrish Bhatia felt profitability fears around as many as 800 new frequencies were not well founded as the newer local markets could sustain the new frequencies. He believed that the next boom on radio advertising and revenues in the smaller markets would come primarily from local retail.

L V Krishnan was extremely positive about the performance and prospects of Radio, which he said was going in the right direction. He said Radio had become stronger with the growing numbers of FM-enabled mobile handsets, which, 3 years ago, were around 35% of the total number of handsets, but today, have grown to around 80% of the total handsets. He said the access to FM across markets, mobility of the medium and the amount of time it has been consumed have all grown, which augurs extremely well for the medium. The radio model works best in tandem with other mediums, to offer 360-degree communication solutions....

In what summed up general sentiment, LV said, I think the industry worries too much. Yes, consumers don't adapt to changes quickly; it is a matter of time, considering all the positives. Radio is a fantastic medium!...