As it has already been reported, on September 14 the air of “Noyan Tapan” TV channel, rebroadcasting the Russian TV 6 and producing its own programs, was stopped. “Lotos” TV company (the owner of a broadcast license and the representative of TV 6 in Armenia) canceled the partnership with “Noyan Tapan” on the grounds of the latter one’s refusal to go on air without its own programs, only to rebroadcast TV 6 (see details in YPC Weekly Newsletter, September 15-21, 2001).
At the end of September, a public committee to support “Noyan Tapan” was established, aiming at promoting various initiatives by means of political parties, lobbying in the parliament, etc., to restore the broadcasts. A couple of days ago another Armenian independent TV company, “A1+”, expressed its journalistic solidarity.
Since October 15 “Noyan Tapan” newscasts are being aired on “A1+” twice a day. "The support of colleagues from ‘A1+’ is of great importance to us”, stressed the General Director of “Noyan Tapan” Tigran Haroutiunian. “Due to it our journalists have the chance to stay on form until “Noyan Tapan” regains it place on the Armenian TV screens.” To achieve this, the company needs to get a broadcast license from the National Commission on Television and Radio. The competition for these licenses will most probably be announced in early 2002.
According to Tigran Haroutiunian, “Noyan Tapan” is going to also address the Court with a suit against “Lotos” TV company for the violation by the latter of one of the provisions of the cooperation agreement. According to the agreement, “Lotos”, having expressed a wish to annul the cooperation, should have given an official six months’ prior notice to “Noyan Tapan”. Yet, the notice was given on the very day – September 14 – when the operations of the transmitter ensuring the air of “Noyan Tapan” were stopped.
