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The OBN Update is a brief newsletter which aims to provide all those interested with a snapshot of developments in the Open Broadcast Network.
- Recent events in the Republika Srpska have once again highlighted the
relevance of and the need for the OBN. TV-INFO, the network's half-hour
news programme, was praised in the latest survey by Mediaplan, the
Sarajevo media monitors, for producing - together with Studio 99 - the
best coverage of the crisis. The network's Banja Luka operation, ATV
provided vivid reports on the protest and support rallies for President
Plavsic in the town in the wake of the constitutional crisis which has
enveloped Republika Srpska. In a situation where the most relevant media
(the RS State TV broadcaster, SRT) was totally under the control of the
leading political party, and giving coverage which was highly
prejudicial, ATV was one of the few outlets giving the RS audience a
different and impartial picture of what's going on. In addition to this,
ATV also produced an extensive overview of the situation in Banja Luka
which through the OBN network enabled audiences throughout BiH to see
for themselves what was going on in Banja Luka as well as providing a
professional, hour-by-hour historical document of events.
- In what is perhaps the most crucial move towards handing over the
Network completely to the people of BiH, the Steering Committee has
recommended to the Governing Council of the OBN the appointment of Mr.
Ramiz Mehakovic as Chief Executive Officer of the network within Bosnia.
The recommendation to appoint Mr. Mehakovic in this post had previously
come from the Selection Committee specifically up to look at the
applications received in Sarajevo in response to the numerous
advertisements placed in publications throughout the former Yugoslavia
and elsewhere. The Committee had determined that it was necessary to
abandon the concours approach and instead concentrate on direct head
hunting as none of the applicants met the necessary criteria.
The Committee started off from the premise that the appointment of CEO
was fundamental to making the network work. It was also agreed that once
appointed the CEO should possess the authority to recruit the remainder
of his team with only the remaining board positions subject to the
confirmation of the OBN Steering Committee. Ramiz Mehakovic's name had
originally surfaced last year when his company, IPC (a
marketing-design-management company), was approached to design an image
and programme profile for TV-IN. The Selection Committee found Mr
Mehakovic to have the necessary expertise and track record in the
following areas:
- Proven and demonstrable success in video production.
- Bosnian market leader in TV graphics production and use of information
technology in broadcasting.
- Proven Sales and Marketing record including both production and sales
of TV advertising.
- Successful business profile as owner and current CEO of IPC.
- Understanding of current trends in TV broadcasting and media
generally.
- Clear and demonstrable grasp of the technical aspects of broadcasting.
Ramiz Mehakovic was born in 1957 in Sarajevo where he studied political
science and journalism, before attending numerous schools and courses in
information technology. Before setting up IPC, he was IT project manager
for the BiH Central Bank, designing and developing the bank's computer
network system, as well as that of the BiH Chamber of Commerce. He
founded IPC in 1990.
- The OBN Governing Council and Steering Committee met in Brussels on 12
June to discuss a number of strategic issues. The two bodies dealt with
a number of personnel issues, confirming the key role of Mike Challenger
as Operations Director for the OBN for the next 6 months, and giving
tentative approval to corporate structure plans prepared by Challenger
and OHR. It also approved the nomination of Ramiz Mehakovic as Chief
Executive Officer. Also discussed were proposals made by OHR to enter
into talks with RTV BH for seeking optimal solutions for the deployment
of the 10K transmitter donated by Japan through the good offices of the
UNDP on Mount Vlasic in central Bosnia, a move with could almost double
the terrestrial access by the OBN to central and northern Bosnia,
including crucial areas like Brcko.
The OBN Steering Committee subsequently met again on 26 June to follow
through on some of the points agreed at the Governing Council on 12
June. These centred on arrangements for setting up the OBN Trust,
resolving the question of the 10 kilowatt transmitter on Mount Vlasic,
with OHR providing further detail and maps of the enhanced projected
footprint as well as reporting on initial, positive contacts on the
subject with RTV BiH. The government of Japan, as the donor of the
transmitter, participated in these discussions. Further, the SC reached
agreement in principle to recruit Ramiz Mehakovic as Chief Executive,
following a positive assessment of the Bosnian selection board and the
strong recommendation of the European Commission's media expert.
- The Republika Srpska Ministry of Information has confirmed that the
OBN affiliate in Banja Luka, ATV, has been officially allocated a
frequency for its broadcasting into BL. The information was disclosed
during a meeting with OHR representatives. The decision is to be
ratified by the RS government this week. In an additional move, the RS
Information Ministry has also granted ATV the right to continue to use
its current frequency while the re-tuning and setting up of additional
transmission elements takes place.
- Two Canadian broadcasters, NFB and TVO have indicated readiness to
supply programmes for the OBN. A representative of the Canadian
government visited Srajevo last week and discussed this matter, among
other things, with both the OHR and Mike Challenger. The two
broadcasters intend to make available a list with suggested selections
as well as a number of pilot copies of the programmes offered.
Another OBN-related recent visit to Sarajevo came from representatives
of the Japanese government and UNDP, the channelling agency for the
Japanese government donation during phase one. The discussions focused
on identifying the best possible uses for the high-power 10 kW
transmitter donated by the Japanese but not yet used for technical
reasons.
To this end, the OBN and OHR have embarked on talks with RTV BiH to
determine the feasibility of placing the OBN's 10 kW transmitter on Mt.
Vlasic, an RTV BiH location previously used as the primary distribution
site for the country, feeding a terrestrial network of relays and
repeater stations. Discussions with the management showed RTV BiH to be
interested in co-operating with OBN and to this end recommended that
Vlasic be considered as a potential site for a joint effort. An
available and unused RTV BiH frequency (Channel 29) was offered for
possible OBN use. The OBN is now working on developing a project
proposal for setting up the transmitter including a precise study of the
propagation and footprint as well as how this major element is to be
tied up into the rest of the OBN's terrestrial infrastructure.
- Plans are also afoot for the establishment of a basis for an OBN
affiliate in Brcko. This was accelerated by the recent events in the
Republika Srpska when it became clearer than ever that there is an acute
need for an alternative media set-up to balance the output of the
central state-controlled broadcasters. The plan would see OBN assets
being deployed inside Brcko town with the capability of taking a direct
feed of the 6-hour long programme from Sarajevo as well as providing a
window for some local production with a smaller studio-based operation.
- Other options being currently explored to increase the coverage of the
RS include the development of plans for bolstering or setting up new
broadcasters in the eastern part of the country. These include RTV
Drina, a station based in the Srebrenica region, and RTV Gorazde, an
already established local station which would require a degree of
upgrading both on the transmission and the studio front.
- The next meeting of OBN Donors will be held on 22 July at OHR
Brussels. It is expected that the meeting will focus on the implications
of the recent constitutional crisis in the Republika Srpska for the
development of independent media in the region and specifically the
relevance of the OBN in this new environment. A number of Phase Two
issues will also be addressed, especially in relation to the above,
including the further expansion of the terrestrial part of the network
in the RS (with particular emphasis on Brcko and eastern RS) as well as
the reconfiguration of the OBN elements in-country in the wake of the
introduction of a new all-Bosnian management structure.
The OBN Project Assistance Team Tel. 387 71 460 536 Fax 387 71 460 534
Office of the High Representative Public Affairs Office Tel. 387 71 447 275 Fax 387 71 447 420
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