(1) No distributor of television channels shall provide signals of television channels to a local cable operator without entering into a written interconnection agreement with such local cable operator.
(2) No local cable operator shall distribution television channels of any broadcaster to any subscriber without entering into a written interconnection agreement with a distributor of such television channels.
(3) Every multi-system operator shall, within thirty days of receipt of written request from a local cable operator, enter into a written interconnection agreement with such local cable operator for providing signals of television channels, on lines of the model interconnection agreement as set out in the Schedule V by mutually agreeing on the clauses 10, 11 and 12 of the said agreement:
Provided that the multi-system operator and the local cable operator, without altering or deleting any clause of the model interconnection agreement, may add, through mutual agreement, clauses to the model interconnection agreement however such addition shall not have the effect of diluting any of the clauses as laid down in the model interconnection agreement:
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Provided further that in case the multi-system operator and the local cable operator fail to enter into interconnection agreement, the multi-system operator and the local cable operator shall enter into the standard interconnection agreement as specified in the Schedule VI.
Explanation: For removal of doubt, it is clarified that in the event of any conflict between the terms and conditions of the model interconnection agreement and new terms and conditions added through mutual agreement by the parties, the terms and conditions of the prescribed model interconnection agreement shall prevail.
(4) Every multi-system operator, upon entering into a written interconnection agreement with a local cable operator, shall provide signals of television channels, within thirty days of entering into the written interconnection agreement, to such local cable operator.
(5) It shall be the responsibility of every multi-system operator who enters into an interconnection agreement with a local cable operator to handover a copy of such agreement to that local cable operator within a period of fifteen days from the date of execution of the agreement and retain a copy of an acknowledgement so received from the local cable operator.
(6) Every multi-system operator shall enter into a new written interconnection agreement with local cable operator before the expiry of the existing interconnection agreement:
Provided that the multi-system operator shall, at least sixty days prior to the date of expiry of the existing interconnection agreement, give notice to the local cable operator to enter into new written interconnection agreement:
Provided further that in case, the parties fail to enter into new written interconnection agreement before the expiry of the existing interconnection agreement, the distributor shall not make available the signals of television channels to the local cable operator on expiry of the existing interconnection agreement:
Provided also that the multi-system operator shall, fifteen days prior to the date of expiry of its existing interconnection agreement, inform the subscribers through scrolls on the channels included in the said agreement—
(a) the date of expiry of its existing interconnection agreement; and
(b) the date of disconnection of signals of television channels in the event of its failure to enter into new interconnection agreement.
(7) The settlement of service charges between local cable operator and multi-system operator shall be governed by mutual agreement:
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Provided that in cases the multi-system operator and the local cable operator fail to arrive at a mutual agreement for settlement of service charges, then the network capacity fee amount and the distribution fee amount shall be shared in the ratio of 55:45 between multi-system operator and local cable operator.
(8) The provisions of sub-regulations (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7) of this regulation shall, with necessary adaptations and modifications, apply to HITS operator and IPTV operator.