The core of the concerns of the owners of Channel 14 - Netanyahu's close associate, billionaire Yitzhak Mirilshvili, concerns the possibility that under a sweeping opening of the market, other parties will be able to enter to compete with Channel 14
A series of tweets by Channel 14 officials over the past day reveal a deep rift between the office of Communications Minister Shlomo Karai (Likud) and Channel 14 - which is also considered the Likud's home channel, and the Netanyahu family in particular.
This is not the first dispute between the heads of the channel and the minister since he took office - but with Karai's repeated statements in the background about opening the market to competition, the struggle has now become official and open.
The bad blood between the parties (some will say: Channel 14's desire to exert pressure) has led to the channel's executives accusing Kraei of nothing less than a "revenge campaign by Kraei for the fact that the owner's representative did not agree to meet him", this, according to them, while the owner - Netanyahu's associate billionaire Yitzhak Mirilshvili - did not meet with any politician."
Moreover, voila!
Baranja learned that about a month ago the channel threatened to cancel a meeting with the minister, this against the background of his decision not to extend the temporary order that granted channels 12 and 13 about NIS 40 million from Partner and Cellcom in exchange for their content, and at the same time extended the concessions to the designated channels, including channel 14. The channel then accused the minister that his intention was to continue the actions of the real minister - meaning the provision of regulatory and financial benefits to channels 12 and 13, since they themselves cannot sell their content to Hot and Less.
The Patriots Studio, Channel 14 (Photo: Screenshot, Flash 90, Yonatan Zindel)
The fear of a competitor on the right
In other words: Channel 14 discovered that the price of excess competition and flooding - an agenda they passionately promoted until recently as far as Keshet 12 was concerned - could reach them as well
But the core of the concerns of the owners of Channel 14 concerns the possibility that under a sweeping opening of the market, other parties will be able to enter to compete with Channel 14 in the "right" niche.
One of the parties in question is the i24news channel owned by billionaire Patrick Derhi, which is broadcast on HOT.
One of the assessments concerns the possibility that as part of the opening of the market to competition, the channel - which has so far competed in the arena of other international news channels - will be allowed to also broadcast news in Israel.
In this context, it should be noted that the CEO of the channel, Frank Malol, is considered a close associate of the French billionaire Meir Habib, who is considered a personal friend of Netanyahu.
Either way, according to sources at the channel, Minister Karai is interested in granting a license to another right-wing channel, apparently on HOT.
Cari on his part, not only does he not deny the things, he even tweeted on the subject and wrote that "competition is healthy".
The channel assumes that the minister's intention is to promote the opening of a right-wing channel that will also broadcast on Shabbat - and will respond to feelings on the right that the right-wing news scene remains "promiscuous" during Shabbat in front of the Friday studios of Keshet, Reshet and Kaan - while many non-traditional right-wing viewers remain without an "answer" from the bureau Netanyahu and the right.
According to a source at Channel 14, "You have to be really disconnected to think that there is room for another right-wing channel at the moment. Our ratings are indeed on the rise, but still not close to the tribe edition of Studio Six and the Guy Pines reports by Dafna Lial and Amit Segal."
In other words: Channel 14 discovered that the price of excess competition and flooding - an agenda they passionately promoted until recently as far as Keshet 12 was concerned - could reach them as well.
"Succumbed to Avi Nir's pressure"
"The problem with Channel 14 is that it is not a right-wing channel, but a net propaganda channel, that as soon as an oligarch tells it to do something, it does it. The right-wing is interested in a real right-wing channel, not a bibist channel"
Another claim that comes up on Channel 14 is that "Krei gave in to the pressures of Avi Nir and Keshet and did not stop their Peri Tui project, when the biggest victim of the project is of course Hot who fought the project."
According to the channel's presenter Boaz Golan, "to compensate Hot, he will authorize her to establish a channel that will sell advertisements."
However, it is not at all clear how Minister Karai could have stopped the streaming project of Keshet and RGE which was approved by the second authority and was launched even before the formation of the government (in the language of the minister's response to Boaz Golan's question: "The minister is not establishing media channels. I intend to introduce competition to the market. More channels. More voices. A variety of opinions. Envy of writers will breed wisdom").
And in the meantime, the right in the end is capitalist until it comes to its money.
All the right wing that talks about privatization will not agree to privatize the Rabbinates and kashruts, just like Channel 14 that talks all day about a free economy, does not agree to have a competitor.
They are not really capitalists, but take care of themselves.
The person who is still mentioned as a key player in the matter is Elad Malka, an associate of Karai and who is considered to be the one who formulated the reform in the industry for him.
Malka was destined to fill the position of CEO of the Ministry of Communications, however his appointment was not finally approved due to failure to meet the threshold conditions. Around Channel 14, it is claimed that Malka - who had a problematic past with the channel regarding an article published about him - is driven by revenge. In this context, it should be noted that Malka is actually considered an ideologue and serves as
CEO "L" and the founder of the "Ha-Inters" association, which holds a libertarian agenda that supports sweeping privatization and a free market economy.
Like Minister Karai, he also spoke out in the past in favor of the privatization of public broadcasting.
A disinterested source who belongs to the conservative right and is familiar with the moves concludes: "The problem with Channel 14 is that it is not a right-wing channel but a pure propaganda channel, that as soon as an oligarch tells it to do something, it does it. The right-wing is interested in a real right-wing channel, not a bibist channel."
Minister Karai's office responded: "I am currently working on the reform of the broadcasting market. A reform that will open up the market and allow the entry of new players. A free and competitive market is the principle that runs as the second thread between the articles of the reform. Soon in Gaza I will present things in an orderly manner."
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Shlomo Karai
Ministry of Communication
Channel 14
