In a landmark decision, the government today opened up the print media to foreign direct investment (FDI), allowing 26 per cent foreign stake in newspapers and current affairs periodicals and 74 per cent in other forms of the print media. The decision ends a decade-long debate over whether FDI should be allowed in the print media on account of issues relating to national security.
However, the government has not allowed foreign institutional investors (FIIs), non-resident Indians (NRIs) and overseas corporate bodies (OCBs) to invest in news and current affairs print companies. This means in the event of an initial public offering (IPO) by a media company, FIIs and OCBs will not be allowed to participate.
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