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FM cuts TDS for TV gameshow winners

Team NetScribes

The nation can look forward to many more crorepatis. With the blessings of the finance minister, too.

Wishing gameshow winners luck, finance minister Yashwant Sinha has announced a cut in TDS on winnings from gameshows, lotteries and puzzles. TDS applicable on such earnings has been cut from 44 per cent to 30 per cent.

"This will benefit winners by about 14 per cent. We welcome the move," said Peter Mukherjea, chief executive officer, Star India.

"It's a good precedent for the gameshow business. The ultimate beneficiary is the winner as the slab comes down from 44 per cent to 30 per cent," said Yashpal Khanna, Star's senior vice-president, corporate communications.

"While the participants' interest in such shows will definitely increase with the higher prize money, viewership will also go up. It cannot be conclusively said at this point of time whether this move will trigger more such game shows," said R.K Singh, chief executive officer, Zee Telefilms.

Media analysts, however, say that there's room for more. "This will encourage more such entertainment-based interactive shows. At the same time, the government will ensure smooth and fast recovery of tax," said Kalpesh Parekh, media analyst at Sushil Finance, a Bombay-based brokerage.

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