A new broom - on most occasions - sweeps clean in most corporations. And Discovery Communications CEO Deepak Shourie believes in this in toto. He has started cleaning up the management within his charge. He has reportedly signed on old hire Rahul Johri, who was earlier with him at Zee News, as his marketing director. Johri was apparently with Shourie even in his days at Outlook.

It is Johri‘s hiring which has led to rumours that marketing director and advertising media whiz Ambika Srivastava has put in her papers. While Srivastava - God bless her - has been denying it to all and sundry, the industry buzz insists that she is just staying out her term at the company. Industry sources point out that she is likely to pitch for the Top Job in mindshare or hitch on to an NGO.

There is also talk that at least two other top executives are planning an early exit from the channel.

Johri‘s last employment was with tehelka.com as vice-president (sales and marketing). Apparently, Shourie is slated to bring many more changes within Discovery. And this has led to some discontent within a company, which has had little of that under the leadership of its former captain Kiran Karnik.

The new initiatives are aimed at helping Econnect tap new business opportunities, even as it serves as the Internet interface of the Zee Group, the release says.

One fallout of the restructuring process has been that close to 60 people have reportedly been asked to leave.

Scientific Atlanta, better known in India as a supplier of high quality set top boxes, has been the first mover to make a pitch to etc Networks for a contract to set up an earth station for it in Mumbai.

etc Networks managed a coup of sorts after obtaining a licence to set up an uplinking centre from Mumbai. The channel will now become part of an exclusive club of four having uplinking facilities in India. The list includes Jain TV, promoted by Dr JK Jain, Kalanithi Maran‘s Tamil Nadu-based Sun TV and the Eenadu Group in Andhra Pradesh, promoted by Ramoji Rao.

etc has, however, only been allowed to uplink to the Thaicom 3 satellite, according to one of the channel‘s three promoters Yogesh Shah. Queried as to who had been commissioned to build the earth station, Shah said: "Thaicom itself has a facility to help set up the teleport. Scientific Atlanta has given us a quotation. There are several others who are interested in helping us set up the earth station in our existing premises in north Mumbai‘s Andheri suburb."

Although etc will be targeting the 24 Indian channels that are currently downlinking off Thaicom 3, Shah said he did not expect more than five to seven channels - all Mumbai-based - to make the switch. That doesn‘t include etc‘s own channels - etc Punjabi and etc Entertainment.

The project would cost between Rs 50 to 60 million, Shah said.