NEW DELHI: Is it action time in the media? If the meetings that have been lined up for information and broadcasting minister Jaipal Reddy today are any indication, then it seems things are warming up in the media cup.

From an hour from now, Reddy is meeting a delegation of media barons, including Bennett, Coleman & Co. MD Vineet Jain and The India Today Group's chief editor and promoter Aroon Purie.

Later in the evening, around 5.30 pm, Reddy is scheduled to meet Reliance group chairman Mukesh Ambani.

Though ministry officials are tight-lipped about these two particular meetings, terming them as "courtesy calls", it is expected that Jain, Purie and others would be discussing the issue of licence fee for private radio FM players with Reddy.

The I&B ministry has demanded payment of the annual licence fee from the private FM radio operators, which became payable on 30 April. The deadline has been now extended.

With a Reliance company, Reliance Infocomm, becoming aggressive on the broadband sector, which would also involve the I&B ministry, apart from the department of telecommunications, it would be interesting what the Ambani scion has to discuss with Reddy.