The head of the River Stavros Theodorakis claimed that the government has made an “absolute mistake” with its decision to auction only four television licenses, since he believes it will result in less public revenue, less competition and lower quality programs.

In an interview on Skai Radio, Mr. Theodorakis stated that the government is building castles on the sand and that the entire foundation will soon collapse. The opposition party leader commented that in order to put an end to triangle of vested interests between political parties, banks and the media, the government should have excluded any candidate involved in public works.

Asked about possible solutions, the River leader explained that more television licenses should be granted, while each channel station must be obliged to pay 1% of its gross annual revenue. This 1%, he added, could go to Education as a priority.

Finally, Mr. Theodorakis claimed that the European institutions are “very concerned” about the four licenses, as it encourages the creation of a ‘media cartel’.