The losing contender for the Islamic broadcasting slot on public radio and TV, the similarly named SMO, had appealed against the authority's decision.
The Dutch Media Authority (CvdM) has said it will reconsider all applications for the Islamic religious broadcasting licence. No such programming is currently produced because SMO's licence was withdrawn in August when the group split over differences in religious interpretation. SMON was an amalgamation of orthodox and liberal Muslim organisations.
A small fraction of broadcasting time on the Netherlands' public radio and TV channels has been set aside for each of the country's religious groups. The slots are allotted to broadcasting organisations which are considered national representatives of their religion.
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