Jakarta – Indonesia's cash-strapped state television station is to start carrying advertising for the first time since it was set up almost 40 years ago, a report said Wednesday.

Televisi Republik Indonesia (TVRI) has ended agreements with five of the country's six private television stations under which the state broadcaster received part of their advertising proceeds in return for not carrying advertising itself, the Warta Kota daily said.

TVRI president Sumita Tobing told the daily the agreements ended on October.

Under the agreements, signed between 1990 and 1994, the five private stations had to pay 12.5 percent of their advertising revenues to TVRI.

But many stations failed to pay in full, especially since the regional financial crisis began in mid-1997. "In this condition, we have to dare to end the cooperation. As a consequence, TVRI will begin to carry full advertisements," Tobing told the paper. The station's public relations department could not be immediately reached for confirmation.

The sixth private television station, Metro TV, did not enter any agreement with TVRI as it only began operations in October last year.