Shih Jun-ji (施俊吉), a commissioner in the Cabinet-level Fair Trade Commission (FTC), is probably one of the few officials who has dared to pinpoint what goes on behind the scenes in Taiwan's cable TV business -- that is, political manipulation.
"The problems with cable TV operations are due to the intricate relations between political and business circles," Shih said during a conference held by the Government Information Office (GIO) last week.
"If the law stipulated that neither KMT central standing committee members nor those of other parties could be involved in the cable business, the state of operations would be improved," Shih said, drawing applause from many of those attending the conference.
Shih's hopes, however, could be little more than wishful thinking since politicians employ a variety of means to manipulate the rules of the game in the cable TV market, according to insiders.
Legislators have admitted that some of their colleagues who have their own interests at stake in the highly lucrative market have interfered with the rule-making process for their own benefit.
"When the Legislative Yuan reviewed the amendment to the cable and broadcasting law in 1998, the intricate relationships between political and business circles made the process very chaotic," said KMT legislator Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱).
DPP legislator Fan Hsun-lu (范巽綠) was even more direct, naming KMT legislator Wang Ling-lin (
According to Fan, Wang said that cable operators needed to control at least one-third of the market share to survive.
Wang is the chairman of Eastern Multimedia, one of Taiwan's largest cable TV operators.
Officials at the local level have also used their political connections to influence cable regulations, insiders said.
Following the 1998 amendment to the cable and broadcasting law, local governments were authorized to set subscription fee standards starting from 1999.
But many found that political forces were interfering with what critics said should be a "professional" fee-reviewing process.
Citing the experience of two of her colleagues, Liu Yu-li (
"I want to appeal to local councilors not to interfere [with the fee-reviewing process] by using political tactics," she said.
Worse yet, industry insiders said, is that big companies involved in monopolized cable TV market have distorted market mechanisms through unfair practices and then used their political influence to head off any official investigation.
The two big players in Taiwan's cable industry are Rebar Corporation's Eastern Multimedia (
Eastern, which is now headed by KMT legislator Wang Ling-lin, was founded under the leadership of his father, Wang Yu-tsung (王又曾). United was started by Koo Chen-fu (辜振甫), a senior KMT figure who also chairs the Straits Exchange Foundation. It is now run by his son, Koo Chih-yun (
The elder Koo and Wang are both members of the KMT's central standing committee.
In late 1998, the two conglomerates took steps to end their bitter rivalry and cooperate in dividing up the market. Since they not only own cable system operations but also channel distribution businesses, they have achieved a "horizontal and vertical" domination of the market that prevents fair competition, Fan said.
Citing statistics provided by independent cable TV operators, Fan said she suspected that the two groups had already exceeded the legal ceiling of one-third market share, adding that the GIO had turned a blind eye to the groups' monopolization of the industry.
But GIO officials have cited statistics indicating that the nominal market share controlled by the conglomerates does not violate the law. Among the 74 cable TV operators in Taiwan, 13 were run under the Eastern banner and another 12 under United, the statistics showed.
However, one GIO official who asked not to be named said the statistics were a product of the conglomerates' deceit.
Their trick, the official said, was to use the names of people who do not have direct connections with the conglomerate to open new companies.
Independent cable TV operators, meanwhile, have accused the two groups of having taken action that violated the Fair Trade Law.
The two groups are often united in offering a "genre" or "bouquet" of bundled channels to independent cable operators on a "take-it-or-leave-it" basis, alleged Frank Lai (賴文雄), secretary-general of a cable TV operators' association that mostly comprises independent operators.
Legislators and scholars have criticized the FTC for being too passive in investigating unfair business practices -- such as the two groups' bundling of channels -- in the cable TV market.
Shih denied that the FTC had failed to take any action, but admitted the existence of political intervention in the FTC's investigations. He said the FTC has levied fines of NT$27 million for violations of the Fair Trade Law in the cable TV market in the past two years. Eastern and United were among those fined, Shih said.
According to Shih, several cable TV companies under the Eastern banner were fined NT$7.5 million last year for their concerted efforts to raise prices. United was fined a total of NT$10 million last year for similar behavior.
Shih acknowledged that both conglomerates were able to engage in practices that were on the verge of violating the law because of their "good" connections within political circles.
To underscore his point, Shih mentioned how the Cabinet-level Committee of Administration Appeal overturned the FTC's decision to punish Eastern for engaging in illegal practices two years ago.
"I won't rule out the possibility that political interference affected the committee's decision," he said.
But Shih said he still believed that one of the best solutions for curing the ills in Taiwan's cable TV operations is to severely punish the wrongdoings that have distorted market transactions.
Critics say the remedy is to redesign the legal framework to increase competition in the market.
"Behind the dispute over Taiwan's cable TV operations is a problem that is economic in nature," said attorney Nigel Li (
Chuang Chuen-fa (莊春發), an economist at National Chunghsing University, said the government should work "to raise competition" in the cable market. Chuang said the government should consider amending the law to allow more competitors to enter the cable TV market.
"The government should show its determination to correct current practices in the cable TV market," he said.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
SECOND SPEECH: All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist the CCP, despite their differences, the president said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday discussed how pro-Taiwan and pro-Republic of China (ROC) groups can agree to maintain solidarity on the issue of protecting Taiwan and resisting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The talk, delivered last night at Taoyuan’s Hakka Youth Association, was the second in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. Citing Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui’s (蔣渭水) slogan that solidarity brings strength, Lai said it was a call for political parties to find consensus amid disagreements on behalf of bettering the nation. All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist
By refusing to agree spending increases to appease US President Donald Trump, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez threatened to derail a summit that NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte needs to run smoothly for the sake of the military alliance’s future survival. Ahead of yesterday’s gathering in The Hague, Netherlands, things were going off the rails. European officials have expressed irritation at the spoiler role that Sanchez is playing when their No. 1 task is to line up behind a pledge to raise defense spending to 5 percent of GDP. Rutte needed to keep Spain in line while preventing others such as Slovakia
SHIFT PRIORITIES: The US should first help Taiwan respond to actions China is already taking, instead of focusing too heavily on deterring a large-scale invasion, an expert said US Air Force leaders on Thursday voiced concerns about the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) missile capabilities and its development of a “kill web,” and said that the US Department of Defense’s budget request for next year prioritizes bolstering defenses in the Indo-Pacific region due to the increasing threat posed by China. US experts said that a full-scale Chinese invasion of Taiwan is risky and unlikely, with Beijing more likely to pursue coercive tactics such as political warfare or blockades to achieve its goals. Senior air force and US Space Force leaders, including US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink and
RSS