The National Communication Commission (NCC) recently intensified its crackdown on unlicensed radio stations around the country, but admitted this would only temporarily reduce their number.
Cheng Chuan-ping (鄭泉泙), director of the commission's Northern Regional Regulatory Department, said on Saturday that the crackdown had halved the number of illegal radio stations in Taiwan to about 50.
However, based on past experience, the number would soon increase again, he said.
Unlicensed radio stations have plagued Taiwan for years, with many stations accused of disrupting assigned frequencies or airing exaggerated commercials for so-called medical cures.
Commission statistics show that the government has shut down 330 underground stations over the past two years.
However, some have reopened in other locations, meaning that their number has remained at about 100, officials said.
Cheng said that it takes between two and three weeks to prepare for a raid on an underground radio station.
A transmitter must be located and the nature of the station's broadcast has to be determined before a search warrant can be sought, he said.
The whole process takes even longer if the station is in a remote area, he said.
Under the Telecommunications Act (電信法), persons found operating unlicensed radio stations that cause interference may be subject to fines of as much as NT$600,000 and can be jailed for up to two years.
In a raid, the equipment and devices used by an underground station are confiscated, Cheng said.
He said the intensifying raids on illegal stations were part of efforts to root out underground radio broadcasting and that the measures included helping illegal operators become legal.
To address the problem, the commission has opened new bandwidth, which can accommodate more than 40 private stations.
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