The Executive Yuan said recently that it is planning to spend NT$9.2 billion (US$284 million) to build a second single-frequency network, to establish a platform for high-definition television (HDTV) technology and for digital video broadcasting.
The spending forms part of the nation's digitization project and will also set up four more digital TV channels and a digital database of TV programs. The program has become a topic of heated discussion among the ruling and opposition parties. However, we should consider whether the project will improve the development of the media and the rights of the general public.
The Cable TV household penetration rate in Taiwan is high, but market forces have limited impact on the industry, given the level of monopolization. Although the Government Information Office's (GIO's) move to revoke the operating licenses of seven cable TV channels had some impact, the government has yet to pursue comprehensive structural improvement.
Structural reform must cover at least three platforms: cable TV, terrestrial TV and satellite TV. Terrestrial TV in particular is a representation of a nation's mainstream culture. Many satellite TV channels are broadcast abroad, and a number of cable TV channels rely on foreign investment (some are suspected of using capital from China). Therefore, as the government pushes ahead with the digitization project and the public begins to gain greater access to a variety of TV channels, adjusting the structure of Taiwan's media and enhancing cultural awareness among the general public has become a matter of urgency.
The NT$9.2 billion project to create a second single-frequency network is part of the nation's hardware infrastructure directed at digitizing the terrestrial TV channels. When the first and second single-frequency networks are fully operational, broadcast bands can be reorganized, freeing up space for new free-to-air radio and TV channels. This will offset the current preponderance of cable TV stations and provide the public with more options in terms of prices, quality and content.
Why is it significant that the government is digitizing terrestrial TV services and giving the public more TV channels? In Taiwan, with the exception of the Public Television Service, which is mandated by law, cable TV is the sole preserve of commercial groups.
Therefore, the government's attempt to expand public broadcasting services over a digital terrestrial platform is intended to offer more high-quality content and provide more options for consumers.
I should emphasize here that the terrestrial digital TV channels we shall see in the future will lead to higher quality public broadcasting than we have at present, offering a wider range of services than are currently available, in addition to commercial TV channels.
The Public Broadcasting Act (
This will prevent these public groups from turning into money pits.
After all, the public has to pay cable operators for services that include free-to-air channels.
The new platform, when it is complete, will have succeeded in giving consumers more choices and improving services only if it also leads to lower prices -- such as a monthly fee of NT$100 per household and 30 quality HDTV channels with a variety of content.
Weng Shieu-chi is a professor in the department of journalism at National Chengchi University.
TRANSLATED DANIEL CHENG AND PAUL COOPER
On May 7, 1971, Henry Kissinger planned his first, ultra-secret mission to China and pondered whether it would be better to meet his Chinese interlocutors “in Pakistan where the Pakistanis would tape the meeting — or in China where the Chinese would do the taping.” After a flicker of thought, he decided to have the Chinese do all the tape recording, translating and transcribing. Fortuitously, historians have several thousand pages of verbatim texts of Dr. Kissinger’s negotiations with his Chinese counterparts. Paradoxically, behind the scenes, Chinese stenographers prepared verbatim English language typescripts faster than they could translate and type them
More than 30 years ago when I immigrated to the US, applied for citizenship and took the 100-question civics test, the one part of the naturalization process that left the deepest impression on me was one question on the N-400 form, which asked: “Have you ever been a member of, involved in or in any way associated with any communist or totalitarian party anywhere in the world?” Answering “yes” could lead to the rejection of your application. Some people might try their luck and lie, but if exposed, the consequences could be much worse — a person could be fined,
Xiaomi Corp founder Lei Jun (雷軍) on May 22 made a high-profile announcement, giving online viewers a sneak peek at the company’s first 3-nanometer mobile processor — the Xring O1 chip — and saying it is a breakthrough in China’s chip design history. Although Xiaomi might be capable of designing chips, it lacks the ability to manufacture them. No matter how beautifully planned the blueprints are, if they cannot be mass-produced, they are nothing more than drawings on paper. The truth is that China’s chipmaking efforts are still heavily reliant on the free world — particularly on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing
On May 13, the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment to Article 6 of the Nuclear Reactor Facilities Regulation Act (核子反應器設施管制法) that would extend the life of nuclear reactors from 40 to 60 years, thereby providing a legal basis for the extension or reactivation of nuclear power plants. On May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) legislators used their numerical advantage to pass the TPP caucus’ proposal for a public referendum that would determine whether the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant should resume operations, provided it is deemed safe by the authorities. The Central Election Commission (CEC) has
RSS