Disputes between terrestrial and cable TV networks over “must-carry” channels in cable TV programming remain unsettled, as both sides continued to debate the necessity of such a requirement in two recent information sessions held by the National Communications Commission (NCC).
The NCC hosted information sessions on Friday on two of the five new media regulatory bills that it is to submit to the Executive Yuan by the end of the year. One is about the regulations on radio and terrestrial TV networks, while the other is about cable systems and satellite channels.
The bills were created from references mainly in the Radio and Television Act (廣播電視法), the Satellite Broadcasting Act (衛星廣播電視法) and the Cable Radio and Television Act (有線廣播電視法).
However, the NCC incorporated the concept of digital convergence into the two new acts, as people can now view the same content on different types of devices through different connection methods.
Currently, the nation’s must-carry channel policy unconditionally requires cable TV networks to carry terrestrial TV channels, including those of Taiwan Television (TTV), China Television (CTV), Chinese Television System (CTS), Formosa Television (FTV), Public Television Service, Hakka Television Service and Taiwan Indigenous TV.
Under the policy, cable TV operators are exempt from paying for authorization to broadcast programs created by terrestrial TV channels, while terrestrial TV operators do not need to pay cable TV networks for inclusion in cable service lineups.
A number of lawmakers deemed the policy to be unfair and amended the three active laws in 2012, but the amendments never secured final approval from the legislature.
The must-carry channel problem remained one of the key issues preventing legislators from reaching a consensus on amendments in cross-party negotiations on Wednesday last week.
The information sessions on Friday were dominated by discussions over the must-carry regulations. Representatives from terrestrial and satellite channels debated whether the government should continue requiring cable service providers to carry terrestrial TV channels.
About 80 percent of the nation’s households access TV programming via cable services, TTV representative Yang Yong-ming (楊永明) said, adding that if the government annuls the must-carry requirement without comprehensive complementary measures, audiences would be restricted from accessing quality programming and major government announcements aired on terrestrial TV channels.
Satellite Television Broadcasting Association secretary-general May Chen (陳依玫) said terrestrial TV channels are transmitted via radio waves, which are public resources.
However, she said the government had privatized these public resources by selling TTV and CTV to private corporations.
Commercial terrestrial channels including TTV, CTV, CTS and FTV should compete with all other cable channels and should no longer be protected by the must-carry restriction, Chen said.
“These channels use public resources and sell airtime for commercial purposes,” she said. “We suggest that they return these resources to the government, which should reassign the frequency spectrums.”
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Friday laid out the Cabinet’s updated policy agenda and recapped the government’s achievements ahead of the one-year anniversary of President William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration. Cho said the government had made progress across a range of areas, including rebuilding Hualien, cracking down on fraud, improving pedestrian safety and promoting economic growth. “I hope the public will not have the impression that the Cabinet only asked the legislature to reconsider a bunch of legal amendments,” Cho said, calling the moves “necessary” to protect constitutional governance and the public’s interest. The Cabinet would work toward achieving its “1+7” plan, he said. The
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) hosted a dinner in Taipei last night with key Taiwanese suppliers to celebrate the successful mass production of the company’s new Blackwell AI systems. Speaking to the media earlier yesterday, Huang thanked Nvidia’s Taiwanese partners for their contributions to the company’s ecosystem, while also sharing his plans to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) founder Morris Chang (張忠謀). In response to rumors that Nvidia will launch a downgraded Hopper H20 chip for China in July, Huang dismissed the reports, saying, “That is not true.” He clarified that there
RSS