Thirty-seven television and radio stations across the nation, including International Community Radio Taipei (ICRT), TaiwanPlus and the nation’s three oldest terrestrial television stations, might be taken off the air, as the National Communications Commission (NCC) does not have enough commissioners to convene meetings to review their license renewal applications.
The seven-member commission has only three commissioners. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) requires a quorum of four to hold a meeting.
The Executive Yuan had nominated four names to replace four outgoing ones, but the legislature’s Transportation Committee did not review the nominations.
Photo: Taipei Times
The Executive Yuan later asked then-NCC vice chairman Wong Po-tsung (翁柏宗), who was nominated to be NCC chairman, to temporarily assume the post of NCC chairman.
However, the legislature passed an amendment to the NCC Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法), which bans any NCC member from serving more than two terms. Wong, who had served two terms, left after the amendment took effect.
There are 37 television and radio stations whose broadcasting licenses are scheduled to expire in the first half of this year, NCC secretary-general Huang Wen-che (黃文哲) said.
The list includes four terrestrial television stations — Taiwan Television, China Television, Chinese Television System and Taiwan Public Television Service (PTS) — whose licenses will expire on June 30.
The government-funded English-language channel TaiwanPlus would also be affected, as it operates using PTS’ license, the commission said.
Furthermore, 25 radio stations are slated for license renewal, Huang said.
The broadcasting licenses of ICRT, Fu-Hsin Broadcasting Station International, National Education Radio, Police Broadcasting Service, Taipei Broadcasting Station and Kaohsiung Broadcasting Station are to expire on June 30, while the licenses for the rest of the group would expire between June 18 and June 30, he said.
ICRT is Taiwan’s only English-language radio station and serves the expatriate community here.
Fu-Hsin Broadcasting Station is a military broadcasting service funded by the Ministry of National Defense, while the National Education Radio is supported by the Ministry of Education to produce educational programs.
The Police Broadcasting Service, which is backed by the National Police Agency, is considered a reliable source of traffic reports.
The Taipei and Kaohsiung broadcasting stations are supported by the Taipei and Kaohsiung city governments respectively.
Meanwhile, the broadcasting licenses of eight satellite television broadcasters would expire between next month and June. MTV Live and Nick Jr of Taipei Postproduction (台北影業公司) might see an immediate impact, as their licenses will expire on March 7, Huang said.
The commission has no legal grounds to allow these stations to continue to operate by granting them a temporary license, he said.
Article 12-1 of the Radio and Television Act (廣播電視法) stipulates that the NCC may grant a three-month operating license to broadcasters should the agency find items they need to address when reviewing their license renewal applications. It does not apply in the current situation, Huang said.
As failure to renew the licenses of these broadcast media would significantly hurt the public interest, the commission has invited external experts to propose solutions at a meeting on Feb. 20, he said.
Broadcasters are entitled to seek judicial remedies, such as court injunctions to keep them on the air, the commission said.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their
RSS