IPTV 3 Companies Target CJ ENM: "25% Increase in Program Supply Price Demand is Unreasonable"

Joint Statement Released on the 20th
"Engage in Discussions at a Reasonable and Appropriate Level"

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] "Major content providers are infringing on the public's viewing rights by demanding excessive fee increases and engaging in unfair trade practices, using the suspension of their content supply as leverage."

On the 20th, the three domestic IPTV providers (KT, SK Broadband, LG Uplus) issued a statement urging, "Major domestic content providers must immediately cease unreasonable actions that hinder the development of the media industry." Although no company names were specified, the statement was aimed at CJ ENM, the largest media company in Korea and operator of the online video streaming service (OTT) 'TVING.' CJ ENM is demanding more than a 25% increase in content supply fees compared to the previous year from platform operators. If they do not agree, content supply will be suspended.

The three IPTV providers stated, "Stop attempts to raise fees to an unreasonable level that increase the burden on viewers and restrict their choices, and engage in reasonable and appropriate negotiations." They criticized, "Major content providers are fully aware of the current financial limits of the paid broadcasting market but put stakeholder negotiations and agreements on the back burner."

They also pointed out discriminatory policies that offer higher supply prices to IPTV than to OTT for the same content. The IPTV providers said, "Major content providers are unfairly discriminating against paid broadcasting operators to promote the growth of their own OTT businesses," adding, "They apply differentiated supply policies so that the same content is available at a lower price on their OTT platforms compared to paid broadcasting."

Furthermore, they said, "In paid broadcasting, content is only aired through live channels, and video-on-demand (VOD) is exclusively available on their OTT platforms, restricting service rights," and added, "They are demanding an unacceptably high increase in content supply fees for mobile TV services of paid broadcasting operators."

The attitude of content providers demanding separate fees for IPTV viewing services on tablet PCs such as iPads was also criticized. The IPTV and cable TV industries are diversifying service supply formats into N-screen services (services that allow uninterrupted and free use of the same content across multiple different devices). Until now, content providers have contracted to supply mobile IPTV based on smartphones bundled with existing IPTV, but they are demanding separate supply fees for so-called 'Pad TV,' which uses tablet PCs.

The three IPTV providers stated, "Major content providers have notified paid broadcasting operators that they cannot supply content to new IPTV devices," and argued, "Pad TV is a service reflecting the needs of paid broadcasting subscribers who want to freely watch content at home. It has been recognized as an IPTV device by the Ministry of Science and ICT and has received technical certification from the Korea Information and Communication Technology Association (TTA)." They continued, "However, major content providers are claiming content supply is impossible based on arbitrary interpretations. They are using the supply of Pad TV content as a negotiation card to enforce demands for increased program fees and are pressuring paid broadcasting operators."

The IPTV providers also said, "Today, South Korea's broadcasting industry has global competitiveness thanks to 34 million paid broadcasting subscribers," and criticized, "A well-built tower can collapse in an instant. It is a clear unfair practice for major content providers to create significant disparities in transactions with other platforms used by the majority of viewers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.