Relaxation of Paid Broadcasting Regulations... Effective Abolition of Approval Validity Period for 'Terrestrial Broadcasters' Out-of-Region Retransmission'

Reducing Burden Associated with Approval Review Tasks

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] As part of deregulation measures for paid broadcasting operators such as cable TV and satellite broadcasting, the government will effectively abolish the validity period of terrestrial broadcasting out-of-area retransmission approvals and simplify the review process.

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 21st that it will implement a new "Basic Plan for Terrestrial Broadcasting Out-of-Area Retransmission Approval," including these details, starting from the 1st of next month. Accordingly, the "Operation Plan for Out-of-Area Terrestrial Broadcasting Retransmission Approval," created by the former Korea Communications Commission in January 2008, will be replaced by the new basic plan.

Out-of-area retransmission of terrestrial broadcasting refers to simultaneously broadcasting terrestrial broadcasts, which are authorized only within a specific broadcast area, outside that area through paid broadcasting. For example, broadcasting the terrestrial channel OBS, authorized in Incheon and Gyeonggi areas, through cable TV in the Seoul region. Under the existing system, out-of-area retransmission of terrestrial broadcasts via paid broadcasting operators required re-approval every three years.

The new basic plan focuses on significantly reducing the burden on operators due to approval review tasks. The Ministry of Science and ICT changed the retransmission approval validity period, which was "3 years" in the existing operation plan, to "until the expiration of the paid broadcaster's license period." This is practically equivalent to abolishing the approval validity period.

Additionally, in cases where an out-of-area retransmission approval is reapplied for after the approval validity period expires, a separate review committee will not be formed. Instead, the Ministry of Science and ICT will comprehensively evaluate the approval review matters stipulated in the relevant Broadcasting Act provisions and decide on the approval, establishing a special exception.

This special exception also applies when, due to disagreements during retransmission negotiations between terrestrial broadcasters and paid broadcasters, a retransmission agreement is reapplied for and approval is requested within one year from the expiration date of the previous agreement after the validity period has ended. Currently, retransmission of OBS has been suspended on many cable TVs in the Seoul area since February this year. If both parties decide to resume retransmission through negotiations in the future, this special exception clause could facilitate a swift resumption of retransmission. Under the existing system, a review committee must be formed for each retransmission approval application to examine whether to approve retransmission.

The Ministry of Science and ICT decided to maintain the principle of approving out-of-area retransmission of regional terrestrial broadcasts with a self-programming ratio of 50% or more only within the metropolitan area. This applies not only to cable TV but also to satellite broadcasting and IPTV. According to the Ministry, this system improvement will greatly reduce the burden on broadcasters caused by frequent retransmission approval reviews.

Furthermore, the ministry added that the re-approval review process, which was conventionally conducted even without special changes in circumstances, has been drastically shortened from within 60 days to within 3 weeks to strengthen the stability of broadcasting operations.

The Ministry of Science and ICT emphasized, "We have actively reviewed and improved regulations that caused inconvenience to broadcasters from the perspective of proactive administration," and added, "Going forward, we will not only improve individual regulations but also accelerate the revision of media legislation suitable for an open digital media ecosystem."

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