Hong Kong free broadcasters are encouraged to broadcast patriotic programmes; Cable TV relinquishes license for pay TV

Regulators in Hong Kong have ordered local free-to-air TV and radio stations to broadcast weekly 30-minute programs on national education and identity and national security laws.

The new rules affect the city’s two dominant free-to-air TV channels – Television Broadcasting (TVB) and ViuTV, owned by billionaire Richard Li – as well as commercial radio and Metro broadcast radio stations.

“In addition to the existing required airtime hours for current affairs programs in the current affairs category, licensees will also broadcast no less than 30 minutes per week of programs on national education, national identity and national security legislation,” the Communications Authority said. .

The Communications Authority also ordered that the required broadcast hours for English-language programs on English-language radio stations be reduced from 80% to 55%. In addition, the weekly TV program quota for “young people” has been doubled, while the minimum number of hours for children’s programs has been halved.

The national security law was imposed on Hong Kong by the Chinese government in June 2020 after a year of pro-democracy protests. The law criminalizes “subversion, secession, conspiracy with foreign powers and acts of terrorism.” Several media outlets in Hong Kong, including Apple Daily, Stand News and FactWire, have been shut down as part of the law’s implementation.

Meanwhile, Cable TV, one of Hong Kong’s two main pay-TV channels, gave up its pay-TV license six years ahead of schedule due to financial difficulties.

On June 1, Hong Kong’s Executive Council gave the company permission to suspend its pay-TV business after submitting an application to the Communications Authority in September last year. The license came into force in June 2017 and was due to expire in May 2029.

Patrick Tsang, vice chairman of i-Cable Communications, cable TV’s parent company, said the move is an important step in the company’s reinvention as it seeks to expand into the local free-to-air market. A spokesman for Hong Kong’s Bureau of Trade and Economic Development said the decision was economically motivated.

Hong Kong now has only one other major pay-TV channel, NowTV, which, like free-to-air ViuTV, is owned by Richard Li’s PCCW.

I-Cable’s net losses rose 29% to HK$226 million (US$28.8 million) in the first half of last year, while its subscriber base fell to 683,000 in June last year from 731,000 at the end of June 2021.

Analysts say the move reflects the decline in local pay-TV services with the rise of streaming as consumers switch to platforms such as Netflix, Disney+ and YouTube, but also shrinking space for niche content and Cantonese-language programming.