House likely to acquire first public digital TV licence by Oct, official says
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The broadcasting committee of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) expects to grant the first licence to operate a public digital terrestrial TV channel to Parliament by October.
Natee Sukonrat, chairman of the broadcasting committee, said yesterday that next month his panel would announce the information memorandum (IM) to invite potential broadcasters to participate in the “beauty contest” for Category 3 licences. This category involves government relations and promotion of parliamentary democracy.
He made this remark after a focus group examined the draft of the IM, saying Parliament could become the country’s first public broadcaster under the new format. Parliament House currently operates its own satellite channel, “Parliament TV”, to televise key sessions of the National Assembly.
The House of Representatives has earmarked at least Bt1 billion for a four-year investment into a new public digital-TV channel. The funding will be used for content development and high-definition technology both at the station’s current offices in the Parliament compound and at its facilities in the new Parliament building.
Parliament TV will broadcast live feeds of the National Assembly and key meetings for a total of 1,000 hours of coverage a year.
During the focus group, a representative from the Senate expressed interest in securing another licence under the same category.
The broadcasting panel will allow public TV licence holders to permit other ministries or state bodies to co-produce programmes for their channels.
