Panel to mull TV and radio licence tariff

Sombat Leelapata, acting deputy secretary-general of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunica-tions Commission (NBTC), said yesterday that the Broadcasting Committee has realised that the financial situation of local TV operators was critical after the advertising industry was hard hit by weak domestic consumption and the economic slowdown since last year.

The Broadcasting Committee has ordered its subcommittee overseeing the collection of annual broadcasting licence fees to consider how to change the current sliding scale to a new system with more flexibility.

Under the current tariff, a radio or TV station making less than Bt5 million of revenue a year has to pay 1.5 per cent of its gross income. For more than Bt5 million, the rate rises to 2 per cent.

There would be three new approaches. The first option would be similar to the current sliding scale but include more conditions for greater flexibility.

The second would vary according to how long a broadcaster has been operating. For instance, the rate in the first year might be different from following years. 

The last option will be a combination of the first two.

The subcommittee would submit its proposal to the Broadcasting Committee for approval. The NBTC would then conduct a public hearing on this issue before official implementation.

However, all broadcasters would still contribute 2 per cent of annual gross income to the NBTC’s fund for broadcasting and telecommunications development.

The Broadcasting Committee also approved the renaming of Loca – a digital TV family channel run by Thai TV – to MVTV Family.