Hong Kong News

Nonpartisan, Noncommercial, unconstrained.
Tuesday, May 30, 2023

i-Cable to focus on free TV channels, surrender pay TV license

i-Cable to focus on free TV channels, surrender pay TV license

i-Cable Communications (1097) will return its pay television license to the government in advance and cease all Cable TV operations starting June, the company announced Tuesday.
It is understood that heavy losses is among the reasons for the telecommunication company to give up on the paid television license six years earlier than planned.

Trade for the company's shares was halted at 1.16 pm today and fell by 2 percent to HK$0.049 before the suspension.

Sources said the company has no plan for mass layoff, and there will not be any changes to staff members' remuneration.

As approved by the government on the termination of the domestic pay-TV program service licenses with effect from June 1, i-Cable will put full effort into developing the three free TV channels - Hong Kong International Business Channel, HOY TV, and HOY Infotainment - as well as over-the-top (OTT) streaming media services.

The government said i-Cable sought approval to terminate its pay TV license in September last year. The pay-TV license of the company was renewed for 12 years in December 2016, with the original validity period from June 1, 2017, to May 31, 2029.

Separately, the government said the chief executive and the Executive Council have accepted the recommendations made by the Communications Authority following the mid-term review of the three free television program service licensees and the two sound broadcasting licensees.

The license of Fantastic Television Ltd – the subsidiary under i-Cable that oversees the operations of the three free TV channels – will expire by the end of May 2029.

The Communications Authority has also suggested the free TV channels broadcast no less than 30 minutes of programs on national education, national identity and National Security Law (NSL) per week, on top of existing required broadcast hours of current affairs programs. The Chief Executive accepted the recommendation.

The validity period of free TV and sound broadcasting licenses are both 12 years. Pursuant to the relevant statutory and licensing requirements, the CE in ExCo shall conduct a mid-term review after half of the license validity period.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Hong Kong News
Close
0:00
0:00
WPP Revolutionizes Advertising with NVIDIA's AI Powerhouse
Two US Employees Fired For Chasing Robbers Out Of Store As They Broke ''Company Policy''
Pfizer, the EU, and disappearing ink - Smoke, Mirrors, and the Billion-Dose Pfizer Vaccine Deal: EU's 'Open Secret
The Sussexes' Royal Rebound: Could Harry and Meghan Markle Return to the UK?
A provocative study suggests: Left-Wing Extremism and its Unsettling Connection to Psychopathy and Narcissism
Neuralink Receives FDA Approval for First-in-Human Clinical Study
Ukrainian Intelligence Official Admits to Assassination Attempts on Putin
WATCH THIS: democracy in Russia is so bad!
Ed Davey: It is possible for a woman to have a penis
Bernard Arnault Loses $11.2 Billion in One Day as Investors Fear Slowdown in US Growth Will Reduce Demand for Luxury Products
Russian’s Wagner Group leader: “I am not a chef, I am a butcher. Russia is in danger of a revolution like in 1917.”
TikTok Sues Montana Over Law Banning the App
Ron DeSantis Jumps Into 2024 Presidential Race, Setting Up Showdown With Trump
Steve Jobs introducing Apple's iPhone, exactly 16 years ago.
Banking Behemoth vs Ex-Boss: The PMorgan-Epstein Entanglement
China overtakes Japan as world's top car exporter
Talks between US House Republicans and President Biden's Democratic administration on raising the federal government's $31.4tn debt ceiling have paused
Biden Administration Eyeing High-Profile Visits to China: The Biden Administration is heating things up by looking into setting up a series of top-level visits to Beijing by top officials in the coming months
New evidence in special counsel probe may undercut Trump’s claim documents he took were automatically declassified
A French court of appeals confirmed former President Nicolas Sarkozy's three-year jail term for corruption and influence peddling
Debt Ceiling Crises Have Unleashed Political Chaos
Weibao Wang, a former software engineer at Apple, was charged with stealing trade secrets related to autonomous systems, including self-driving cars
Mobile phone giant Vodafone to cut 11,000 jobs globally over three years as new boss says its performance not good enough
Elon Musk compares George Soros to Magneto, the supervillain from the Marvel Comics series.
Warren Buffett Sells TSMC Shares Over Concerns About Taiwan's Stability
New Study Finds That Secondary Bacterial Pneumonia Is a Major Cause of Death in COVID-19 Patients Who Require Ventilator Assistance
The official tapes of Trump's deposition in the E. Jean Carroll battery (rape) and defamation case have been released.
King Charles III being crowned.
Newly released video of Donald Trump’s rape trial deposition:
Video: Ukraine MP Punches Russian Representative At Global Meet
El Paso mayor has declared a state of emergency
Russia accused Ukraine of attacking the Kremlin with drones in an attempt to kill Putin
Dutch court orders man who fathered 550 kids to stop donating sperm
Kim Kardashian Lookalike Christina Ashten Dies Of Cardiac Arrest, Hours After Plastic Surgery
Samsung has banned employees from using generative AI services such as ChatGPT
'Godfather Of AI' Geoffrey Hinton Quits Google To Warn Of The Tech's Dangers
A Real woman
Vermont Man Charged with Stalking After Secretly Tracking Woman with Apple AirTag
Elon Musk Statements About Tesla Autopilot Could Be 'Deepfakes,' Lawyers Claim. Judge Evette Pennypacker Does Not Understand How Far and Advanced This Technology Became
Ukraine More Prepared for Counterattack as Reinforcements Arrive
Tucker Carlson is back, soon!
China Unveils Construction Road Map for Lunar Research Station
NetEase Launches Low-Code Platform to Help Businesses Develop Custom Apps
AT&T's Successful Test of Satellite-Based Phone Call Raises Possibility of Widespread Coverage
CNN: "Joe Biden is asking for four more years — when 74% of Americans think the country is heading the wrong way“
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Cuts Short Live TV Interview Due to Health Issue
5 men dressed as women agree that ALL white people are racist.
President Biden announced his campaign to run for a 2nd term.
Justin Trudeau vs. Trudeau Justin
US Congresswoman threaten Twitter Files journalist with arrest
×