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🇰🇷 South Korea /Culture & Society

JTBC Faces Potential Fines Over Olympic Broadcasting Rights Under Revised Law

From Hankyoreh · (36m ago) Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • A revised broadcasting law passed a parliamentary committee, requiring broadcasters of major events like the Olympics to include at least one terrestrial TV channel.
  • JTBC, which holds broadcasting rights until 2032, could face a fine of up to 5% of its rights fees if it fails to comply.
  • The law also mandates that broadcasters submit key contract details to the Korea Communications Commission and encourages the formation of a consultative body for broadcasting rights.

A significant amendment to the Broadcasting Act has cleared a parliamentary committee, aiming to ensure wider public access to major international sporting events such as the Olympics and World Cup. As reported by Hankyoreh, this revised legislation mandates that any broadcaster securing the rights to such events must ensure simultaneous real-time broadcasting through at least one terrestrial television channel.

This development directly impacts JTBC, which has secured the domestic broadcasting rights for several upcoming Olympic Games and World Cups up to 2032. Under the new law, JTBC will be obligated to re-sell broadcasting rights to one or more of the terrestrial networks—KBS, MBC, or SBS—excluding EBS. Failure to comply with this provision could result in a penalty of up to 5% of the total broadcasting rights fee, a substantial financial risk.

JTBC, which secured the domestic broadcasting rights until 2032, could face a fine of up to 5% of its rights fees if it fails to comply.

— HankyorehExplaining the potential financial penalties for JTBC under the revised broadcasting law.

While the intention is to uphold the principle of universal viewership, ensuring that all citizens can access these significant national events, concerns have been raised. Some, like People Power Party lawmaker Park Chung-kwon, argue that this law might inadvertently create a system that benefits JTBC by legally sanctioning its practice of selling rights at potentially inflated prices. From our perspective, this legislation reflects a delicate balancing act between commercial interests and the public's right to information and entertainment, a common theme in media policy debates in South Korea. The goal is to prevent the monopolization of popular content while ensuring the financial viability of broadcasters.

JTBC wants to monopolize and legally guarantee the sale of broadcasting rights at high prices by creating a new organization.

— Park Chung-kwonA People Power Party lawmaker expressing concern during the committee meeting about the potential for JTBC to profit excessively from the new law.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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