Expert calls for new body to set cable TV content fees amid prolonged slump

The slump in the cable TV industry is dragging on. A new "broadcasting review committee" should be established to calculate and adjust content usage fees more rationally, an expert said.

The same expert also called for a "sales-linked ratio distribution system" that would set the ratio of content fees based on cable TV operators' broadcasting sales.

Lee Jong-kwan, senior expert adviser at Shin & Kim, presented the proposal at a seminar titled "Policy Paradigm Shift for Overcoming the Crisis and Securing the Sustainability of Cable TV." The event was held Thursday at the Kim Dae-jung Convention Center and hosted by the Korean Society for Journalism and Communication Studies.

Lee first proposed considering the establishment of a "broadcasting review committee" as a way to rationalize content fees. He said the body could set effective standards for evaluation and distribution and mediate disputes.

He also raised the need to introduce a "sales-linked ratio distribution system" that would set content fee ratios based on cable TV operators' sales. He argued that the burden of content fees is growing even as cable TV sales continue to fall sharply.

In fact, concerns have persisted that the cable TV system operator (SO) market has seen its total sales, broadcasting sales and operating profit continuously decline since 2013. Meanwhile, the burden of content usage fees has grown heavier.

Lee also stressed that securing the sustainability of cable TV should be the top priority in media policy. He argued that to keep cable TV functioning as an essential medium, the policy paradigm needs to shift toward two pillars: "ensuring sustainability" and "enhancing regionality."

To ensure sustainability, he proposed key policy tasks such as expanding universal broadcasting welfare support, reducing retransmission fees, and switching to a self-reporting system for terms of service.

As a locally focused medium suited to an era of five megacities and three special zones, he suggested pursuing measures to enhance regionality. These include reducing contributions to the Broadcasting and Communications Development Fund, supporting investment in local channel production, and giving local governments and public institutions priority in advertising allocation.