Starting on May 2, Mirror News (鏡電視) is to broadcast on Channel 508 of Chunghwa Telecom’s multimedia-on-demand (MOD) system, following a closely watched management upheaval at the network over the past few weeks.
The monthly subscription fee for Mirror News is NT$20 (US$0.68), and subscribers can add the channel to their a la carte plan, Chunghwa Telecom said in a statement on the MOD section of its Web site.
The news channel on Jan. 19 obtained a broadcasting license following a two-year review by the National Communications Commission (NCC).
However, the network has since changed its management four times amid controversial board meetings and accusations from politicians.
Earlier this month, the channel submitted an updated business plan to the commission, with former Chunghwa Telecom chairman Cheng Yu (鄭優) serving as its new chairman.
Its pledges of raising capital to NT$2 billion and launching the broadcast on May 8 on platforms that can be accessed by the public remain unchanged.
Although Mirror News told the commission it had increased its capital to NT$2 billion, the news channel still needs to submit the supporting documents that would allow it to apply for a change in registered paid-in capital, NCC specialist Hsiao Chao-chun (蕭肇君) told the commission’s weekly news conference.
The needed documents include an audit of its financial statements and minutes of its shareholders’ meetings, Hsiao added.
NCC Deputy Chairman and spokesman Wong Po-tsung (翁柏宗) said that the news channel can broadcast on cable and MOD systems, as they are both categorized as platforms that can be accessed by the public.
“While it would be preferable for Mirror News to broadcast on cable and MOD systems, the channel will be considered as having fulfilled its pledge if it broadcasts on at least one of the two platforms,” Wong said.
The Cable Radio and Television Act (有線廣播電視法) stipulates that the channel lineup of a cable system is determined through its negotiations with channel operators, and a cable system is obligated to file for a change in channel lineup if it wants to add or remove a channel, Wong said.
However, no cable system operator has so far filed an application to add Mirror News to its channel lineup, Wong added.
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