Park Jang-beom "Let's include TV function in mobile phones to collect subscription fees"
Opposition party "Pay four times for four devices? Nonsense," harshly criticizes
Park Jang-beom, a candidate for KBS president, has sparked controversy by proposing mobile phone TV as an alternative to revenue loss due to the separate collection of KBS license fees.
At the confirmation hearing held on the 18th, opposition parties criticized Park's past statement that "we will increase license fee revenue by adding a function to directly receive TV on mobile phones." Lee Hun-gi, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, strongly criticized Park, asking, "If you have four mobile phones, do you pay the license fee four times?"
Earlier, on October 23, during the KBS board interview, Park stated, "We plan to add a function to mobile phones owned by the entire nation to directly receive TV," and claimed, "If that happens, it will be a revolutionary opportunity for KBS to greatly expand the scope and collection of license fees."
Park Jang-beom, a candidate for president of the Korean Broadcasting System, is answering questions from lawmakers at the confirmation hearing held by the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Committee on the morning of the 18th. Photo by Yonhap News
Choi Min-hee, chairperson of the National Assembly Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee, criticized Park by asking, "Then does KBS add that function if it wants to?" Park responded, "Now we have to add the direct reception function." Choi then asked, "Who adds it?" and Park answered, "The manufacturers have to add it." When Choi further asked, "Have you ever talked to the manufacturers even once?" Park evaded the answer.
Choi also questioned, "Article 64 of the Broadcasting Act specifies the license fee target as 'television receivers' to receive television broadcasts. Is a mobile phone a receiver?" Park answered, "No." Choi then pointed out, "You have no management ability, no foresight, and wrote this carelessly," and noted, "The total terrestrial broadcasting revenue is 4.1552 trillion won, terrestrial DMB revenue is 4.9 billion won, which is 0.02%."
Park responded, "The BBC also charges TV license fees on devices like tablets." To this, Choi sharply retorted, "Then go to the UK and be the BBC president." Afterwards, Choi said, "There are no viewers trying to receive KBS on mobile, and if you ask them to pay license fees, no one will do it."
Lee Hun-gi of the Democratic Party of Korea pointed out, "If there are four family members in a household, they pay the license fee for one device," and added, "If there are four mobile phones for four people, do people have to pay four times the license fee?" He then condemned it as "nonsense."
Park explained, "I know that currently it is difficult to impose license fees on mobile devices," and added, "In the long term, if it becomes possible to directly receive disaster broadcasts on mobile devices, that situation will provide another basis for imposing license fees."
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