Estudios Públicos: N° 114, 2009Legislative reform of television in view of the digital future: one step forward, one step backwardsLucas
Sierra
(author)
This paper critically analyzes the reform to television legislation that the administration has sent to congress with a view towards the future digital technology. The reform consists of two bills of law: one that would amend law 18,838, the general television law, and the other that would amend law 19,132, on the national television channel of chile. Both bills are analyzed here. The first, it is said, presents an interesting advance: the inclusion of the category of "intermediate" telecommunication services to future digital television broadcasting. This is a step towards the convergence that digital technology fosters among the different telecommunication services. However, this advance is constrained by other proposals in the bill, such as an obligatory "utility or public interest campaign" that channels have to broadcast, which is considered in this paper unjustified state intervention. Also criticized is the second bill on the national television channel of chile, basically because it extends and stunts the business of this government company, creating a shadow of doubt about the subsidiary role of the state that inspires chilean economic regulations, and at the same time undermines the equality existing between government television and private television. It is concluded, in summary, that this legislative reform takes one step forward, but also one step backwards.