Ricky Wong's plans for mobile TV hangs on legal grey area
Experts say government's justification for rejecting HKTV service rests on uncertain legal distinction between traditional and new media
Laws that govern traditional and new media by different standards leave Ricky Wong Wai-kay's plan for a court challenge to the government's rejection of his mobile television service hanging in the balance, legal experts say.
The laws contain "grey areas" and are outdated, they say.
At issue is Wong's plan to use a higher-quality format known as DTMB for his Hong Kong Television Network service instead of the lower-definition CMMB used by China Mobile from whom Wong acquired the licence.
The Communications Authority said this would in effect allow Wong's mobile broadcast to be viewable by households using traditional television sets.
This is because TVB and ATV, the two free-to-air broadcasters, are also using DTMB.
A key question is whether mobile television is covered by the Broadcasting Ordinance or the Telecommunications Ordinance. The government's view is that a service falls under the former if it can reach more than 5,000 households.
The authority said Wong - who planned the service after being denied a new free-to-air licence - would need a licence for either a free or paid service.