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was then said, "they have not come to an agreement
(and apparently refuse even to discuss the matter)."
This describes the situation almost two years ago,
since when it appears to me that two things have
happened:
3.
(a) TVB now has two years or more of experience
behind it and has become a very healthy
youngster, competing successfully with RTV.
(b) There have been changes, at least in the
management of RTV, which might result in
the two parties speaking now.
As regards (a), I have been wondering on what basis
the Hong Kong Government saw the "public interest".
Was it that having decided that there ought to be
competition and thus that a second service had to be
started, it was essential that Government should see
that TVB was able to get off the ground? Nowhere in
the papers that I have read is the Government attitude
described except in pretty general terms, though there
appear emotive phrases like "pirating TVB's output and
(from the FCO!) "clipping Rediffusion's wings".
What
I would like to know is whether the fact that TVB has
made its own way and is now doing very well, makes no
longer necessary the legislation which was undoubtedly aimed at RTV.? Would it in fact be possible to get the
two sides together now to sort out the facts for them-
selves, in which case the most contentious part of the
legislation might be unnecessary? An important factor
in this is whether Mr Oldridge's successor may be more
amenable to reason than was Mr Oldridge himself.
stile
is presumably in Mr H. W. Lee's hands.
TVB
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