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TO PRIORITY GOVERNOR HONG KONG TEL 10 682 OF 24 JULY
FOLLOWING FROM PARLIAMENTARY UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE.
YOUR TELEGRAM NO 640: WIRELESS TELEVISION LICENCES.
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1. SIR JOHN SPENCER WILLS, CHAIRMAN, AND MR HUGH DUNDAS, MANAGING
DIRECTOR, OF REDIFFUSION LIMITED CALLED ON ME ON 22 JULY, THEY HAD PERVIOUSLY SENT ME A MEMORANDUM ABOUT THEIR PROBLEMS IN HONG KONG:
COPY FOLLOWS BY BAG. I AM GRATEFUL TO YOU FOR THE BACKGROUND
BRIEFING IN YOUR TELEGRAM 578.
2, WILLS SAID THAT HE WAS ANXIOUS NOT TO EMBARRASS THE HONG KONG
GOVERNMENT BY MAKING REPRESENTATIONS TO ME. NEVERTHELESS, HE WAS
VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE PAST AND LIKELY FUTURE DELAYS OVER THE
GRANTING OF A WIRELESS TELEVISION LICENCE. (YOU WILL SEE THAT THE MEMORANDUM MAKES THE POINT THAT AS RECENTLY AS MID-JUNE RTV (HK)
WERE GIVEN ASSURANCES THAT CALLS FOR TENDER WOULD BE PUT OUT IN
SEPTEMBER AND THAT THE ON-AIR DATE COULD THEN BE AS EARLY AS SUMMER
1973.) WHILST HE STILL THOUGHT THAT THE AWARD TO RTV OF A LICENCE
BY PRIVATE TREATY AS RECOMMENDED BY THE WORKING PARTY WOULD HAVE BEEN
BY FAR THE BEST SOLUTION, HE HAD TO ACCEPT THAT THE DECISION TO
CALL FOR TENDERS COULD NOT NOW BE REVERSED. ALTHOUGH RTV WERE IN
A STRONG POSITION OT TENDER SUCCESSFULLY, THE DELAY INVOLVED WOULD
COST THEM AT LEAST £139,099, AND MUCH MORE IF IT WAS PROTRACTED,
HE UNDERSTOOD THAT THERE WAS NOW A PROPOSAL TO SET-UP AN INDEPENDENT
TRANSMITTING AGENCY, HE THOUGHT THIS WAS NOT NECESSARY AND WOULD LEAD TO YET FURTHER DELAYS. TVB WERE, NOT UNEXPECTEDLY, MAKING DIFFICULITIES OVER SITE-SHARING, FOR THEIR OWN COMMERCIAL ADVANTAGE.
HE UNDERSTOOD HOWEVER THE TVB ONLY HELD THE SITE ON A FIVE YEAR LEASE
WHICH WOULD EXPIRE WHEN THEIR WIRELESS TELEVISION MONOPOLY RAN -
CUT IN NOVEMBER: THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT THEN HAD POWER TO GIVE
SIX MONTHS' NOTICE OF INTENTION TO VARY THE USE OF THE SITE. IF TVE
WERE THEN INSTRUCTED TO USE THE SITE ON A BASIS OF SHARED
FACILITIES WITH RTV, HE THOUGHT THAT THE TWO COMPANIES COULD WORK SATISFACTORILY TOGETHER. DESPITE THEIR COMMERCIAL RIVALRY, DAY TO
-DAY WORKING RELATIONS WERE NOT TOO BAD. HE WAS SURPRISED THAT THE
DIRECTOR OF INFORMATIONS SERVICES, WHO IS OVER HERE ON LEAVE, DID
NOT APPEAR TO BE AWARE OF THE TERMS OF TVB'S LEASE. HE ALSO THOUGHT
IT UNFORTUNATE THAT THE CONTROLLER OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS HAD GONE ON
FIVE MONTHS' LEAVE WITHOUT A REPLACEMENT: THIS WAS LIKELY TO CAUSE
FURTHER DELAYS.
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