C690
TELECOMMUNICATION (AMENDMENT) BILL 1989
(a) section 13A contains interpretation provisions;
(b) section 13B provides that any corporation complying with section 13F may
apply to the Broadcasting Authority for a sound broadcasting licence;
(c) section 13C requires the Broadcasting Authority to make recommendations to the Governor in Council concerning applications for a licence and empowers the Governor in Council to grant licences subject to such terms and conditions as he may specify including a condition that the Broadcasting Authority may require the licensee to refrain from broadcasting certain material and a condition that the Broadcasting Authority may suspend the licence;
(d) section 13D provides for the period of validity of a licence to be specified in the licence or in default, by the Governor in Council, and for renewal of the licence within that period of validity;
(e) section 13E requires the Broadcasting Authority to submit recommendations to the Governor in Council concerning the renewal of a licence on the specified renewal dates. The Governor in Council having considered such recommenda- tions may either renew the licence (subject to such terms and conditions as he may specify) or refuse to renew it;
(f) section 13F provides that licences may only be held by companies (but not subsidiaries) formed and registered in Hong Kong under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 32) and empowered under their memorandums of association to comply fully with the provisions of the Ordinance and the terms and conditions of the licence;
(g) sections 13G and 13H limit the control that may be exercised in a licensee company by disqualified persons. A disqualified person is defined (section 13A(1)) as any person who is an advertising agent, a person who in the course of his business supplies material for broadcasting or transmits sound or television material, a licensee, or, where such person is a corporation, a corporation in which any such person exercises control;
(h) section 131 provides that persons who are unqualified persons (non-residents) may not hold a right, title or interest to or in, in total, more than 49% of the voting shares of a licensee;
(i) section 13J provides that during the period of 3 years following the grant of a licence, rights, titles or interests to or in, in total, more than 15% of the voting shares of the licensee may not be transferred or acquired without the consent of the Broadcasting Authority;
(j) section 13K empowers the Authority, where any transaction, settlement, agreement or understanding the effect of which is to contravene section 13G, 13H or 131, has been entered into, to direct that the voting rights of the shares involved may not be exercised, or direct that rights, titles or interests to or in the shares involved be transferred to persons who are not unqualified or disqualified persons, as the case may require;
(k) section 13L provides for the recovery of any royalty payable under a licence,
through the courts as a civil debt;
(1) section 13M empowers the Governor in Council to prohibit the broadcasting of any programme where the peace or good order of Hong Kong is in his opinion threatened thereby;
(m) section 13N empowers the Governor in Council to make regulations for the purpose of securing compliance with the new Part IIIA and section 130 authorizes regulations for the purpose of prescribing standards for pro- grammes and advertising material, and technical requirements.
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