TNAG-0265-FCO40-301-Legislation-for-copyright-in-Hong-Kong-1970 — Page 126

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4.

CONFIDENTIAL

Another consideration which may be easier

'to assess in 1970, now that TVB have had a

couple of years of operation, is whether the

predictions of 1967 of the result of RTVs con-

temporaneously relaying/over wire) the TVB

me/ar

programme/are more easily assessable or likely

to be borne out. Put very briefly they were:

(a) TVB could not operate commercially

and the element of competition would

be destroyed if RTV, on a second

channel, carried TVB's programme.

Moreover, TVB could only increase

their advertising revenue by means

of a continuous increase in the

number of wireless receiving sets

in use. (We are not clear if they

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have a side interest in the manufac-

ture of these receivers.)

(b) RTV maintain that by carrying TVB's

programme on a second channel they Would

will not only be carrying out the

task which they were licensed in

;

1957 to do, but also would enable their

viewers to have a full choice. More-

over, TVB they say, could with reason

claim the right to raise their

advertising charges (and thus increase

their profit) because of the increased

audience. The value to RTV would of

course be that they might attract

further subscribers, but this would

not detract from TVB's revenue. In

their view, therefore, both RTV and

TVB stand to gain.

We should very much like to know whether the

experience of the last two years has caused you

CONFIDENTIAL

/to reach