TNAG-1695-FCO40-2351-Future-of-Hong-Kong-nationality-1987 — Page 92

TG1AYO

HKK 306/1

Mr McLaren

My Du.

info

CONFIDENTIAL

Caliapla

Crr '/

HUD 306/

RECEN

1 5 JUN 1997

Mek 19166

FROM: CO Hum

Hong Kong Department

DATE: 12 June 1987

сс : Mr Gillmore

Mr Braithwaite

Mr Maud

Mr Smith, TRED

CABLE AND WIRELESS, HONG KONG

3D

A 1.

B

In your minute of 10 June you asked whether during your forthcoming visit to Hong Kong you should raise the competition between consortia headed by Cable & Wireless (CW) and British Telecom (BT) for Hong Kong's first cable TV franchise.

2.

I see no reason why you should not ask the Governor how things stand on the two bids: he will I am sure be aware that both

I am sure however that

we should not get directly involved in this issue. You will also

have seen the advice in Mr Smith's minute of 11 June.

consortia are looking for allies in the UK.

3.

Briefly the background is that CW (who though the Hong Kong Telephone Co have the franchise to run Hong Kong's internal telephone network) have joined forces with Swires, and BT with Hutchison, Hong Kong Electric and Shaw Studios, to try to secure the franchise for Hong Kong's first cable TV service. There has been feverish lobbying in Hong Kong by both sides in recent months, and a slanging match has been conducted in the public press between Hong Kong Telco and BT (who have only recently opened an office in Hong Kong) over the relative merits of the UK's and Hong Kong's telephone services. It is clear that BT see the cablevision network as an entree to the provision of other communication services, and that

they intend to try and takeover TelCo's (local) and CW's (international) telephone franchises when these expire in 1995 and

CONFIDENTIAL