TNAG-1817-FCO40-2578-Broadcasting-in-Hong-Kong-1988 — Page 225

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thus control the management of television companies. The

first implication concerns the

the personal financial gains of

shareholders whereas the latter concerns the kinds of

programmes to be broadcast which touch on the welfare of

the community.

3.

Hong Kong is a city open to international

investment. Foreign investors are of course permitted to

make, through legal means, economic gains. However,

Government must maintain certain degree of monitoring of

areas like television broadcasting whose influence on the

society is great and therefore cannot be completely open

to free competition. The main emphasis

emphasis of monitoring

should not be

restricting on

foreigners from making

economic gains, but should instead be on the power to

manage television broadcasting to ensure that it is in the

interest of the Hong Kong community. So, if ownership and

could be separated, then the latter was management

important.

more

:

4.

From the recently announced terms and conditions

for renewal of licences, it seems that Government intends

to restrict the economic gains of shareholders by

legislating against any single foreigner holding more than

10% of

of the total shares. On the other hand, it

it also

intends to replace the nationality requirement by

"permanent resident of Hong Kong". It can thus be argued

that it is possible

of television

that

shareholding

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