Communications, the Media and Information Technology 379
World Trade Organisation Hong Kong Ministerial Conference held in December in Hong Kong.
RTHK plays an important role as a broadcaster of essential public information. For instance, in 2005 its Radio Division made considerable efforts to arouse the public's awareness of the prevention of avian flu and other health-related topics.
Recent Developments
Broadcasting, telecommunications and information technology are converging. Due to the development of digital technology, communications companies can provide digitised broadcasting, telephony and Internet access services over the same telecommunications network. The Government has been reviewing the regulatory regime to ensure that it remains conducive to new technological and business. developments. It is considering merging the BA and the Telecommunications Authority into a unified regulator responsible for overseeing the whole electronic communications sector. Such an institutional arrangement, which is the international trend, will enable the regulator to have the vision and jurisdiction to cope with challenges in the converging environment. The Government will consult the public on details of the proposal in 2006.
The Government encourages the deployment of digital terrestrial television (DTT) broadcasting technology in Hong Kong to enhance spectrum efficiency and enable the provision of new services such as high-definition television (HDTV) broadcasting, which is not possible in the analogue mode. In July 2004, the Government promulgated a framework for implementing DTT broadcasting in Hong Kong. The two incumbent terrestrial broadcasters, ATV and TVB, are required to launch DTT, including HDTV programmes, by 2007, and achieve 75 per cent of coverage of their digital services by 2008. Implementation of DTT is underway.
The Film Industry
Hong Kong is one of the world's major film production centres, with 55 films. produced and released locally in 2005, mainly in the action, romance or comedy genre. By the end of the year, Hong Kong had 56 cinemas (with 206 screens), compared with 57 cinemas (with 197 screens) in 2004. Box-office hits of the year2 included Initial D ($37.86 million), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire3 ($34.98 million) and The Incredibles ($33.79 million).
Government Support
The Government is committed to providing a favourable environment conducive to the healthy long-term development of the film industry in Hong Kong. In November, the industry-led Film Development Committee (FDC) was set up in November 2005 to replace the Film Services Advisory Committee. The new committee is chaired by a professional outside government and its members include representatives of different sectors of the film industry. It is tasked to advise the
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Box-office receipts as at December 31, 2005.
The screening of this film continued after December 31, 2005.
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