The “Regulations for the Distinction between Radio/Television Programs and Advertisements, Product Placement Marketing, and Sponsorships” (hereinafter referred to as the “Two Regulations”) and the “Television Programs Classification Handling Regulations” (hereinafter referred to as the “Classification Regulations”) have been in place for two years since their implementation at the end of 2016. During this time, NCC has assessed their impact by observing trends and development of the domestic radio and television industry, referring to international practices, and considering audience feedback. Following the publishing of the advance notice of proposed rulemaking and various public hearings and consultations, the NCC passed amendments to the Two Regulations and the Classification Regulations during its 840th Committee Meeting on Jan. 23, 2019. The contents of the amendments are as follows:
- The Two Regulations: (1) Extension of the air time restriction imposed on foreign-produced programs with title sponsorships from the previous 8 to 10 p.m. to 7 to 11 p.m., with a six-month grace period granted. (2) Continued prohibition of title sponsorships in children’s programs, but with loosened restrictions on the sponsor of children’s programs. (3) Relaxed regulations on the differentiation between programs and advertisements. (4) Additional provision stating that the size of title sponsors’ logo may not exceed that of the channel on which the sponsored programs are aired. (5) Prohibition of political parties, political candidates, and referendums from being title sponsors so as to prioritize commercial interests.
- Classification Regulations: After considering international conventions, G-rated channels are generally not required to display rating labels. The NCC also examined practices in other countries, such as the United States and Singapore, resulting in the addition of provisions governing the display of rating labels on G-rated channels. Broadcasters of G-rated channels are exempt from displaying rating labels on these channels after a request for approval has been submitted to the relevant authorities and filed for future reference.
With regards to amendments to the Two Regulations related to supporting the domestic film and television industry, specifically assisting the growth of the local industry and safeguarding domestic culture, the NCC considered varying degrees of protective measures enacted by other countries for their domestically-produced films and television programs. Moreover, in recent years, Taiwan’s television industry has experienced a clear decline in revenues. If businesses want to invest in the production and broadcast of domestic programs, funds will have to be reallocated. The opening up of programs to product placements, sponsorships, and title sponsorships has not only increased revenues of the television industry, but also has noticeably improved program quality and diversity. Therefore, the extension of the air time restriction imposed on foreign-produced programs with title sponsorships from the previous 8 to 10 p.m. to 7 to 11 p.m. will be able to support the growth of domestically-produced films and television programs while ensuring the rights and interests of audiences. The NCC also considered existing business contracts and operational requirements and, in accordance with past practices, granted businesses a grace period of six months following the promulgation of the amendment.
The adjustments made to the strength of the controls include: (1) Continued prohibition of title sponsorships in children’s programs, but with the restrictions of business sponsorships on children’s programs lifted. It was noted that under the current “Regulations on Satellite Broadcasting Program Supplier Broadcasting Domestically-Produced Programs,” domestically-produced children’s programs must account for a defined proportion of all children’s programs and that only domestically-produced children’s programs seem to face resource, funding, and labor shortages in production and broadcasting. To improve this situation, NCC referred to the practices applied in the United Kingdom, France, South Korea, Singapore, and other countries. Consequently, it was determined that restrictions on the sponsorship of children’s programs could be relaxed, under the principle that the relaxing of restrictions would not interfere with the production and broadcasting of content. Thus, in order to promote various sources for funding the production and broadcasting of children’s programs, sponsors will no longer be limited to cultural and educational foundations, agencies (institutions), or NGOs. At this stage, the NCC solicited the opinions of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Child Welfare League Foundation, Taiwan Media Watch, and other organizations. (2) Relaxed regulations on the differentiation between programs and advertisements. In consideration of the actual practice of program production, a program’s participants, props, sets, giveaways, and certain activities unrelated to the advertised content are no longer required to be separated from other advertisements.
The amendments regarding the safeguarding of audience’s rights and interests include: (1) Changing the stipulation on the size of title sponsor’s logo from not exceeding the program title to not exceeding the channel’s logo to ensure images related to a title sponsorship will not be excessively large and affect the viewing experience. (2) Title sponsorship refers to a program entitled with the name, logo, trademark, brand, or related imagery of a title sponsor’s product, service, business, agency (institution), group, or person. Programs have been permitted to have title sponsorships so as to prioritize commercial interests. As political title sponsorships are more problematic, political parties; political party personnel; potential candidates or candidates; and referendums are prohibited from being title sponsors for television/radio programs. The NCC will also continue to urge broadcasters to strengthen their self-regulation and improve the quality of their program production and broadcasting to maximize the benefits to audiences and industry growth.
Contact person: Chen Jin-shuang, Assistant Director General
Telephone number: 02-3343-8505
Mobile phone number: 0975-713-668
