Korea Communications Commission vows revisions to meet needs of new age

The Korea Communications Commission [YONHAP]

The Korea Communications Commission (KCC) announced its three goals and 12 missions to achieve this year, vowing to create a better environment for both TV broadcasters and consumers by revising old regulations and amending them to meet the needs of the new age.

On Jan. 6, the KCC announced its aims for the new year, which will center on changing in tandem with the new media environment brought on by digital video platforms and Covid-19. Chosen as keywords were trust, growth and embracement. The three main goals were to create a trusted media environment, to support the broadcasting and telecommunications industry and to establish a consumer-oriented digital content environment.

To create a more trusted media environment, the KCC will fortify the public broadcasters’ role in dealing with natural disasters — by both dealing directly with information related to the crisis as well as providing educational and entertainment content for people to enjoy during a time of crisis. Channel KBS and other channels will provide more detailed information about the disaster at hand while EBS airs more educational and immersive content, supported and funded by KCC.

The KCC will also look into amending the financial structure of public broadcasters KBS and EBS, to discern the pros and cons of the current TV license fee system and seek to achieve a higher level of transparency in the usage of viewers’ money. The KCC is in charge of reviewing a proposal to increase the license fee when it is submitted to them by KBS, then passing it along to the National Assembly, which has the ultimate say in the process.

The commission also vowed to strengthen how it deals with fake news and digital sex crimes. Penalties and punishment against distributors of illegal digital content will be heightened, and a database that can be used to filter such content will be provided by the KCC to swiftly deal with any online sexual transgressions.

The second goal, to support the broadcasting industry, will center around amending old rules to meet the new needs of the age, by addressing both conventional TV broadcasters as well as OTT (over-the-top) services.

The third goal will center around providing consumers with better opportunities to enjoy televised content, such as by providing free TV to those with visual impairments and in a low-income bracket. The KCC will better deal with consumer information and protective measures by coming up with necessary protocols.

“We will take one step at a time to achieve our goal, despite the long time it may take to do so,” said Han Sang-hyuk, the chairman of the KCC. “We will endeavor to give our best in bringing the people happiness and comfort through the new digital media during hard times.”

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]