By Kim Tong-hyung
Assistant Business Editor
Korea Communications Commission (KCC) Chairman Choi See-joong had to use everything in his arsenal ― threats, scowls, kind words and Barack Obama.
On Wednesday, Choi finally got his way and fulfilled a mission given by his boss, President Lee Myung-bak, marshalling the support of five members of his commission's decision-making body to put that critical issue to a vote. The outcome came as predicted ― changes to give a wider berth for big companies to gain ownership to television networks.
``In this time of unprecedented crisis, U.S. President-elect Obama is stressing that there is no time to waste in gathering wisdom to overcome the turmoil, and President Lee Myung-bak is feeling the same here,'' Choi told his colleagues in a meeting room crowded with dozens of reporters.
``I don't know the difference between three, five and 10 trillion won nowadays. The days when the government could command the media is over and talks now are about enlarging the industry pie … I wouldn't care if companies worth 50 trillion won or 100 trillion won entered the media market,'' he said.
Upon hearing Choi's rant, one might have mistaken it as part of a dictator's long-winded speech.
At least for now, Choi will have to settle for 10 trillion won. Current law only allows companies with three trillion won (about $2 billion) or less in assets to own television stations, on the basis of worries that mega-rich conglomerates will take over the industry and hurt media diversity, but it's a whole new ballgame now, with the KCC raising the ceiling to 10 trillion won.
The decision is sure to spark fierce debate in coming weeks, as media unionists and opposition lawmakers are calling on further discussions. The main opposition Democratic Party already has a bill in the National Assembly that calls for the ownership limit to be set at five trillion won, identical to the cap set by the Fair Trade Commission for companies restricted of cross-shareholdings.
However, with Choi and his commission pushing for 10 trillion, a number he calls ``symbolic,'' the controversy now has the makings of a major political battle that could rattle the Lee Myung-bak administration.
Broadcasters have long suspected the KCC as the hammer in the government's hands, as it pushes for the privatization of national television stations.
In fact, there is widespread belief that major conservative newspapers like the Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo, Lee's biggest supporters at the moment, might eventually look to leverage their dominance and move into the television market by gobbling up terrestrial broadcasters.
KCC's intentions to lift the cross-ownership ban on newspapers and television stations adds substance to such allegations. President Lee has publicly wondered why Korea has no mega media groups ― happy news for the big newspapers, all conservative in tone, which are seeing broadcasting as their new growth engine in lieu of the sagging print media market.
Also, the KCC's recently announced draft, titled ``basic law for the development of broadcasting and telecommunications,'' is clearly controversial as it seeks to reduce the public-service requirements for broadcasters, thus opening the possibilities of terrestrial channels other than KBS and EBS going up for mergers and acquisitions.
Korea is considered a global trendsetter in the way people get information and entertainment, and the KCC is in a position of either guiding the progress forward or derailing it. It bears further watching whether the KCC will get the job done by relying just on a dictator's efficiency.