KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 2 — Malaysia denied today that it was reviewing the broadcast licence for satellite broadcaster Astro All Asia Networks in a move to make it carry more pro-government content.
The Malaysian Insider said that the Information and Communications Ministry was reviewing the licence and wanted more programming favourable to the government.
“There is no such thing,” an official familiar with the ministry’s plans told Reuters.
The National Front government tightly regulates the media, requiring that newspapers obtain an annual permit to publish. It cracks down heavily on political dissent and only recently abandoned moves to filter the Internet.
It stumbled to its worst ever losses in national and state elections last year as well as a string of by-election losses since then.
In response it brought in a new prime minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, in April and he has launched a programme called “1Malaysia” to boost acceptance of the front in this multi-ethnic country.
A spokeswoman for Astro said the company was in talks on migration to a new licence, but said there had been no pressure to change content.
“We are currently negotiating on the terms,” said a spokeswoman for Astro.
Astro stock was down 1.45 per cent at RM3.40 at 1138 am, underperforming the wider market which was down 0.53 per cent.Broadcast agreements for television and telecommunications companies in Malaysia are being standardised in new contracts and a spokesman for the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission said talks had been going on with Astro for a year.
A second government official said that the talks related to Astro’s regulatory environment, for example its ability to raise prices without reference to the government as it did recently when it raised the cost of its sports package.
“The reason we wanted them to migrate was to regulate their operations, not for political control,” said the official who had been involved in the talks. — Reuters
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