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<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="789"><tbody><tr> <td colspan="3" height="26"> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" width="5"> </td> <td colspan="2" valign="top" width="784"> Why viewers must pay TV licence fees on time
By Leong Wee Keat, TODAY | Posted: 05 January 2010 0704 hrs
SINGAPORE: Households who do not pay television licence fees on time are getting more attention from the authorities.
About 77,200 households were slapped with a late payment notice in 2008 for not paying the $110 fee, compared to 65,000 who failed to do so in 2005.
The most common reasons for late payment include the licensee's oversight, working overseas, financial difficulty or misplacement of the first payment advice, said Media Development Authority of Singapore deputy director (customer services and operations) Dorothy Lai.
However, MDA said the annual late payment rate has remained at 8 per cent.
The increase in number of late payments is due to the rise in the number of households – about 965,000 licences were issued in 2008, up from 812,500 in 2005.
TV licence fees are used to fund free-to-air public service broadcasting (PSB) programmes on MediaCorp, the parent company of this newspaper.
The programmes serve "the objectives of promoting values important to Singaporeans", touching on identity, culture, heritage, racial and religious harmony, for example, said MDA.
But with more cable TV channels available, some are wondering why they should pay TV licence fees.
"There are similar programmes, like documentaries and news, on cable channels," said service engineer John Lum, 48. "I don't mind paying (TV licence fees), but more updated shows should be produced."
Others want more clarity on how the fees are used.
"Since the money is given on a platter, is there any assurance there is no wasteful expenditure?" a blogger, Roger Poh, wrote.
According to the Auditor-General's report last year, 67 per cent of radio and TV licence fees collected are used for PSB programmes.
The rest goes to expenses related to collection of the fees (11 per cent), industry development (15 per cent) and reserves for future PSB and content development funding (7 per cent).
In the 2007/08 financial year, about $80.82 million was used to fund PSB programmes, which covered genres such as information and current affairs, arts and culture, minority language news and programmes, children's and locally produced sports programmes as well as local dramas.
Over 3,000 hours of programmes are supported each year, and MDA's Ms Lai cited some highlights on its PSB report card: PSB programmes received 22 nominations at last year's Asian Television Awards, with The Little Nyonya jointly clinching the Best Drama Series.
Ms Lai added that eight in 10 of the "most appreciated" TV shows in 2007-2008 were PSB supported.
But the Auditor-General's report noted that the survey used for the appreciation index is inadequate, as it does not assess whether or to what extent the programmes meet the objectives identified by MDA – a shortcoming that MDA says it has since rectified.
To get households to pay fees on time, MDA will launch a public outreach programme this month to "educate" the public on "why the fee should be paid, how to pay, and why it is important to pay on time".
Collaterals will be sent to households but these should "not appear as hard-sell, or as Government propaganda", according to MDA's tender documents for the initiative.
The MDA will send a reminder to pay the original amount plus a $25 late payment fee to households that have not paid by Jan 31. After this, and a second late notice, a summons will be sent via registered mail to those who still do not pay up.
- TODAY/so
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By Leong Wee Keat, TODAY | Posted: 05 January 2010 0704 hrs
SINGAPORE: Households who do not pay television licence fees on time are getting more attention from the authorities.
About 77,200 households were slapped with a late payment notice in 2008 for not paying the $110 fee, compared to 65,000 who failed to do so in 2005.
The most common reasons for late payment include the licensee's oversight, working overseas, financial difficulty or misplacement of the first payment advice, said Media Development Authority of Singapore deputy director (customer services and operations) Dorothy Lai.
However, MDA said the annual late payment rate has remained at 8 per cent.
The increase in number of late payments is due to the rise in the number of households – about 965,000 licences were issued in 2008, up from 812,500 in 2005.
TV licence fees are used to fund free-to-air public service broadcasting (PSB) programmes on MediaCorp, the parent company of this newspaper.
The programmes serve "the objectives of promoting values important to Singaporeans", touching on identity, culture, heritage, racial and religious harmony, for example, said MDA.
But with more cable TV channels available, some are wondering why they should pay TV licence fees.
"There are similar programmes, like documentaries and news, on cable channels," said service engineer John Lum, 48. "I don't mind paying (TV licence fees), but more updated shows should be produced."
Others want more clarity on how the fees are used.
"Since the money is given on a platter, is there any assurance there is no wasteful expenditure?" a blogger, Roger Poh, wrote.
According to the Auditor-General's report last year, 67 per cent of radio and TV licence fees collected are used for PSB programmes.
The rest goes to expenses related to collection of the fees (11 per cent), industry development (15 per cent) and reserves for future PSB and content development funding (7 per cent).
In the 2007/08 financial year, about $80.82 million was used to fund PSB programmes, which covered genres such as information and current affairs, arts and culture, minority language news and programmes, children's and locally produced sports programmes as well as local dramas.
Over 3,000 hours of programmes are supported each year, and MDA's Ms Lai cited some highlights on its PSB report card: PSB programmes received 22 nominations at last year's Asian Television Awards, with The Little Nyonya jointly clinching the Best Drama Series.
Ms Lai added that eight in 10 of the "most appreciated" TV shows in 2007-2008 were PSB supported.
But the Auditor-General's report noted that the survey used for the appreciation index is inadequate, as it does not assess whether or to what extent the programmes meet the objectives identified by MDA – a shortcoming that MDA says it has since rectified.
To get households to pay fees on time, MDA will launch a public outreach programme this month to "educate" the public on "why the fee should be paid, how to pay, and why it is important to pay on time".
Collaterals will be sent to households but these should "not appear as hard-sell, or as Government propaganda", according to MDA's tender documents for the initiative.
The MDA will send a reminder to pay the original amount plus a $25 late payment fee to households that have not paid by Jan 31. After this, and a second late notice, a summons will be sent via registered mail to those who still do not pay up.
- TODAY/so
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