Abstract
The must-carry law requires cable operators to transmit the programs and advertisements of over-the-air television stations. Broadcast television has the obligation to undertake public service duties and to be free of charge because it broadcasts via radio waves, which are public goods. In this sense the must-carry law is aimed to protect broadcast television in the TV market, where the robustness of cable TV has become a threat to broadcast television. Additionally, promoting widespread dissemination of information from multiplicity of sources and universal service are also the reasons why many governments establish must-carry regulation. Although must-carry law had been established for many years, it is still controversial. Many issues regarding how the law applies to the broadcasters’ digital signals arose. Dual carriage, total carriage and the relationship between freedom of speech, taking and must-carry regulation are main issues of digital must-carry law. The purpose of this research is to examine the impact of digital television on the must-carry law, and thus reconstruct the legal interests of digital must-carry regulations by analyzing must-carry law in Taiwan and other countries, as well as the leading cases in the U.S. This research examines the amendment of the must-carry regulation in Cable Radio and Television Act. We concluded that neither dual carriage nor total carriage is feasible in Taiwan, and that public broadcasting and commercial broadcasting should be controlled under different regulations.