To accelerate the digital transformation and national digital economy, the Government has made the broadcasting sector one of Indonesia’s strategic concerns. To respond to it, the Minister of Communication and Informatics (the “MoCI”) has just issued Regulation No. 6 of 2021 on the Operation of Broadcasting, as amended by MoCI Regulation No. 11 of 2021 (collectively referred to as the “Regulation”). The Regulation serves as the implementing regulation of Government Regulation No. 46 of 2021 on Post, Telecommunications and Broadcasting as well as Government Regulation No. 5 of 2021 on Implementation of Risk-Based Business Licensing. This Regulation is the first comprehensive regulation on broadcasting which was issued to replace analog broadcasting as well as harmonise the regulatory framework that applies to the broadcasting sector.

Below are the key takeaways from the issuance of the Regulation.

Broadcasting according to the Regulation

Under the Regulation, broadcasting is the broadcast of a message or series of messages in the form of sound, images, or sound and images or in the form of graphics, characters, whether interactive or not, which can be received through a broadcast receiving device through broadcasting facilities and/or transmission facilities on the land, sea, or outer space by using radio frequency spectrum by air, cable, and/or other media to be received simultaneously by the public with broadcast receiving equipment (“Broadcasting”). Broadcasting activities consist of radio broadcasting services and television broadcasting services that may be provided through several media such as terrestrial, satellite, and/or cable. The Regulation further regulates the specifications of Broadcasting Institution as follows:

• Public Broadcasting Institution/ Lembaga Penyiaran Publik (“LPP”);
• Private Broadcasting Institution/ Lembaga Penyiaran Swasta (“LPS”);
• Community Broadcasting Institution/ Lembaga Penyiaran Komunitas (“LPK”); and
• Subscription Broadcasting Institution/ Lembaga Penyiaran Berlangganan (“LPB”).

(collectively referred to as “Broadcasting Institution”).

Allocation of broadcasting business licence

Similar with the previous regulation, slots for broadcasting business licence is on a when-available basis. This will be announced by the MoCI and granted via a selection mechanism. Application of the broadcasting business licence for broadcasting with satellite and/or cable can be submitted without the announcement of opportunity for broadcasting by the MoCI.

Furthermore, the Regulation also introduces the slot allocation for local LPP. The Regulation regulates that in one district/city, one Local LPP for radio broadcasting services and/or one Local LPP for television broadcasting services may be established.

Minimum Local Content requirement for LPS

Similar to the previous regulation, the Regulation has further reinstated the Minimum Local Content requirement for Broadcasting Institutions, on which LPS that carries out the implementation of digital broadcasting through terrestrial media with a broadcast area coverage covering all of Indonesia and the region, its broadcasts must contain local content at least 10% of the total broadcast time per day. It is worth noting that this requirement has also been included as part of the obligations that must be conducted by LPS as one of the Broadcasting Institutions.

Minimum service quality requirement

In organising television broadcasting using digital technology, multiplexing providers and broadcasting institutions that provide Broadcast Program Services are required to meet service quality standards. These service quality standards are divided into quality standards that are generally applicable and specific quality standards that are specific to certain broadcasting operations. Below is the summary of the service quality requirements.

Reporting obligations by the Broadcasting Institutions to the MoCI

The Regulation introduces new reporting obligations for changes as follows by the Broadcasting Institutions:

• Name (including legal entity name and air name);
• Office address;
• Board of management (including the Board of Directors (“BoD”) and Board of Commissioners (“BoC”) of LPS and LPB; BoD and BoC of local LPP; or person in charge of LPK); and/or
• Shares (whether direct or indirect shares in the LPS and LPB).

The report shall be conducted by the Broadcasting Institutions to the MoCI through the Director General of Post and Information Technology no later than one month after the changes.

In addition to the mentioned above report, the Regulation also requires the Broadcasting Institutions to submit the broadcasting report to the MoCI at the latest on 30 June of the following year.

Analog Switch Off termination period

To distribute the television broadcast programs to its subscribers, currently, the Broadcasting Institutions can conduct it through the analog and/or digital systems. In line with the development of broadcasting technology in Indonesia, the Government has implemented a national policy to migrate the analog television broadcasts system to digital. This is also a form of implementing the recommendation from the International Telecommunication Union. The digital broadcast is the organisation of television broadcasting whose broadcasts are channeled through multiplexing operators, i.e. Broadcasting Institutions that have the broadcasting infrastructure to distribute broadcast programs from digital broadcast providers.

According to the MoCI publication, one of the differences between analog and digital television broadcasts is the utilisation of the radio frequency spectrum as a very limited natural resource. In an analog television broadcasts system, one frequency channel is used to channel one television broadcasts program. Meanwhile, in the DVB-T2 digital broadcasts system, one frequency channel is capable of carrying up to 12 standard definition broadcasting programs (SDTV).^[1]

As the fundamental aspect that affects the acceleration of the digital transformation, the government has regulated the period for the termination of analog television broadcasts, which will be carried out in stages based on the broadcast service area. Considering the impact of Covid-19 delaying the implementation of the suspension of analog television broadcasts, the Regulation regulates the implementation period for the termination of broadcasting as follows:

• Phase I: no later than 30 April 2022;
• Phase II: no later than 25 August  2022; and
• Phase III: no later than 2 November  2022.

Every Broadcasting Institution that provides television Broadcasting services with analog terrestrial media in each broadcasting service area is required to terminate analog television Broadcasting according to the stages above and must carry out socialisation which includes but is not limited to:

• Migration of analog television broadcasts to digital;
• Cessation of analog television broadcasts in stages; and
• Digital broadcast reception aids (set-top box).

Blacklist/ Daftar Hitam: New applicable sanctions for violations of the Regulation

The Regulation introduces new applicable sanctions for the violations of Broadcasting provisions, which is the Blacklist/ Daftar Hitam. Blacklist is a list containing the identities of directors, management, and/or legal entities that are subject to administrative sanctions in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations. BoD members, management, individuals, and/or legal entities of Broadcasting Institutions may be specified in the Blacklist of Operators in the event that the Broadcasting Institutions are subject to administrative sanctions in the form of revocation of services and/or Business Licensing. Such parties will then be prohibited from being involved in the implementation of Broadcasting.

BoD members, management, individuals, and/or legal entities of Broadcasting Institutions may be removed from the Blacklist of Operators after:

• Two years from the date specified in the Operator’s Blacklist; and/or
• Obligations that are owed by the state are fulfilled.

Actions to consider

Broadcasting Institutions should be prepared to adhere to the new Broadcasting regulation under the Regulation, including the general obligations, reporting obligation, and to conduct Analog Switch Off within the stipulated period to avoid potential sanctions from the authorities.

If you have any questions or require any additional information, please contact Randyaz Iskandar, Hillary Tjandra, or David Septian Lienardo of Roosdiono & Partners (a member of ZICO Law).

This alert is for general information only and is not a substitute for legal advice.

^[1] MoCI, “Indonesia mulai masuki era TV Digital”, <https://kominfo.go.id/content/detail/3400/indonesia-mulai-masuki-era-tv-digital/0/sorotan_media>