廣播業與電訊業融合下的政策問題：以電話視訊為例

Convergence of Broadcasting and Telephony and Its Policy Implications: A Case Study of Video Dialtone (VDT)

由於影像壓縮及訊號傳輸技術的進步，自九○年代初期，美國國內的寬頻影像服務市場，即展開激烈的競爭。美國國會及聯邦傳播委員會對電訊傳播業的開放解禁，也助長了這個趨勢。為配合全球電訊解禁的趨勢以及加入關貿總協、建立亞太電信媒體中心的需求，台灣目前亦逐漸開放其電訊市場，美國在電話視訊立法上的困境及其解決方案對台灣傳播政策有何借鏡的地方，值得探討。本篇論文即在討論電訊業及廣播業融合下的政策問題。電話視訊(video dialtone)是由電話公司（如美國的RBOCs）所提供的一種新型影像服務。電話視訊的服務能夠增加當地節目提供者的競爭並且使消費者有更多節目及頻道選擇。不過，電話視訊也可能產生負面的影響，如基本話費的上升，網路重覆佈署所造成的資源浪費，以及市場獨佔的可能性。在政策上而言，電話視訊到底該界定為有線電視或電話公司的附屬服務，在美國國內仍有爭議，大部份在政策上的困境也因此而產生。若以目前聯邦傳播委員會的決議，將電話視訊歸為電話公司的附屬服務，如此一來，規範有線電視的法規如必需攜帶原則；或頻道容量及公益頻道的保留，甚至申請當地執照許可要求，將無法用來規範電話視訊，但如此一來對有線電視業者將形成不公平的競爭。新傳播科技對傳播政策的影響與日遽增，在台灣電訊市場逐漸解禁之後，如何制定有前瞻性的傳播政策以規範萬變的傳播市場，電話視訊提供了一個很好的例子。

Due to advances in video compression and transmission technologies, competition for broadband multichannel video services has unfolded in the United States since 1992. Regulations on prohibiting telephone company's entry into video programming market have also been relaxed by the recent Video Dial Tone Rules of the FCC and H.R. 3636 of the Congress in the United States. Although the Directorate General of Telecommunications (DGT) is still a state-owned telephone service provider in Taiwan, future deregulation and privatization in the telecommunications market are likely to create the same regulatory quagmire as encountered by the United States and other countries that have already deregulated their telecommunications market. Therefore, the regulatory frameworks that other countries have adopted to regulate video dialtone may help shape future telecommunications policy in Taiwan. This paper will examine the policy issues stemmed from the convergence of broadcasting and telephony. Video dialtone (VDT) is the technology that has been most vehemently discussed and debated by stakeholders in the cable industry (NCTA), the telephone companies (RBOCs), consumer interest group (CFA), policy-makers (FCC and the Congress), and telecommunications scholars. This paper will be divided into three sections. First, an overview of video dialtone (VDT) technology will be presented to provide background needed to understand the discussions. In addition, current VDT trials in the United States will be discussed. In the second section, the advantages and disadvantages of video dialtone (VDT) will be analyzed. Although VDT will provide competitions in the local distribution of video programming, promote efficient investment in the national information infrastructure, and increase the availability of different video services, it is likely to lead to the rate-hiking for basic telephone service users, redundant deployment of transmission infrastructure, and market monopoly. Therefore, this paper will also summarize the major positions of each stakeholder in current policy debates. Third, this paper will analyze the regulatory issues caused by video dialtone services. After examining various literature and government documents, several issues have been identified: 1) the treatment of must carry provision; 2) public interest concerns (i.e., cross-subsidization and market monopoly); 3) channel capacity issues; 4) a 'will carry' preferential access proposal; 5) an 'incubation period' to ensure fair competition; 6) challenge to current regulatory and jurisdictional frameworks. This paper will discuss these issues in details. Finally, the building of the National Information Infrastructure (NII) will be conducive to the competition in the multichannel video marketplace. Therefore, the convergence of broadcasting and telephony, as exemplified by video dialtone (VDT), is a question that regulators and policy- makers need to ponder.