直播電視政治經濟學分析──直播電視產業趨勢與台灣發展直播電視問題

The Political Economy of the Broadcast Satellite Service: The Development of the BSS and Its Implications in Taiwan

自一九九四年美國成立第一家直播衛星電視系統「直播電視公司」以來，直播電視已成為有線電視系統最強勁的競爭對手，在短短不到三年間，到一九九六年底五家直播電視系統共爭取到四百三十萬個訂戶，其中有一半是由有線電視系統轉來的，使得直播電視與有線電視間的競爭已日趨白熱化。而面對這樣的趨勢，雖然台灣合法有線電視才起步，但早有人樂觀預期，這項新傳播科技也可望在不久的將來躍上台灣上空。本研究內容除介紹直播電視發展簡史與世界主要國家（以美國為主）直播電視業發展歷程與現況、並探討直播電視產業所有權集中化趨勢、與評估直播電視與有線電視之爭外，也試圖以傳播政治經濟學的角度來探討台灣發展直播電視系統前應考量的問題。以研究架構來看，本研究依據傳播政治經濟學理論中資本主義發展趨勢、媒介帝國主義，及政府角色等三項的重要研究議題，來解析台灣直播電視產業未來發展應考量的三項問題，即（一）投資效益評估、（二）媒介帝國主義、（三）政府法規管理等。本文首先介紹直播電視發展簡史及各國（特別是美國）發展直播電視現況；並分析美國直播電視產業市場結構、主要經營者、及其所有權集中化趨勢；接著比較直播電視與有線電視競爭的優劣特性；最後以傳播政治經濟學的三項主要研究觀點來分析台灣發展直播電視事先應考量之問題。

In the United States, the Broadcast Satellite Service (BSS), commonly known as the Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS), has become a solid competitor with the cable television industry since DirecTV launched its service in 1994. Less than three years later, at the end of 1996, five U.S. BSS companies acquired 4.3 million subscribers, and approximately fifty percent of them converted from cable television systems. Undeniably the competition between these two services will intensify in the near future. Follwoing the trend, the telecommunications industry optimistically anticipate that the BSS may be available in Taiwan soon. In addition to analyzing the development of the BSS indsutry, therefore, one of the main purposes of this study is to investigate its future impacts on Taiwan. Theoretically, this study employs the political economy of communications, examining the BSS industry through the perspectives of capitalism, media imperialism, and state influence. First, the study briefly introduces the emergence of BSS and its current development around the world, especially in the U.S. Then, the study analyzes the BSS industry in the U.S., including its market structure, its big players, ownership concentration, and the competition between cable television and BSS. Finally, the study discusses some restrictions and implications for the development of BSS in Taiwan.