Thailand’s coup government will take over iTV

At midnight on Tuesday, Thailand’s coup government took over the country’s only independent television station for failure to pay USD 2.8bn (EUR 2.1bn) in licensing fees. The station was to temporarily stop broadcasting and over 1000 employees were to be let go. Broadcasts were suspended, but on Wednesday morning the station was still running stories about iTV’s 10-year history and the fees it was ordered to pay, according to the website of the Bangkok Post. The station’s staff objected to the government’s plan to suspend the station’s broadcasts and filed an for an injunction until the court hears the matter on Wednesday morning. The government is facing heavy criticism for the move, which now makes all six of Thailand’s broadcast networks state-run. The station was once owned by deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, but was sold as part of the telecommunications company Shin Corp to Temasek, the investment arm of the Singapore government. The coup government has been battling with iTV for its licensing fees for some time. (Asia Media newsletter,March 07, 2007)

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