The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has decided to delay submission of a bill to Parliament that would make payment of receiving fees to pubcaster NHK mandatory.
NHK is preparing a reform plan and a proposal for fee cuts, but it will not be ready in time for the current session of Parliament, which ends June 23.
Communications Yoshihide Suga asked NHK to cut fees 20% as a condition of Ministry support for the bill revising the Broadcasting Law. But NHK balked, and the standoff has now resulted in the bill's delay.
At a press conference on Thursday NHK prexy Genichi Hashimoto said that he would like the Ministry to wait until September before submitting its bill.
NHK derives nearly all its income from viewer receiving fees, but payment is not legally mandatory. NHK has taken some of the worst of the non-payers to civil court, but it stands on shaky legal ground, thus the pubcaster's demand for revision of the Broadcasting Law to clarify viewer obligations and non-payment penalties.
Suga, however, is pressing for significant reform of NHK's management practices, in the wake of a series of embezzlement scandals that has angered millions of NHK viewers. He is also asking for a 20% cut in fees so that viewers will be more understanding of the proposed legal changes. NHK has countered that a steep dropoff in revenues has made such a deep cut in fees impossible.
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