KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 13 — The government will not take into account the political affiliation of any parties when evaluating applications for TV and radio broadcasting licences in the country,

"Support from any political party is not necessary and is not taken into account in evaluating an application,” said the Communications and Multimedia Ministry in a written reply at the Dewan Rakyat today.

In answering a question from Wong Shu Qi (PH-Kluang) on whether the government would restrict the ownership of mainstream media channels among political parties, the ministry said the main factors considered when approving a broadcast licensing application was the sustainability of the business model.

The applicant’s abilities in terms of management, finance, technical expertise as well as having content that could benefit Malaysians in general, was also taken into account.

"This means that any eligible party may apply for an individual license under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998,” he said.

According to the ministry, individuals or groups not eligible to apply for individual licenses are foreign companies, an individual or a sole proprietor, a partnership and any person or class of persons determined by the Minister.

He said as of September 30, there were 56 Content Application Service Provider Individual Licence holders, and of the total, 35 licensees were allowed to provide television broadcasting services through various platforms such as satellite, free to air, Internet protocol (IPTV) and digital terrestrial television broadcasting (DTTB).

A further 21 licensees were approved to provide terrestrial radio services. — Bernama