TV Tax Was Approved

Supreme Court made its first decision on Wednesday that Article 64 of Broadcasting Act, which forced TV viewers to have contract of recipient with Japan Broadcasting Corporation, or NHK, was constitutional. The Court actually approved NHK’s policy that demand all TV viewers paying for watching NHK program, even if they did not watch NHK, or even TV itself, as long as a TV device was in the house. This is the decision that approved de facto taxation on all television owners.

NHK filed a lawsuit to demand a man who installed a television in his house in 2006 making contract for watching NHK and payment for the fee. The man argued that NHK policy for television fee was violating Constitution of Japan that guaranteed freedom of contract. The man thought that the program of NHK had been too biased to be equal as the public broadcaster.

The Grand Bench recognized NHK television fee system as for not being affected by specific interest or governmental organization through broad and equal payment of general watchers. It approved NHK’s interpretation of Article 64 of Broadcasting Act that it coerced the television owners paying TV fee. “The system of television fee is rational to fulfill the right of knowledge under the Constitution that guarantees the people freedom of expression,” the Court concluded.

Another point was when would the contract be activated. NHK argued that the contract would be made when NHK requested a TV watcher to have the contract of watching television. The Grand Bench dismissed the argument and decided that the contract would be completed when NHK would win a court decision for the payment after filing a lawsuit.

However, the Court required the watcher to pay the fee for the period from when he had settled the television in his house, based on a notion that difference between him and other watchers who had paid the fee might cause unfairness. The defendant has to pay about ¥200 thousand as much as the first and second court ordered. The defendant has been arguing that the law has no power of coercing the payment.

The argument in the Court lacked a viewpoint that the law was legislated at the time when public broadcasting was mostly limited to radio. NHK was required to contribute to disseminate good information for the people. Now, the people can access a various kind of information through internet and not so much dependent on NHK. Coercing the payment for all NHK program is obviously obsolete. It is the time for NHK to introduce various payment system based on how long the watcher watched NHK.