By John Nania

The Epoch Times

Mar 14, 2005

Viewers like this man in Anhui Province of China will no longer be able to watch the independent network NTDTV after French company Eutelsat made a unilateral decision to stop satellite transmission (Cancan Chu/Getty Images)

NEW YORK - The TV network aspiring to be "the Chinese PBS" will be unable to reach its prime audience in east Asia after satellite provider Eutelsat unaccountably stops carrying the signal this week.

New Tang Dynasty TV (NTDTV), headquartered in New York, says that the unilateral move not to continue the contract "doesn't make any business sense," according to Samuel Zhou, programming director for NTDTV.

"They have abundant unused capacity on their satellite," he said. "This is a company that has never removed any channel, even those with content that incites violence and hatred."

Heightening the suspicions of NTDTV executives is the fact that Eutelsat continues to accept payment for NTDTV coverage over Europe. Only the sensitive area of China, as well as Taiwan, southeast Asia, Japan, and Korea, are going dark.

"We learned that the true reason they aren't continuing the broadcast is pressure exerted on them by Chinese authorities," said Zhou.

The non-profit network has been broadcasting on four continents, via satellite and cable, since early 2002. In addition to cultural programming, such as the Chinese New Year Global Gala annual broadcast, NTDTV covers original news that makes the ruling Chinese Communist Party nervous, such as 2003's coverage of SARS and the ongoing persecution of Christians and 100 million practitioners of Falun Gong.

NTDTV and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) will hold a press conference in Brussels, Belgium on Tuesday to discuss more details and planned action.

Eutelsat gave no reasons to NTDTV for stopping the signal. Calls from The Epoch Times seeking comment from the Eutelsat branch office in Washington DC had not been returned at press time.

http://english.epochtimes.com/news/5-3-14/27005.html

Posting date: 3/15/2005
Original article date: 3/15/2005
Category: News & Media Reports

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