MACAU SAR, CHINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Pedro Cortés and Luís Rôlo, Lektou
• implementation of the electronic system for the practice of acts and formalities by elec - tronic means. The granting of licences for the activity of radio broadcasting under Law No 8/89/M is preceded by a public tender, except when ponderous and duly justified reasons advise a direct award. The radio broadcasting activity can be carried out by any legal person that has its headquarters in Macau and offers guarantees of suitability, technical qualification and financial capacity. The Government Information Bureau ( Gabinete de Comunicação Social ) is the competent enti - ty that organises the processes related to the granting of permits, and an application for a permit must be accompanied by the following elements: • justification note of the request; • demonstration of the economic and financial viability of the project; • detailed description of the activity to be car - ried out, with emphasis on the broadcasting time and the schedule map; • design of the facilities, including equipment, antennas and studios; and • articles of association of the applicant. The licence is valid for five years and can be renewed, for equal periods of time, at the request of the respective holder. The attribu - tion and transmission of licences, as well as the respective alterations, renewals or substitutions, in case of loss or unusability, are subject to the payment of fees. Law No 21/2024 provides that those fees shall be determined by a Dispatch of the Chief Executive, which, at the moment of writing, has not yet been enacted. In the mean - time the General Table of Fees and Fines Appli - cable to Radio Services approved by Adminis - trative Regulation No 16/2010, lastly amended
by Administrative Regulation No 40/2022, shall apply. Television Broadcasting Concessions The granting of television broadcasting is exe - cuted by concessions, under Law No 8/89/M. The procedure, as with radio broadcasting, is also preceded by a competitive bidding process, except when weighted and duly justified reasons advise direct concession. Television broadcast - ing activity can be granted to any legal person that is incorporated in corporate form and has its headquarters in Macau, for the purpose of exercising the activity to be granted, and offers guarantees of suitability, technical qualification and financial capacity. The television broadcasting concession contract may authorise the concessionaires to carry out other complementary activities related to the main activity, by themselves or in association with other entities. These activities are those indicated by law, and in exceptional cases, con - cessionaires may be legal persons of public law or public utility. Television broadcasting concessions must have a fixed term, to be determined according to the business plan to be developed and the time nec - essary for the amortisation of the capital invested by the concessionaires, and sub-concession is not allowed. Concessionaires are obliged to fulfil the duties indicated in the law, namely, they are obliged to make the necessary investments to guarantee full coverage, in good technical condi - tions, of the areas of Macau that are defined in the concession contract, which must establish the amount of investment to be made, the plan and the overall timetable for its implementation. For the concession, a fee is due, to be deter - mined in the respective contract, without preju -
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