Liberalization of Trade in Television Services: The Negotiation Dilemma and Challenges for the Future

Abstract

Although a number of WTO Members have made commitments to television services sector in the initial and revised offers during the Doha Round, the regime offered still appears extremely restrictive. As evidenced by the China-Hongkong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) and the EU Television without Frontier (TVWF), a general producer-based rule of origin for services trade may fall short of realizing the legal and economic rationales of the concept of origin. Considering the impact of the multiplicity of channels available for distribution of television services made possible by new technology, legal and precise defi nitions are needed to determine the ‘origin’ of television services. Moreover, the ongoing panel proceeding of China-AVHE is a signifi cant opportunity to clarify the issues as to whether audiovisual services should be treated as ‘ordinary’ services. In any event, the W/120 classifi cations and their correspondence with the Central Product Classifi cation (CPC) need to be renegotiated to make it clear whether the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) disciplines should apply to services delivered on demand, such as Internet downloads.

Keywords: WTO, Trade in Services, Television Services, GATS

JEL Classification: K33