There are four active free-to-air television networks and one remaining licensed pay television network in Hong Kong. There is also a number of online subscription television services.
Currently, there are no new applicants for free-to-air or pay-tv licences.
In 2007, free-to-air television broadcasters in Hong Kong were allocated extra frequency bands and bandwidth to provide additional digital broadcasts over and above that needed to provide simultaneous digital and analogue broadcasting of the four original multi frequency free-to-air channels. Digital terrestrial broadcasts began on 31 December 2007. Analogue terrestrial television ended in 2020.[1]
New Asia Network (NAN; 新亞電視台), parent company Forever Top (Asia) Limited abandoned the application, following its acquisition of Cable TV Hong Kong and its subsidiary, Fantastic Television, which is a free television provider.[2]
Hong Kong Television Network (HKTV; 香港電視網絡) – 2nd time applicant. First application was rejected in 2013. Mobile television licence that restricts in-home viewing granted in 2017. Gave up the application in 2018.[4]
However, because of licensing and intellectual property reasons, except for the four local free-to-air networks and CCTV-1, a subsidiary of China Central Television (CCTV), viewers outside of certain confines
[17] are not legally allowed to watch these channels.
Residential subscribers to cable premium and subscription services are free to use these services within certain confines, usually within their own homes, and under the terms and conditions of their service provider. Other contracts deal with the provision of services to non-domestic properties, e.g. premium sport content to bars.
^ abThis channel has never launched an analogue television service.
^J5 has no Chinese name. It is referred to as "J5", with the "5" pronounced "five", in both English and Chinese parlance.
^government offices and statutory bodies; consulates-general and officially recognised bodies; guest houses and hotels ranked with four stars or above that receive foreign guests; apartment buildings exclusively for office and residential use by persons from abroad; clubs exclusively serving persons from abroad; residential use by the family which included the person(s) directly employed by or retired from the following stipulated confines, such as: departments and related organisations of the government of the HKSAR, office and branches of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong, consulates-general and officially recognised bodies, MTR Corporation.