TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Academic of Communication Studies at the University of Indonesia, Ade Armando, argued that a revision of Law No. 32 of 2002 on broadcasting is necessary to regulate internet broadcasting.

“In my opinion, if the Broadcasting Law will be adjusted to the current development era, it will need revision,” said Ade as an expert in the online judicial review of the law in the Constitutional Court Building, Jakarta, Monday, November 17.

According to him, the DPR and the government have prepared the law revision for the last few years. Meanwhile, changing one article as requested by TV networks RCTI and INews TV would cause serious issues as they generalized all over-the-top digital services, including social media and online meeting apps.

The petitioners should only highlight OTT media services such as Netflix, YouTube, and other on-demand video service firms, Ade said. “These two are different things and cannot be generalized. The differences have serious implications,” he added.

If the request was granted, all forms of digital content and services must abide by the Broadcasting Law and the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI). This, Ade opined, would not only create bureaucratic complexity but also kill people's creativity.

INews TV and RCTI lodged a judicial review on the Broadcasting Law, questioning the internet-based broadcasting regulation in Article 1 (2) which was considered ambiguous and caused legal uncertainty. The petitioners requested that digital content and service providers be regulated in the Broadcasting Law.

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