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The latest Wikileaks drop is about the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, and its probable impact on "State Owned Enterprises." (SOE)
The Analysis of Leaked TPPA Paper for Ministers' Guidance on SOEs, by Professor Jane Kelsey, Faculty of Law, University of Auckland, New Zealand, makes specific reference to public broadcasters as SOEs that could be included under the TPP, and subject to a variety of new, yet undefined, restrictions.
That could mean the CBC in Canada, and likely NPR and PBS in the US. In particular, it's possible that the TPP might insist that governments not provide support (such as funding or protections) for these, and other essential public services.
From the report:
It looks like SOEs are not allowed to get government support or non-commercial assistance – such as capital injections, subsidies, grants, cheaper access to finance, government guarantees and access to land, premises or facilities on preferential terms – if that causes "adverse effects" to another TPPA country. That kind of support is often essential for SOEs that provide public functions that are not proftable or are even loss-making.
{snip} ... it suggests that a postal service, public telecommunications provider or state-owned bank that receives financial support from the government to deliver services into poor areas for social reasons could be challenged by a courier firm, satellite operator or internet bank from another country that says the support is adversely affecting it and hence its country's interests.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 31 2015, @02:47PM
I wonder what exactly is the boundary of "state-owned enterprise"? What about public schools? What about public roads? What about the police?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 31 2015, @04:06PM
The part that matters is that it has to cause adverse effects to another TPPA country. That means, state-run propaganda against another state, for instance. Playing classical music all day is not likely to get NPR canned, and teaching kids a normal, healthy curriculum shouldn't get any schools closed either.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 31 2015, @04:38PM
For certain definitions of "normal, healthy curriculum". Teaching evolution and the lack of prayer in schools is already a huge issue from the regressives in the south US. You know what'll really cause "adverse effects" to other TPPA countries? Having an intelligent and/or educated workforce, preventing the other countries' products and/or services from being sold in that country. Kiss public schools of all kinds, especially universities, goodbye.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 01 2015, @12:47PM
If I have similar show, or really any show that competes with NPR. Then I'm losing money because of 'unfair' competition. Expect me to go crying to an arbitrator, (who just happens to be a buddy of mine since i ruled in his favour last week) and grab my big sack of cash.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday July 31 2015, @04:12PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 5, Interesting) by bob_super on Friday July 31 2015, @05:20PM
The moment the US accepted that Prisons and Congress could be private for-profit enterprises, i'm pretty sure everything else became fair game. It's only a matter of time.
Who are you to complain about this? A godless communist, or an American-hating terrorist?
(Score: 4, Insightful) by hemocyanin on Friday July 31 2015, @06:13PM
I couldn't decide on insightful or funny, so settled on interesting as a sort of confluence of those mods. I love the characterization of Congress as a private for-profit enterprise. That's pretty astute.