Vietnam will set up an agency to monitor the content of foreign television programs, according to a draft decree which aims to tighten control over pay television services in the country.

Under the draft decree, the non-profit agency will check and edit all foreign programs first before they are allowed to be broadcast on pay TV, mainly cable TV. Foreign radio programs will also be monitored by the agency.

The decree also makes a clear distinction between the responsibilities of television program producers and pay TV service providers.

Luu Vu Hai, head of the Directorate of Broadcasting and Electronic Information under the Ministry of Information and Communication, said that so far, pay TV regulations had focused only on program content, overlooking technology and service quality.

The draft decree would make it easier to regulate TV services in Vietnam, with the content subject to the law on media and the technology to the law on telecommunication, Hai said.

Vietnam has more than 2 million cable TV subscribers, according to the Ministry of Information and Communications.

Reported by Truong Son