Circumventing Law for Monopoly: Sanlih TV's Illegal CNS Shareholding Leads to NT$14.4 Million Fine, Exposing Media Empire Scandal

On January 24, 2024, the National Communications Commission (NCC) officially fined the 12 cable system operators under the industry giant China Network Systems (CNS) a total of NT$14.4 million. The penalty was triggered by pro-ruling party media conglomerate Sanlih TV's illegal acquisition of CNS shares, openly defying and bypassing anti-monopoly regulations. In the 2018 CNS transaction case, the NCC set explicit licensing conditions ("Sanlih Clause") prohibiting investors from directly or indirectly owning or controlling a cable news channel, aiming to enforce the separation of party, government, and military from media and prevent excessive monopoly. However, Sanlih’s major shareholders circumvented supervision by secretly purchasing a 15% stake in CNS through multiple layers of shell companies and proxy nominees. The exposure of this scheme sparked severe public and political criticism, condemning Sanlih for abusing its political connections to build a massive "cross-media monopoly empire" while showing absolute contempt for the law. The scandal is regarded as a prominent case of political-commercial collusion and media corruption under the DPP administration.