TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's National Communications Commission (NCC, 國家通訊傳播委員會), the island's telecommunications regulator, detected signal interference from Chinese radio stations on Tuesday (Jan. 20), prompting immediate action. NCC Northern Regional Office Director Tsai Kuo-tung (蔡國棟) announced plans to dispatch personnel for field tests to assess the situation. The NCC will propose interdepartmental discussions if the interference proves frequent.
Residents in Taoyuan City's Daxi District (大溪區), a municipality in northern Taiwan, reported that FM99.6 broadcasts content from Chinese stations that touch on political issues. Tsai noted that FM99.6 is an unused frequency in Taiwan and that signals can be affected by weather and terrain due to global consistency in radio frequencies, resulting in spillover interference from abroad. Taiwan has experienced similar cases of receiving Chinese broadcasts in the past.
The NCC recently received complaints about FM94.4 also picking up Chinese broadcasts, according to Tsai. Investigations revealed that while Kinmen, a Taiwanese-controlled island near China, cannot receive these signals, Matsu (馬祖), another offshore island closer to China, can hear them clearly. Tsai confirmed receiving one complaint regarding FM99.6 and stated that the NCC would assess the impact range and conduct field tests.
In the past, the NCC asked neighboring radio station operators to help reduce spillover interference from Chinese broadcasts. In 2024, the commission announced frequency changes for police radio stations in the Taoyuan-Hsinchu-Miaoli and Yunlin-Chiayi-Tainan areas, regions in northern and southern Taiwan, switching from AM to FM. The frequency changes aimed to reduce interference and improve signal quality for emergency communications. ◼