Abstract
In late October 2018, the Public Broadcasters International (PBI) Conference was held in Seoul, the Republic of Korea. PBI is an annual forum where public service broadcasters in the world get together to address the challenges facing them and discus visions for the future. The 2018 theme was “Media’s Next Big Bang.” The convergence of broadcasting and telecommunications has dramatically changed the media landscape, in which the U.S. media companies are enhancing its influence and control by investing huge amounts of money. There is a mounting sense of crisis among European public service broadcasters as they fear the ongoing situation may endanger their existence. In his recent speeches, Tony Hall, Director-General of the BBC, had repeatedly touched on the crisis posed to public service media by the harsh environment including competition with those American media giants and challenges facing the funding system of public service media. Director-General Hall encouraged the participants to reconfirm the importance of public service broadcasting as a trustworthy news source, a stronghold protecting the culture of each country, and a liaison bringing fragmented audiences together. Amidst pessimistic opinions on the future of public service broadcasting, he emphasized that if public service media collaborate with each other they would be able to overcome the difficulties.
