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John Tan, Singapore Democrat Party
The proposed changes to the election rules announced in Parliament yesterday are just another ploy by the PAP to instill fear in the people. As far as the Internet is concerned, citizens should be free to campaign for whichever party and candidate they choose.
林诗慧 萧洁盈, 联合早报
教育部降低选修华文B的门槛，受访学生大都表示欢迎，一些学者则对这调整有所保留。
Heng-Cheong Leong, MyAppleMenu
Yay! MDA have effectively banned exclusivity in the pay television market. I can now watch whatever I want on whichever operator I choose.
Not really.
Why? SingTel cannot sign any contract with the content owner that forbid StarHub from showing the same content.
I own the content. I have the leverage. I decide how I want my content to be shown.
But it's the law, man. You want to do business here, you have to obey our laws.
Fine. I'll structured my licensing fees such that the first operator, if it so chooses to pay a larger fee, will get -- let's just call it first-comer-privilege -- a promise from me that the licensing fee for subsequent operators will be so expensive that no second operator will be able to pay and carry my content.
Oooh ooh ooh, loophole. MDA can simply 'fine-tune' the law that forbids content owner from charging different prices and different terms to different pay TV operators.
You do realize that this will effectively wipe out any new entrants and small players in the pay-TV market, right?
So be it. You can't dictate the terms, you powerful content-owner, if you want to do business here in Singapore.
Fine. I'll just treat the entire Singapore's pay television market as one operator since it doesn't matter who I talk to anymore, and I'll just raise my prices to take account into that. I'll treat all pricing negotiation effectively as though you are licensing my content exclusively.
You can't do that! We'll just not pay for your content. You'll lose our market.
Fine. You are just a tiny red dot with a tiny population. I'll rather have my lawyers spent their negotiation time with the Chinese government.
We'll grow our population by importing foreign talents so that you can't ignore us. 6.5 billion? 10 billion? 20 billion? No problem!
Have you heard of the internet? We'll start selling our content exclusively on the internet. You want to be first country in the world to ban my website? And I'll charge whatever I want, without any middleman in your country to get any part of my revenue.
...
Honestly, from where I am sitting, this whole pay-tv content-sharing policy from MDA looks drafted by a bunch of technocrats with no real-world experience, and no real vision on where the whole market is going. And when SingTel realizes it can't use exclusivity as a loss-leader, consumers will have to continue to pay hefty prices for entertainment from big name content owners.
Simon Calder, Independent
If you can create a gambler's paradise amid the Mojave Desert, the thinking goes, you can create a casino amid a straitlaced state. Move over, Vegas; viva Sentosa.
Silent Eloquence
The next time someone talks to me about Singapore, I just wish they would talk about not just the concrete buildings or the super clean streets or the democracy that doesn’t seem to be, but something less superficial.
Jeremy Au Yong, Straits Times
The internet community's reaction to the hoax by former Singaporean lawyer Gopalan Nair last weekend has been a good example of how it can self-regulate.
Acting minister for information, communications and the arts Lui Tuck Yew yesterday praised local netizens for being sceptical about the blog post claiming that minister mentor Lee Kuan Yew had suffered a heart attack.
Grace Chua, Straits Times
Leisure anglers may soon have to pay for a licence before they can drop their line and bait into Singapore waters.
Yeo Shang Long, Straits Times
In a clear warning to those who sublet their flats illegally, the Housing Board (HDB) has moved to take back three apartments linked to a real estate agent who owns five private properties.
Singaporean Skeptic
Watching the way Singaporeans treat their maids made me think that some Singaporeans are real bastards. Even the maid agency is crazy.
The Online Citizen
Selective vision, perhaps? That’s understandable. As far as the Straits Times are concerned, we’ve well on our way riding off into a glorious Gattaca-esque sunset and living meritocratically ever after.
Zul Othman, Today
Several opposition parties without a current presence in Parliament have expressed concern over some of the proposed rule changes on Internet elections advertising, which were tabled in Parliament on Thursday.
Richard Hartung, Today
Clutter-free sidewalks for pedestrians seem to be a disappearing sight in many parts of Singapore.
Leong Sze Hian, The Online Citizen
Normally, most countries have to spend money to solve a problem, but in Singapore, too often, the solution makes more money instead, and the problem never seems to go away!
Desmond Wong, Channel NewsAsia
The changes in rules for pay-TV services in Singapore could help improve the business climate for SingTel and StarHub. That's according to industry-watchers speaking to Channel NewsAsia.
Ng Lian Cheong & Evelyn Choo, Channel NewsAsia
In an effort to discourage retailers from selling cigarettes, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) could increase retail licence fees for tobacco by September.
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