Article 1.　The purpose of this Law is to regulate broadcasting so as to meet the public welfare, and to strive for the sound development thereof, in accordance with the principles stated below:

Article 2.　The interpretation of this Law and the orders issued thereunder shall be in accordance with the following definitions:

Article 3.　Broadcast programs shall never be interfered with or regulated by any person, excepting the case where he does so upon the powers provided for by law.

Article 4.　In case a broadcast enterpriser (meaning a person who has been granted a license for his broadcast station in accordance with the provisions of the Radio Law (Law No.131 of 1950);hereinafter the same) has broadcast any false matter, he must, when there is a demand, within two weeks of the day on which it was broadcast, from the person whose rights have been infringed or any person directly concerned, inquire into the matter at once and in case it was cleared up that what was broadcast was not true, broadcast the correction or cancellation within two days on which the matter is cleared in an appropriate manner by the enterpriser through the same equipment tantamount to the equipment which the broadcasting was made.

2　The same shall apply when the broadcast enterpriser has found any untrue matter in his broadcasting.

3　The provisions of the preceding two paragraphs shall not preclude the claim for damages in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code (Law No.89 of 1896).

Article 5.　International broadcasting must not be such as to hurt the international rapprochement. The same shall apply to the case of transmission to foreign countries of broadcast programs compiled for the purpose of broadcasting in foreign countries.

Article 6.　Broadcast enterprisers must not receive and rebroadcast the broadcastings of any other broadcast enterprisers, unless their consent is obtained.

Article 7.　The purpose of the Broadcasting Corporation of Japan (hereinafter to be simply referred to as "The Corporation" ) is to conduct its broadcasting for the public welfare in such a manner that its broadcasting may be received all over Japan.

Article 8.　The Corporation shall be a juridical person established under the provisions of this Law for the accomplishment of the purpose mentioned in the preceding Article.

Article 9.　For the accomplishment of the purpose mentioned in Article 7, the Corporation shall conduct the following businesses:

2　The Corporation may, in addition to those businesses mentioned in the preceding paragraph, conduct the following businesses for the accomplishment of the purpose mentioned in Article 7:

3　In conducting the businesses mentioned in the preceding two paragraphs, the Corporation shall not aim at profits.

4　The Corporation shall not take actions, whatever the pretext may be, to regulate or interfere with the business of the manufacturers of, dealers in, or repairers of, radio divices, such as to certify broadcast radio receiving devices or vacuum tubes or component parts thereof, or to designate authorized repairers of broadcast radio receivers.

5　Repairing service of broadcast radio receiving devices mentioned in paragraph 2 item (7) may be conducted only at such designated places extremely inconvenient to person who receive radio broadcast in utilizing the repairer of broadcast radio receivers or where it is desirable for the promotion of the interest of those who receive radio broadcast, as deemed necessary for the benefit of those receiving by the Radio Regulatory Commission according to its investigation conducted at regular intervals.

Article 10.　The head office of the Corporation shall be located in Tokyo-To.

2　The Corporation may have its branch offices at necessary places.

Article 11.　The Corporation shall prescribe the following matters under the Articles of Corporation:

2　The Articles of Corporation may be amended with the prior approval of the Radio Regulatory Commission.

Article 12.　The Corporation shall in accordance with the procedures as to be provided for by Cabinet Order, register such matters as the change of location of head office, establishment of branch offices, and other matters prescribed by Cabinet Order.

2　Matters requiring registration in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph cannot stand against a third party until they are registered.

Article 13.　The Board of Governors shall be established in the Corporation.

2　The Board of Governors shall have powers and responsibilities to decide the management policy of the Corporation and to direct and control the operation thereof.

Article 14.　The following matters shall require the decision of Board of Governors;provided that this shall not necessarily apply to such matters as deemed minor by it:

Article 15.　The Board of Governors shall be composed of eight governors and the president.

2　The Board of Governors shall have one chairman who shall be elected by the governors and the president from among the governors.

3　The chairman shall preside over the business of the Board of Governors.

4　The Board of Governors shall appoint in advance a person from among the governors to act for the chairman in the case where he is prevented from discharging his duties.

Article 16.　The governors shall be appointed by the Prime Minister with the consent of both Houses of the Diet from among persons capable of making fair judgement concerning the public welfare and having wide experience and knowledge. In this case, consideration shall be given to their appointment so as to get fair representation in the fields of education culture, science, industry and others.

2　In the appointment mentioned in the preceding paragraph, one person shall be appointed from among the persons respectively having the dwelling place in the districts prescribed in the Annexed Table.

3　In case the consent of both Houses of the Diet can not be be obtained for the appointment of the governor, in the case where the term of office of a governor expired or where there occurred a vacancy, because the Diet is not in session or the House of Representatives is dissolved, the Prime Minister may, notwithstanding the provision of paragraph 1, appoint the governor without the consent of both Houses. In such a case ex post facto approval of both Houses shall be obtained at the first session convened after such appointment.

4　A person coming under any one of the following items shall not be appointed as governor:

5　In appointing governors, it shall be avoided that five or more governors, including the president, become to belong to one and the same political party.

Article 17.　The term of office of a governor shall be three years. However, the governor to fill a vacancy shall hold his office for the remainder of the term of office of his predecessor.

2　The governors may be re-appointed.

3　Notwithstanding the provision of paragraph 1, the governors shall, even after their term of office expired, remain in office until new governors are appointed.

Article 18.　A governor shall, ipso facto, lose his office in case the consent of both Houses of the Diet under the second clause of Article 16 paragraph 3 is not obtained.

Article 19.　The Prime Minister shall dismiss a governor when he comes to fall under one of the items of Article 16 paragraph 4.

Article 20.　The Prime Minister may, with the consent of both Houses of the Diet, dismiss the governor in case such governor is deemed incompetent to perform his duties owing to his mental or physical deficiencies or to have committed acts in contravention of his official duties or such malfeasances as to render himself unfit to be a governor. In this case, the governor to be dismissed shall be given by each House of the Diet a chance for vindication of his case in accordance with the provisions prescribed by the respective Houses.

2　In case five or more of the governors including the president have come to belong to one and the same political party, the Prime Minister shall, with the consent of both Houses of the Diet, dismiss a governor or governors so as to make the number of persons beloning to one and the same political party four.

Article 21.　Excepting the cases mentioned in the preceding two Articles, governors shall not be dismissed against their will.

Article 22.　Governors shall receive no compensation. However, they shall receive travelling expenses and other actual expenses incurred by them for the execution of their duties.

Article 23.　The Board of Governors shall not open its meeting nor take decision unless the chairman and four or more persons from among the president and governors other than the chairman are present.

2　Except those prescribed otherwise elsewhere, the issues of the Board of Governors meeting shall be decided by the majority of votes of those present;in case of a tie, the chairman shall decide.

Article 24.　The Corporation shall have as officers one president, one vice-president, three directors and two auditors, in addition to the governors of the Board of Governors.

Article 25.　The Board of Directors shall be composed of the president, vice-president and directors.

2　The Board of Directors shall, in accordance with the provisions of the Articles of Corporation, deliberate on matters related to the execution of important business of the Corporation.

Article 26.　The president shall represent the the Corporation and preside over the business thereof as to be determined by the Board of Governors.

2　The vice-president shall, as to be determined by the president, represent the Corporation and assists the president in administering the business of the Corporation, act for the president when he is prevented from discharging his duties, and discharge the duties of the president when the post of the president is vacant.

3　Directors shall, as to be determined by the president, represent the Corporation and assist the president and vice-president in administering the business of the Corporation, act for the president and vice-president when both of them are prevented from discharging their duties, and discharge their duties when the posts of both the president and vice-president are vacant.

4　Auditors shall audit the business conducted by the president, vice-president and directors and report the result of the audit to the Board of Governors.

Article 27.　The president shall be appointed by the Board of Governors.

2　The appointment under the preceding paragraph shall require the decision of the Board of Governors by the majority votes of not less than six governors.

3　The vice-president and directors shall be appointed by the president with the consent of the Board of Governors.

4　Auditors shall be appointed by the Board of Governors.

5　The provisions of Article 16 paragraph 4 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the appointment of the president, vice-president, directors and auditors. In this case, "broadcast enterpriser;newspaper agency" in item (6) of the same paragraph shall read "newspaper agency."

Article 28.　The term of office of the president, vice-president, directors and auditors shall be three years. However, the president to fill a vacancy shall hold his office for the remainder of the term of office of his predecessor.

2　The president, vice-president, directors and auditors may be re-appointed.

Article 29.　The Board of Governors may dismiss the president or auditor, in case it deems that he has become incompetent to perform his duties or has committed acts in contravention of his duties or such malfeasances as to render himself unfit to be the president or auditor.

2　The president may, with the consent of the Board of Governors, dismiss the vice-president or director, in case he is deemed to have become incompetent to perform his duties or have committed acts in contravention of his duties or such malfeasances as to render himself unfit to be the vice-president or director.

Article 30.　The president, vice-president and directors shall not become an officer of any body aimed at pecuniary interests nor engage in any profit making enterprise.

2　The president, vice-president and directors shall not make any investment in any broadcast enterprise.

Article 31.　The provisions of Articles 44 (Faculty of Juridical Person of Illegal Acts), 50 (Address of Juridical Person), 54 (Limitation of Representing Right), 56 (Temporary Director) and 57 (Special Proxy) of the Civil Code and Article 35 paragraph 1 (Jurisdiction of Appointment of Temporary Director, etc.) of the Law of Procedures in Non-Contentious Matters (Law No.14 of 1898) shall apply mutatis mutandis to the Corporation.

Article 32.　Any person who is equipped with a receiving equipment capable of receiving the standard broadcasting (broadcasting operated on frequencies in the band from 535 to 1605 kc/s, inclusive) provided by the Corporation shall conclude the receiver's contract with the Corporation with regard to the reception of its broadcasting. However, this shall not necessarily apply to those equipped with receiving equipment not intended for the reception of broadcasting.

2　The Corporation shall, unless in accordance with the standard approved by the Radio Regulatory Commission in advance, not exempt the collection of receiver's fee from a person of the main clause of the preceding paragraph.

3　The Corporation shall obtain the prior approval of the Radio Regulatory Commission for the terms of the contract mentioned in paragraph 1. The same shall apply to the intended change thereof.

Article 33.　The Radio Regulatory Commission may order the Corporation to conduct international broadcastings, designating such necessary matters as the service areas and matters to be broadcast.

Article 34.　The Radio Regulatory Commission may, when it is deemed necessary for the improvement or development of broadcasting, order the Corporation to make research in matters designated within the limits mentioned in Article 9 paragraph 1 item (4).

2　The result of any research performed according to the provision of the preceding paragraph shall be utilized so as to contribute to the interests of the public such as the development of broadcasting enterprise.

Article 35.　Expenses required for the services performed by the Corporation in accordance with the provisions of the preceding two Articles shall be borne by the State,

2　The orders mentioned in the preceding two Articles shall be given within the limits that the amount borne by the State in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph shall not exceed the budgetary appropriations approved by the Diet.

Article 36.　The business year of the Corporation shall begin in April every year and end in March of the following year.

Article 37.　The Corporation shall prepare the budget of revenues and expenditurers, business project and financial program for every business year and present them to the Radio Regulatory Commission. The same procedures shall be followed for the alteration thereof.

2　Upon receipt of the budget of revenues and expenditures, business project and financial program mentioned in the preceding paragraph, the Radio Regulatory Commission shall review them and transmit them with its comments through the Cabinet to the Diet for approval.

3　In case any recommendation to make any change in the items of the budget of revenues and expenditures, business project and financial program mentioned in the preceding paragraph is made in accordance with the provision of the same paragraph, the appropriate committee of the Diet will obtain the view of the Corporation.

4　The monthly amount of receiver's fee to be collected from a person who concluded the receiver's contract in accordance with the main clause of Article 32 paragraph 1 shall be determined by the Diet by approving the budget of revenues and expenditures mentioned in paragraph 1.

Article 38.　The Corporation shall prepare its business report for every business year and present it to the Radio Regulatory Commission within two months from the end of every business year.

2　On receipt of the business report mentioned in the preceding paragraph, the Radio Regulatory Commission shall present it to the Diet through the Cabinet with the views of the Commission attached thereto.

Article 39.　The income of the Corporation shall not be expended for other purposes than the performance of businesses listed in Article 9 paragraphs 1 and 2.

Article 40.　The Corporation shall prepare the inventory, balance sheet and profit and loss statement of every business year together with the written explanation thereof and present them to the Radio Regulatory Commission within two months from the end of the business year.

2　The Radio Regulatory Commission shall, upon receipt of the documents mentioned in the preceding paragraph, present them to the Cabinet through the Prime Minister.

3　The Cabinet shall submit the documents mentioned in the preceding paragraph to the Dietafter the audit of the Board of Audit.

Article 41.　The Board of Audit shall audit the Corporation.

Article 42.　The Corporation may, with the prior approval of the Minister of Finance, issue the broadcast bond to raise the fund for the construction or improvement of broadcast equipment.

2　The total amount of issuance of the broadcast bond mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall not exceed three billion yen.

3　In case the Corporation has issued the broadcast bond in accordance with the provision of paragraph 1, it shall, as the reserve fund for redemption, lay aside the sum equivalent to one-tenth of unredeemed amount of the bond issued as of the end of every business year.

4　The Corporation may appropriate the fund prescribed in the preceding paragraph only for the redemption of the broadcast bond.

5　Creditors of the broadcast bond of the Corporation shall be entitled to be paid for their credits prior to any other creditors on the properties of the Corporation.

6　The order of priority mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be next to the ordinary preferential right mentioned in the Civil Code.

7　As regards necessary matters relating to the broadcast bond, in addition to those prescribed in the preceding six paragraphs, provisions relating to the debenture in the Commercial Code (Law No.48 of 1899) and the Law of Procedures in Non-Contentious Matters shall apply mutatis mutandis in accordance with the provisions of Cabinet Order.

Article 43.　The Corporation shall not abolish any of its broadcast stations or suspend the broadcasting thereof for more than twelve hours without the prior approval of the Radio Regulatory Commission. However, this shall not apply to the cases caused by force majeure.

2　In case the Corporation has suspended its broadcasting, it shall, excepting the case where the prior approval mentioned in the preceding paragraph is given, report to that effect to the Radio Regulatory Commission without delay.

Article 44.　The Corporation shall do its best in programming to satisfy the wishes of the people as well as to contribute to elevating the level of civilization.

2　The Corporation shall, in order to know the wishes of the people, conduct scientific listening polls at regular intervals and make the result thereof public.

3　In the compiling of broadcast programs the Corporation shall follow the principles laid down in the following respective items:

Article 45.　In case the Corporation allowed any candidate for an elective office to broadcast his political views or make a campaign speech, it must, on application, let other candidates for the same office in the same election broadcast under the same conditions.

Article 46.　The Corporation shall not broadcast any advertisement related to any other person's commercial business.

2　The provision of the preceding paragraph shall not, in case where necessary in the compiling of broadcast programs and regarded as not for advertisement related to any other person's commercial business, preclude the broadcasting of the name or title of the author or operator of the materials of broadcast program.

Article 47.　The Corporation shall not, without the prior approval of the Radio Regulatory Commission, transfer, lease, offer as a security, nor entrust the operation thereof, nor, whatever the method may be, subject to the control of any other person, the whole or part of its broadcast equipment.

2　In case the Radio Regulatory Commission intends to give the approval in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph, the consent of both Houses of the Diet shall be obtained.

Article 48.　Income tax and juridical person tax shall not be imposed upon the Corporation.

Article 49.　The broadcasting business of the Corporation shall be treated as the business authorized to use the eminent domain right for the acquisition and use of land prescribed in Article 2 of the Eminent Domain Law (Law No.29 of 1900), and the same law shall apply.

Article 50.　Matters related to the dissolution of the Corporation shall be prescribed by law separately.

2　When the Corporation is dissolved, the remaining properties of the Corporation shall be reverted to the State.

Article 51.　In case a private broadcast enterpriser (broadcast enterpriser other than the Corporation;hereinafter the same) broadcasts an advertising broadcasting with charge, it shall announce that the broadcasting thereof is an advertising broadcasting.

Article 52.　In case a private broadcast enterpriser has allowed any candidate for an elective office to broadcast his political views or make a campaign speech over the former's broadcast equipment or through other broadcast enterpriser's, it shall, on application, let other candidates for the same office in the same election broadcast, under the same conditions whether with or without charge.

Article 53.　The provision of Article 44 paragraph 3 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the private broadcast enterprises.

Article 54.　In case an officer or personnel of the Corporation has, in connection with his duties, received, demanded, or obtained promise for, any bribe, he shall be sentenced to a penal servitude for a period not exceeding three years.

2　In case a person who is going to be the officer or the personnel of the Corporation has received, demanded, or obtained promise for, any bribe upon solicitation concerning the official business which he is going to take charge of, the person shall be punished with the same penalty as mentioned in the preceding paragraph when he becomes the officer or the personnel of the Corporation.

3　In case a person who was the officer or the personnel of the Corporation has received, demanded, or obtained promise for, any bribe for conducting unjust actions or for not conducting just actions, in the performance of his official duties upon solicitation during his term of office, he shall be punished with the same penalty as mentioned in paragraph 1.

4　A person who has given, offered or promised any bribe provided for in the preceding three paragraphs shall be sentenced to a penal servitude for a period not exceeding three years or to a fine not exceeding two hundred fifty thousand yen.

5　In the case of paragraphs 1 to 3 inclusive, the bribe received by the officer or the personnel of the Corporation shall be confiscated. In case the whole or part of the bribe cannot be confiscated, the amount worth the same shall be collected.

Article 55.　In any one of the following cases, the officer of the Corporation who has committed the violation shall be sentenced to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand yen:

Article 56.　A person who has violated the provision of Article 4 paragraph 1 shall be sentenced to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand yen.

2　The prosecution of the offense mentioned in the preceding paragraph, if it concerns private affairs, shall only take place upon complaint.

Article 57.　In case the representative of a juridical person, or the proxy, employee or other worker of a juridical person or natural person has, in connection with the business of the juridical person or natural person, committed the offenses mentioned in the preceding Article, besides the offender, the juridical person or natural person shall also be punished with the fine mentioned in the same Article.

2　In the case of the preceding paragraph, the prosecution mentioned in paragraph 2 of the preceding Article brought against the offender shall be effective to the juridical person or natural person;the prosecution brought against the juridical person or natural person shall be effective to the offender.

Article 58.　In case the officers of the Corporation have, ia contravention of this Law or the orders issued thereunder, neglected to register, or registered untrue matters, they shall be subjected to an administrative fine not exceeding ten thousand yen.

Article 59.　In case the officers of the Corporation do not, in contravention of the provision of Article 43 paragraph 2, make the notification, they shall be subjected to an administrative fine not exceeding three thousand yen.