The "Administrative Measures for Network Access Certification of Radio and Television Equipment and Devices" were reviewed and approved at the Bureau Meeting of the National Radio and Television Administration on June 29, 2018. They are now officially announced and will come into effect as of August 20, 2018.
Director Nie Chenxi
July 16, 2018
Administrative Measures for the Network Access Certification of Radio and Television Equipment and Materials
Chapter 1 General Provisions
Article 1  To ensure the security of radio and television broadcasting and networks, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of broadcasting and television users, and standardize the management of network access certification for broadcasting and television equipment and devices, this Measures is formulated in accordance with relevant regulations issued by the State Council.
Article 2  The broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council are responsible for managing the nationwide network access certification of broadcasting and television equipment and devices (hereinafter referred to as "network access certification").
Local people's governments at or above the county level, through their respective radio and television authorities, are responsible for managing the network access certification within their administrative regions in accordance with these Measures.
Article 3  The state implements network access certification for equipment and devices intended for use in broadcasting and television transmission organizations, broadcasting and television transmission coverage networks, and monitoring and regulatory networks. The certificate of network access certification for broadcasting and television equipment (hereinafter referred to as the "Network Access Certification") is issued by the broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council. Equipment or devices that have not obtained this certification are prohibited from being used in broadcasting and television transmission organizations, broadcasting and television transmission coverage networks, and monitoring and regulatory networks.
Chapter 2: Application and Recognition
Article 4  The following radio and television equipment must undergo network access certification:
(1) Broadcasting and television network security equipment and materials;
(2) Program production and broadcasting equipment for the radio and television center;
(3) Front-end equipment and materials for cable television systems;
(IV) Wired Radio and Television Transmission and Access Equipment;
(5) Wireless radio and television broadcasting transmission equipment and materials;
(6) Satellite radio and television equipment and devices;
(7) Equipment and devices for integrating and supporting services such as conditional access to broadcast and television signals, as well as user management;
(8) Broadcasting and television monitoring and regulatory equipment and instruments;
(9) Specialized power supplies and equipment for broadcasting and television systems;
(10) Other equipment and devices that should undergo network access certification.
The catalog of radio and television equipment and devices subject to network access certification is formulated and published by the broadcasting and television authority under the State Council.
Article 5  Manufacturing enterprises applying for network access certification must submit the following materials to the radio and television authority under the State Council:
(1) Application Form for Network Access Certification.
(II) Materials related to the quality management system.
(3) Technical documentation for the product, including the product user manual, feature descriptions, performance specifications, principle block diagrams, equipment appearance photos, the company’s internal product standards, and a detailed explanation outlining how these internal standards differ from relevant national or industry standards.
(4) A copy of the business license of the corporate entity. If applying through an authorized agency, please also provide the power of attorney, along with copies of the agency’s business license and any relevant documentation related to its quality management system.
(5) For products subject to production license management, manufacturing enterprises must present a copy of their production license.
(6) For products subject to safety certification and safety testing, the manufacturing enterprises shall provide either a safety certification certificate or a safety testing report.
(7) Photocopies of the trademark registration certificate and other relevant documents.
When applying for network access certification of new broadcasting and television equipment products that do not yet have national or industry standards, applicants must, in addition to submitting the aforementioned application materials, also provide the corresponding technical solutions.
All submitted applications for network access certification must be completed in Chinese. Foreign-language documents and materials must include corresponding Chinese translations.
Article 6  If the application materials are incomplete or do not meet the statutory requirements, the radio and television authority under the State Council shall notify the applicant within 5 working days from the date of receipt of the materials, specifying all the documents that need to be corrected or supplemented.
The State Council's radio and television authorities should gradually improve the electronic government service platform for the network access certification of broadcasting and television equipment and materials.
Article 7  The broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council have commissioned testing organizations to evaluate sampled products according to relevant national standards, industry standards, or applicable network access technical specifications. A network access sampling test report must be issued within one month, unless the testing process—based on the specified standards—requires more than one month to complete.
Article 8  The broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council shall conduct a comprehensive review of the application materials and network access sampling test reports, and make a decision in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Licensing Law.
For those that meet the criteria, a Network Access Certification Certificate will be issued; for those that do not qualify, a decision of non-recognition will be made, accompanied by a detailed explanation of the reasons, and the applicant enterprise will be notified in writing. The applicant enterprise may re-submit its Network Access Certification application only after three months from the date the decision of non-recognition is made.
Article 9  The Network Access Certification Certificate is uniformly printed by the radio and television authority under the State Council and is valid for three years. The certificate must not be forged, altered, rented, lent, resold, or transferred under any circumstances.
Those whose validity period expires and who wish to continue obtaining network access certification must reapply according to the provisions of these measures no later than 3 months before the expiration date.
Article 10  Manufacturing enterprises that have already obtained the Network Access Certification must reapply for certification according to the provisions of this regulation if there are changes in their product technology, name, model, or quality management system. In cases where the enterprise name has changed, the company must submit its original Network Access Certificate along with relevant documentation proving the name change to the State Council’s radio and television authority to formally update the registration details.
Article 11  The broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council shall publicly announce the broadcast and television equipment products and manufacturing enterprises that have obtained the network access certification.
Chapter 3: Supervision and Management
Article 12  Manufacturing enterprises may mark the outer packaging of radio and television equipment and components that have obtained the Network Access Certification with the certificate number, validity period, as well as quality labels in Chinese—including product name, model, and place of origin—complying with relevant national regulations.
Article 13  Manufacturing enterprises should establish and improve robust quality management and after-sales service systems to ensure the consistent quality and reliability of radio and television equipment products, and must not compromise product quality or performance.
Article 14  The broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council shall entrust testing institutions whose qualifications, testing capabilities, and scope of testing align with the requirements for network access certification testing. If the qualifications or testing capacity of a commissioned testing institution no longer meet the criteria for conducting network access certification tests, the broadcasting and television authorities under the State Council shall revoke or amend the testing commission accordingly.
Article 15  The commissioned testing organization shall conduct tests strictly according to the standards, take full responsibility for the test results, and ensure the authenticity and accuracy of both the test reports and the test data. Additionally, the commissioned testing organization is legally obligated to maintain confidentiality.
Testing organizations entrusted with examining equipment and materials applying for network access must not charge the manufacturers seeking certification any testing fees, and all test samples must be returned to the applicant manufacturers.
Article 16  The provincial-level local people's government departments responsible for radio and television shall conduct supervision, inspection, and random checks on manufacturers of radio and television equipment and their products that have obtained network access certification within their administrative areas. The results of these checks will be publicly announced and submitted in summary form to the State Council's radio and television authorities.
Article 17  The broadcasting and television authority under the State Council will add manufacturing enterprises that seriously violate these regulations to a list of violators and untrustworthy entities, and publicly announce it to society.
Article 18  Any organization or individual has the right to lodge complaints or report violations of these regulations to the competent radio and television authorities.
Chapter 4: Legal Liability
Article 19  Broadcasting and television broadcasting organizations, as well as operators of broadcasting and television transmission networks and monitoring/regulation networks, that violate these regulations by improperly using equipment and devices lacking the required network access certification will receive a warning and be ordered to rectify their actions by the broadcasting authorities under county-level or higher local governments. In cases where such violations lead to broadcast safety incidents, the responsible officials and directly accountable personnel will face disciplinary measures or administrative penalties imposed by the broadcasting authorities or other competent bodies in accordance with the law. If the misconduct constitutes a crime, criminal liability will be pursued according to law.
Article 20  Manufacturing enterprises that have already obtained the Network Access Certification Certificate will receive a warning from the radio and television authorities at or above the county level, and the announcement will be publicly issued by the State Council's radio and television authorities if any of the following circumstances apply:
(1) Products manufactured not in accordance with the network access certification standards, resulting in a noticeable decline in product quality or performance;
(II) The quality management system and management capabilities fail to meet the standards in place at the time of certification;
(III) Failing to provide after-sales service.
Article 21  Manufacturing enterprises that have already obtained the Network Access Certification Certificate will receive a warning from the radio and television authorities at or above the county level if they fall under any of the following circumstances; they may also be fined between 10,000 and 30,000 yuan, and the State Council's radio and television authorities will publicly announce the violation. If the actions constitute a crime, criminal liability will be pursued in accordance with the law.
(1) When product quality or performance significantly deteriorates, leading to a serious quality incident or causing severe consequences;
(2) If the product technology, name, model, or quality management system has changed, but the network access certification application has not been re-submitted in accordance with the provisions of these Measures, and the original network access certification certificate is still being used;
(III) Altering, renting, lending, reselling, or transferring the network access certification;
(4) Falsifying or illegally using the network access certification.
Article 22  Manufacturing enterprises that obtain network access certification through improper means such as deception or bribery will have their certificates revoked by the radio and television authorities under the State Council. Starting from the date of certificate revocation, their applications for network access certification will not be accepted for a period of three years.
Article 23  If a testing organization issues false test reports, fraudulent certification documents, inaccurate data, or conducts tests that deviate from established standards, resulting in significant impact or losses, the State Council’s radio and television authority will issue a warning and revoke its authorization to carry out testing tasks. In cases where such actions constitute a crime, criminal liability will be pursued according to law. Additionally, responsible managers and directly accountable personnel will face disciplinary measures or other appropriate actions imposed by the radio and television authority or other competent institutions, as mandated by law.
Article 24  Staff members of the radio and television administration authorities who fail to fulfill their duties as outlined in these regulations during network access certification—specifically, those who abuse their power, neglect their responsibilities, or engage in corruption for personal gain—will be disciplined or formally dealt with by the radio and television authorities under the county-level or higher local governments according to law. If their actions constitute a crime, they will be held criminally accountable under the law.
Chapter 5: Supplementary Provisions
Article 25  This measure takes effect from August 20, 2018. The "Administrative Measures for the Network Access Certification of Radio and Television Equipment," issued by the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television on June 18, 2004, is hereby repealed simultaneously.