CITIZENS OF SEOUL QUEUED OUTSIDE A GOVERNMENT DISTRIBUTION CENTRE JAN 15 TO BUY SPECIAL LOW-PRICED TELEVISION RECEIVERS. THE SCHEME WAS DEVISED BY THE SOUTH KOREAN MINISTRY OF PUBLIC INFORMATION, 80 THAT PROGRAMMES BROADCAST BY THE NEWLY OPENED GOVERNMENT-SPONSORED TELEVISION STATION WOULD RECEIVE A WIDER AUDIENCE.

THE TELEVISION RECEIVERS - ABOUT 7,000 OF THEM - ARE OF JAPANESE MANUFACTURE, AND A LAW WAS PASSED EXEMPTING THE SETS FROM THE CUSTOMARY IMPORT DUTY SO THAT SOUTH KOREANS COULD BUY THEM AT A LOWER PRICE - ON THE INSTALMENT PLAN OVER FIVE TO TEN MONTHS.

TELEVISION IS NOT NEW TO SOUTH KOREA. UNFORTUNATELY, THE PREVIOUS KOREAN STATION - HLKZ-TV - WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE THREE YEARS AGO, AND UNTIL THE NEW STATION OPENED THERE WAS ONLY THE AMERICAN FORCES (KOREA) NETWORK TV, BROADCASTING AMERICAN PROGRAMMED TO US SERVICEMEN IN SOUTH KOREA. NOW, HOWEVER, THE NEW KOREAN BROADCASTING SYSTEM (KBS) WILL BROADCAST PROGRAMMES DESIGNED EXCLUSIVELY FOR THE NATIONAL TASTE.