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“(6) Where the licence holder applies to OFCOM for the variation of a | |
condition which— | |
(a) was imposed under subsection (1)(b), and | |
(b) relates to the characteristics of digital sound programme | |
services to be broadcast under the licence, | 5 |
then (subject to subsections (6A) and (6B)) OFCOM must vary the | |
condition in accordance with the application. | |
(6A) OFCOM are not to vary a national radio multiplex licence in | |
accordance with an application under subsection (6) if it appears to | |
them that, if the application were granted, the capacity of the digital | 10 |
sound programme services broadcast under the licence to appeal to a | |
variety of tastes and interests would be unacceptably diminished. | |
(6B) OFCOM are to vary a local radio multiplex licence in accordance with | |
such an application only if they are satisfied— | |
(a) that the variation would not unacceptably narrow the range of | 15 |
programmes available by way of local digital sound | |
programme services to persons living in the area or locality for | |
which the licensed multiplex service is provided; | |
(b) that the variation would be conducive to the maintenance or | |
promotion of fair and effective competition in that area or | 20 |
locality; or | |
(c) that there is evidence that, amongst persons living in that area | |
or locality, there is a significant demand for, or significant | |
support for, the change that would result from the variation.” | |
Competition between licensed providers etc. | 25 |
304 Conditions relating to competition matters | |
(1) The regulatory regime for every licensed service includes the conditions (if | |
any) that OFCOM consider appropriate for ensuring fair and effective | |
competition in the provision of licensed services or of connected services. | |
(2) Those conditions must include the conditions (if any) that OFCOM consider | 30 |
appropriate for securing that the provider of the service does not— | |
(a) enter into or maintain any arrangements, or | |
(b) engage in any practice, | |
which OFCOM consider, or would consider, to be prejudicial to fair and | |
effective competition in the provision of licensed services or of connected | 35 |
services. | |
(3) A condition imposed under this section may require a licence holder to comply | |
with one or both of the following— | |
(a) a code for the time being approved by OFCOM for the purposes of the | |
conditions; and | 40 |
(b) directions given to him by OFCOM for those purposes. | |
(4) In this section— | |
“connected services”, in relation to licensed services, means the provision | |
of programmes for inclusion in licensed services and any other services | |
provided for purposes connected with, or with the provision of, | 45 |
licensed services; and | |
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“licensed service” means a service licensed by a Broadcasting Act licence. | |
305 Exercise of Broadcasting Act powers for a competition purpose | |
(1) This section applies to the following powers of OFCOM (their “Broadcasting | |
Act powers”)— | |
(a) their powers under this Part of this Act and under the 1990 Act and the | 5 |
1996 Act to impose or vary the conditions of a Broadcasting Act licence; | |
(b) every power of theirs to give an approval for the purposes of provision | |
contained in the conditions of such a licence; | |
(c) every power of theirs to give a direction to a person who is required to | |
comply with it by the conditions of such a licence; and | 10 |
(d) every power of theirs that is exercisable for the purpose of enforcing an | |
obligation imposed by the conditions of such a licence. | |
(2) Before exercising any of their Broadcasting Act powers for a competition | |
purpose, OFCOM must consider whether a more appropriate way of | |
proceeding in relation to some or all of the matters in question would be under | 15 |
the Competition Act 1998 (c. 41). | |
(3) If OFCOM decide that a more appropriate way of proceeding in relation to a | |
matter would be under the Competition Act 1998, they are not, to the extent of | |
that decision, to exercise their Broadcasting Act powers in relation to that | |
matter. | 20 |
(4) A person affected by a decision by OFCOM to exercise any of their | |
Broadcasting Act powers for a competition purpose may appeal to the | |
Competition Appeals Tribunal against so much of that decision as relates to the | |
exercise of that power for that purpose. | |
(5) Sections 187(3) to (8), 190 and 191 apply in the case of an appeal under | 25 |
subsection (4) as they apply in the case of an appeal under section 187(2). | |
(6) The jurisdiction of the Competition Appeals Tribunal on an appeal under | |
subsection (4) excludes— | |
(a) whether OFCOM have complied with subsection (2); and | |
(b) whether any of OFCOM’s Broadcasting Act powers have been | 30 |
exercised in contravention of subsection (3); | |
and, accordingly, those decisions by OFCOM on those matters fall to be | |
questioned only in proceedings for judicial review. | |
(7) For the purposes of this section a power is exercised by OFCOM for a | |
competition purpose if the only or main reason for exercising it is to secure that | 35 |
the holder of a Broadcasting Act licence does not— | |
(a) enter into or maintain arrangements, or | |
(b) engage in a practice, | |
which OFCOM consider, or would consider, to be prejudicial to fair and | |
effective competition in the provision of licensed services or of connected | 40 |
services. | |
(8) Nothing in this section applies to— | |
(a) the exercise by OFCOM of any of their powers under sections 280 to 284 | |
or Schedule 11; | |
(b) the exercise by them of any power for the purposes of any provision of | 45 |
a condition included in a licence in accordance with any those sections; | |
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(c) the exercise by them of any power for the purpose of enforcing such a | |
condition. | |
(9) In subsection (7) “connected service” and “licensed service” each has the same | |
meaning as in section 304. | |
(10) References in this section to the exercise of a power include references to an | 5 |
exercise of a power in pursuance of a duty imposed on OFCOM by or under an | |
enactment. | |
306 Review of powers exercised for competition purposes | |
(1) It shall be the duty of OFCOM, at such intervals as they consider appropriate | |
to carry out a review of so much of each of the following as has effect for a | 10 |
competition purpose— | |
(a) every code made or approved by them under or for the purposes of a | |
broadcasting provision; | |
(b) the guidance issued by them under or for the purposes of broadcasting | |
provisions; and | 15 |
(c) every direction given by them under or for the purposes of a | |
broadcasting provision. | |
(2) Before modifying or revoking, or withdrawing his approval from, anything | |
which is subject to periodic review under this section, OFCOM must consult | |
such persons as they consider appropriate. | 20 |
(3) Subsection (2) applies irrespective or whether the modification, revocation or | |
withdrawal is in consequence of a review under this section. | |
(4) For the purposes of this section a provision has effect for a competition purpose | |
to the extent that its only or main purpose is to secure that the holder of a | |
Broadcasting Act licence does not— | 25 |
(a) enter into or maintain arrangements, or | |
(b) engage in a practice, | |
which OFCOM consider, or would consider, to be prejudicial to fair and | |
effective competition in the provision of licensed services or of connected | |
services. | 30 |
(5) In this section “broadcasting provision” means— | |
(a) a provision of this Part of this Act, of the 1990 Act or of the 1996 Act, or | |
(b) any provision of a Broadcasting Act licence, | |
other than provision contained in any of sections 280 to 284 of this Act or | |
Schedule 11 to this Act. | 35 |
Programme and fairness standards for television and radio | |
307 OFCOM’s standards code | |
(1) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to set, and from time to time to review and | |
revise, such standards for the content of programmes to be included in | |
television and radio services as appear to them best calculated to secure the | 40 |
standards objectives. | |
(2) The standards objectives are— | |
(a) that persons under the age of eighteen are protected; | |
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(b) that material likely to encourage or to incite the commission of crime or | |
to lead to disorder is not included in television and radio services; | |
(c) that news included in television and radio services is presented with | |
due impartiality and that the impartiality requirements of section 308 | |
are complied with; | 5 |
(d) that news included in television and radio services is reported with due | |
accuracy; | |
(e) that the proper degree of responsibility is exercised with respect to the | |
content of programmes which are religious programmes; | |
(f) that generally accepted standards are applied to the contents of | 10 |
television and radio services so as to provide adequate protection for | |
members of the public from the inclusion in such services of offensive | |
and harmful material; | |
(g) that the inclusion of unsuitable advertising in television and radio | |
services is prevented; | 15 |
(h) that the unsuitable sponsorship of programmes included in television | |
and radio services is prevented; | |
(i) that there is no undue discrimination between advertisers who seek to | |
have advertisements included in television and radio services; and | |
(j) that there is no use of techniques which exploit the possibility of | 20 |
conveying a message to viewers or listeners, or of otherwise | |
influencing their minds, without their being aware, or fully aware, of | |
what has occurred. | |
(3) The standards set by OFCOM under this section must be contained in one or | |
more codes. | 25 |
(4) In setting or revising any standards under this section, OFCOM must have | |
regard, in particular and to such extent as appears to them to be relevant to the | |
securing of the standards objectives, to each of the following matters— | |
(a) the degree of harm or offence likely to be caused by the inclusion of any | |
particular sort of material in programmes generally, or in programmes | 30 |
of a particular description; | |
(b) the likely size and composition of the potential audience for | |
programmes included in television and radio services generally, or in | |
television and radio services of a particular description; | |
(c) the likely expectation of the audience as to the nature of a programme’s | 35 |
content and the extent to which the nature of a programme’s content | |
can be brought to the attention of potential members of the audience; | |
(d) the likelihood of persons who are unaware of the nature of a | |
programme’s content being unintentionally exposed, by their own | |
actions, to that content; | 40 |
(e) the desirability of securing that the content of services identifies when | |
there is a change affecting the nature of a service that is being watched | |
or listened to and, in particular, a change that is relevant to the | |
application of the standards set under this section; and | |
(f) the desirability of maintaining the independence of editorial control | 45 |
over programme content. | |
(5) OFCOM must ensure that the standards from time to time in force under this | |
section include— | |
(a) minimum standards applicable to all programmes included in | |
television and radio services; and | 50 |
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(b) such other standards applicable to particular descriptions of | |
programmes, or of television and radio services, as appear to them | |
appropriate for securing the standards objectives. | |
(6) Standards set to secure the standards objective specified in subsection (2)(e) | |
shall, in particular, contain provision designed to secure that religious | 5 |
programmes do not involve— | |
(a) any improper exploitation of any susceptibilities of the audience for | |
such a programme; or | |
(b) any abusive treatment of the religious views and beliefs of those | |
belonging to a particular religion or religious denomination. | 10 |
(7) In setting standards under this section, OFCOM must take account of such of | |
the international obligations of the United Kingdom as the Secretary of State | |
may notify to them for the purposes of this section. | |
(8) In this section “news” means news in whatever form it is included in a service. | |
308 Special impartiality requirements | 15 |
(1) The requirements of this section are— | |
(a) the exclusion, in the case television and radio services, from | |
programmes included in any of those services of all expressions of the | |
views or opinions of the person providing the service on any of the | |
matters mentioned in subsection (2); | 20 |
(b) the preservation, in the case of every television broadcasting service, | |
teletext service, national radio service and national digital sound | |
programme service, of due impartiality, on the part of the person | |
providing the service, as respects all of those matters; | |
(c) the prevention, in the case of every local radio service, local digital | 25 |
sound programme service or radio licensable content service, of the | |
giving of undue prominence in the programmes included in the service | |
to the views and opinions of particular persons or bodies on any of the | |
those matters. | |
(2) Those matters are— | 30 |
(a) matters of political or industrial controversy; and | |
(b) matters relating to current public policy. | |
(3) Subsection (1)(a) does not require— | |
(a) the exclusion from television programmes of views or opinions relating | |
to television broadcasting; or | 35 |
(b) the exclusion from radio programmes of views or opinions relating to | |
sound broadcasting. | |
(4) For the purposes of this section— | |
(a) the requirement specified in subsection (1)(b) is one that (subject to any | |
rules under subsection (5)) may be satisfied by being satisfied in | 40 |
relation to a series of programmes taken as a whole; | |
(b) the requirement specified in subsection (1)(c) is one that needs to be | |
satisfied only in relation to all the programmes included in the service | |
in question, taken as a whole. | |
(5) OFCOM’s standards code shall contain provision setting out the rules to be | 45 |
observed in connection with the following matters— | |
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(a) the application of the requirement specified in subsection (1)(b); | |
(b) the determination of what, in relation to that requirement, constitutes a | |
series of programmes for the purposes of subsection (4)(a); | |
(c) the application of the requirement in subsection (1)(c). | |
(6) Any provision made for the purposes of subsection (5)(a) must, in particular, | 5 |
take account of the need to ensure the preservation of impartiality in relation | |
to the following matters (taking each matter separately)— | |
(a) matters of major political or industrial controversy, and | |
(b) major matters relating to current public policy, | |
as well as of the need to ensure that the requirement specified in subsection | 10 |
(1)(b) is satisfied generally in relation to a series of programmes taken as a | |
whole. | |
(7) In this section “national radio service” and “local radio service” mean, | |
respectively, a sound broadcasting service which is a national service within | |
the meaning of section 239 and a sound broadcasting service which is a local | 15 |
service within the meaning of that section. | |
309 Objectives for advertisements and sponsorship | |
(1) Standards set by OFCOM to secure the objectives mentioned in section | |
307(2)(g) and (h)— | |
(a) must include general provision governing standards and practice in | 20 |
advertising and in the sponsoring of programmes; and | |
(b) may include provision prohibiting advertisements and forms and | |
methods of advertising or sponsorship (whether generally or in | |
particular circumstances). | |
(2) The standards so set must, in particular, include provision to secure that | 25 |
programme services do not include— | |
(a) any advertisement which is inserted by or on behalf of a body whose | |
objects are wholly or mainly of a political nature; | |
(b) any advertisement which is directed towards a political end; or | |
(c) any advertisement which has a connection with an industrial dispute. | 30 |
(3) For the purposes of this section objects of a political nature and political ends | |
include each of the following— | |
(a) influencing the outcome of elections or referendums, whether in the | |
United Kingdom or elsewhere; | |
(b) bringing about changes of the law in the whole or a part of the United | 35 |
Kingdom or elsewhere, or otherwise influencing the legislative process | |
in any country or territory; | |
(c) influencing the policies or decisions of local, regional or national | |
governments, whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere; | |
(d) influencing the policies or decisions of persons on whom public | 40 |
functions are conferred by or under the law of the United Kingdom or | |
of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom; | |
(e) influencing the policies or decisions of persons on whom functions are | |
conferred by or under international agreements; | |
(f) influencing public opinion on a matter which, in the United Kingdom, | 45 |
is a matter of public controversy; | |
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(g) promoting the interests of a party or other group of persons organised, | |
in the United Kingdom or elsewhere, for political ends. | |
(4) OFCOM— | |
(a) shall, in relation to programme services, have a general responsibility | |
with respect to advertisements and methods of advertising and | 5 |
sponsorship; and | |
(b) in the discharge of that responsibility may include conditions in any | |
licence which is granted by them for any such service that enable | |
OFCOM to impose requirements with respect to any of those matters | |
that go beyond the provisions of OFCOM’s standards code. | 10 |
(5) OFCOM must, from time to time, consult the Secretary of State about— | |
(a) the descriptions of advertisements that should not be included in | |
programme services; and | |
(b) the forms and methods of advertising and sponsorship that should not | |
be employed in, or in connection with, the provision of such services. | 15 |
(6) The Secretary of State may give OFCOM directions as to the matters mentioned | |
in subsection (5); and it shall be the duty of OFCOM to comply with any such | |
direction. | |
(7) Nothing in the provisions of this Chapter relating to standards set by OFCOM | |
under section 307 is to be construed as authorising or requiring a prohibition | 20 |
on the inclusion in a programme service of— | |
(a) an advertisement of a public service nature inserted by, or on behalf of, | |
a government department; or | |
(b) a party political broadcast which complies (so far as they are | |
applicable) with the rules for such broadcasts. | 25 |
(8) Those rules are the rules made by OFCOM for the purposes of— | |
(a) section 321 of this Act; or | |
(b) paragraph 17 of Schedule 12 to this Act. | |
(9) In this section “programme service” does not include a service provided by the | |
BBC. | 30 |
310 Supplementary powers relating to advertising | |
(1) The regulatory regime for each of the following— | |
(a) every television broadcasting service licensed by a Broadcasting Act | |
licence, | |
(b) the public teletext service, and | 35 |
(c) every other teletext service so licensed that consists in an additional | |
television service or a digital additional television service, | |
includes a condition requiring the person providing the service to comply with | |
every direction given to him by OFCOM with respect to any of the matters | |
mentioned in subsection (2). | 40 |
(2) Those matters are— | |
(a) the maximum amount of time to be given to advertisements in any | |
hour or other period; | |
(b) the minimum interval which must elapse between any two periods | |
given over to advertisements; | 45 |
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