Industry consultation
Mr John Whittingdale
Mr John Greenway
Mr Andrew Robathan
Mr Mark Hoban
NC7
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to establish and maintain effective arrangements for consultation about the carrying out of their functions with—
| (a) | suppliers in the markets for the services and facilities in relation to which OFCOM have functions; |
| (b) | suppliers in the markets for apparatus used in connection with any such services or facilities. |
(2) The arrangements must include the establishment and maintenance of a panel of persons (in this Act referred to as "the Industry Consultative Panel") with the function of advising OFCOM.
(3) It shall be the duty of OFCOM, in the carrying out of their functions, to consider and, to such extent as they think appropriate, to have regard to the views given to OFCOM by the Industry Consultative Panel.
(4) The members of the Industry Panel shall be appointed by OFCOM and shall comprise a chairman and such other members as OFCOM may determine.'.
Duty to establish and maintain National Advisory Committees
Mr Simon Thomas
NC8
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to establish and maintain National Advisory Committees for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
(2) The Chair and membership of these committees shall be appointed by the Secretary of State.
(3) In making such appointments in respect of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the Secretary of State shall seek nominations from the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly respectively.
(4) The National Advisory Committees may review all of OFCOM's work in respect of their individual territories.
(5) The National Advisory Committees may issue such recommendations to OFCOM or the Secretary of State with respect to their territories as they see fit.
(6) The National Advisory Committees shall produce an annual report on their activities.'.
Definition of satellite packaging
Nick Harvey
Mr Richard Allan
NC9
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) For the purposes of Part 3—
| (a) | a satellite package is a facility by the use of which a person is able, at a place in the United Kingdom, to receive a satellite television service in an intelligible form; and |
| (b) | a satellite packager is a person who, in the course of carrying on a business, offers to supply such packages to members of the public. |
(2) For the purposes of Part 3 a person supplies a satellite package to a member of the public if he confers an entitlement on that member of the public to have the package made available to him.
(3) In this section "satellite television service" means a service which—
| (a) | consists in or involves the broadcasting of television programme services from a satellite; and |
| (b) | is used by a significant number of the persons by whom the broadcasts are received in an intelligible form as their principal means of receiving television programmes.'. |
Notification requirements for satellite packagers
Nick Harvey
Mr Richard Allan
NC10
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) A person shall not act as a designated satellite packager unless, before beginning to do so, he has given a notification to OFCOM of his intention to do so.
(2) For the purposes of this section—
| (a) | a person acts as a designated satellite packager if he acts as a satellite packager of a description for the time being designated by OFCOM for those purposes; and |
| (b) | such a description may be framed by reference to any one or more of the following— |
| (i) | the manner in which a satellite packager acts as such; |
| (ii) | the circumstances of his so acting; |
| (iii) | the characteristics of the services included in his package; |
| (iv) | the programmes included in those services; and |
| (v) | any other factors that OFCOM consider appropriate. |
(3) Where a person has given a notification for the purposes of subsection (1), he must, before ceasing to act as a designated satellite packager, give a notification to OFCOM of his intention to do so.
(4) A notification for the purposes of this section must—
| (a) | be sent to OFCOM in such manner and form as OFCOM may require; and |
| (b) | contain all such information as OFCOM may require. |
(5) Before—
| (a) | making or withdrawing a designation for the purposes of this section, |
| (b) | imposing requirements under subsection (4), or |
| (c) | modifying requirements imposed under that subsection, |
OFCOM must consult such of the persons who, in their opinion, are likely to be affected by it as they think fit.
(6) OFCOM is only required to consult under subsection (5) about modifications that appear to them to be likely to have a significant impact on persons affected by them.
(7) Before making or withdrawing a designation for the purposes of this section OFCOM must also consult the Secretary of State.
(8) The way in which a designation for the purposes of this section or a requirement under subsection (4)—
| (a) | is to be made or imposed, or |
| (b) | may be withdrawn or modified, |
is by a notice published in such manner as OFCOM consider appropriate for bringing the designation, requirement, withdrawal or modification to the attention of the persons who, in their opinion, are likely to be affected by it.
(9) Requirements imposed under subsection (4) may make different provision for different cases.
(10) Where a description of satellite packager is designated for the purposes of this section at a time when a person is already acting as such a packager—
| (a) | his obligation under this section to give a notification before beginning to act as such a packager shall have effect as an obligation to give a notification within such period after the coming into force of the designation as may be specified in the notice in which the designation is contained; and |
| (b) | that notification is to be one stating that that person is already acting as a designated satellite packager (rather than it is his intention to do so).'. |
Register of designations and satellite packagers
Nick Harvey
Mr Richard Allan
NC11
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to establish and maintain a register for the purposes of section [notification requirements for satellite packagers].
(2) OFCOM shall record in the register—
| (a) | every designation by them for the purposes of section [notification requirements for satellite packagers]; |
| (b) | every withdrawal by them of such a designation; and |
| (c) | every notification given to them under that section. |
(3) Information recorded in the register must be so recorded in such manner as OFCOM consider appropriate.
(4) OFCOM shall make the register available for public inspection—
| (a) | during such hours; and |
| (b) | on payment of such fees, |
as they may by order prescribe.
(5) Section 388 applies to the power of OFCOM to make an order under subsection (4).
(6) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to publish a notification setting out—
| (a) | the times at which the register is for the time being available for public inspection; and |
| (b) | the fees that must be paid for, or in connection with, an inspection of the register. |
(7) The publication of a notification under subsection (6) must be in such manner as OFCOM consider appropriate for bringing it to the attention of the persons who, in their opinion, are likely to be affected by it.'.
Conditions applying to satellite packagers
Nick Harvey
Mr Richard Allan
NC12
To move the following Clause:—
'(1) OFCOM may set such conditions applying to satellite packagers as OFCOM think fit for the purpose set out in subsection (2).
(2) That purpose is securing that satellite packages supplied by those packagers in the course of acting as designated satellite packagers (within the meaning of section [notification requirements for satellite packagers)] include, in the case of every package, an entitlement to receive—
| (b) | in an intelligible form, and |
| (c) | by means of the satellite television service to which the package relates, |
the services included in the list of must-distribute services. (3) An entitlement to receive a must-distribute service is made available free of charge only if no charge attributable (whether directly or indirectly) to the conferring of that entitlement is imposed for or in connection with the supply of the satellite package in which the entitlement is comprised.
(4) The list of must-distribute services is as follows—
| (a) | any service of television programmes provided by the BBC so far as it is provided in digital form and is a service in relation to which OFCOM have functions; |
| (b) | a Channel 3 service so far as provided in digital form; |
| (c) | Channel 4 so far as provided in digital form; |
| (d) | Channel 5 so far as provided in digital form; |
| (f) | the public teletext service. |
(5) Conditions under this section that require an entitlement to be conferred as respects a service included in the list of must-distribute services must, to such extent as OFCOM consider appropriate—
| (a) | require the same entitlement to be conferred as respects every service which is an ancillary service by reference to a service included in that list; and |
| (b) | provide for the services as respects which the entitlement is conferred to be treated, in relation to particular satellite packages, as constituting such services comprised in or provided with the listed service as may be determined by OFCOM. |
(6) Before setting, revoking or modifying a condition under this section, OFCOM must consult—
| (a) | the Secretary of State; and |
| (b) | such of the following as OFCOM think fit— |
| (i) | the persons who are likely, in OFCOM's opinion, to be affected by the condition, revocation or modification; and |
| (ii) | the persons who appear to OFCOM to represent such persons. |
(7) The way in which conditions under this section are to be set or modified is by the publication of a notification setting out the conditions or modifications.
(8) The way in which such a condition is to be revoked is by the publication of a notification stating that the condition is revoked.
(9) The publication of a notification under subsection (7) or (8) must be in such manner as appears to OFCOM to be appropriate for bringing the contents of the notification to the attention of the persons who, in OFCOM's opinion, are likely to be affected by its contents.
(10) The Secretary of State may by order modify the list of must-distribute services.'.
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