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Interpretation of Chapter 3 | |
192 Interpretation of Chapter 3 | |
(1) In this Chapter— | |
“network access” has the same meaning as in Chapter 1 of this Part; | |
“the Tribunal” means the Competition Appeal Tribunal; and | 5 |
“Tribunal rules” means rules made under section 15 of the Enterprise Act | |
2002 (c. 40). | |
(2) References in this Chapter, in relation to a dispute, to the regulatory authorities | |
of other member States are references to such of the authorities of the other | |
member States as have been notified under the Framework Directive to the | 10 |
European Commission as the regulatory authorities of those States for the | |
purposes of the matters to which the dispute relates. | |
(3) In this section “the Framework Directive” has the same meaning as in Chapter | |
1 of this Part. | |
Part 3 | 15 |
Television and Radio Services | |
Chapter 1 | |
The BBC, C4C the Welsh Authority and the Gaelic media service | |
The BBC | |
193 Functions of OFCOM in relation to the BBC | 20 |
(1) It shall be a function of OFCOM, to the extent that provision for them to do so | |
is contained in— | |
(a) an agreement made (whether before or after the coming into force of | |
this section) between the BBC and the Secretary of State, and | |
(b) the provisions of this Act and of Part 5 of the 1996 Act, | 25 |
to regulate the provision of the BBC’s services and the carrying on by the BBC | |
of other activities for purposes connected with the provision of those services. | |
(2) For the purposes of the carrying out of that function OFCOM— | |
(a) are to have such powers and duties as may be conferred on them by an | |
agreement falling within subsection (1)(a); and | 30 |
(b) are entitled, to the extent that they are authorised to do so by the | |
Secretary of State or under the terms of the agreement, to act on his | |
behalf in relation to such an agreement. | |
(3) The powers that may be conferred on OFCOM by an agreement between the | |
BBC and the Secretary of State include power, to such extent as the agreement | 35 |
may provide, to impose penalties on the BBC in respect of contraventions of the | |
agreement or of provisions of this Part. | |
(4) The BBC are also to be liable to pay OFCOM such sums in respect of the | |
carrying out by OFCOM of their functions in relation to the BBC as may be— | |
(a) agreed from time to time between the BBC and OFCOM; or | 40 |
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(b) (in default of agreement) fixed by the Secretary of State. | |
(5) The maximum penalty that may be imposed on the BBC on any occasion by | |
virtue of subsection (3) is £250,000. | |
(6) The Secretary of State may by order substitute a different sum for the sum for | |
the time being specified in subsection (5). | 5 |
(7) No order is to be made containing provision authorised by subsection (6) | |
unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a | |
resolution of each House. | |
(8) It shall be the duty of OFCOM to have regard to their functions under this | |
section when carrying out their functions under the 1990 Act, the 1996 Act and | 10 |
this Part in relation to services provided by persons other than the BBC. | |
(9) In this section “the BBC’s services” means such of the services provided by the | |
BBC (excluding the services comprised in the World Service) as are of a | |
description of service which, if provided by a BBC company, would fall to be | |
regulated by OFCOM by virtue of section 206 or 240. | 15 |
C4C | |
194 Functions of C4C | |
(1) The activities that C4C are able to carry on include any activities which appear | |
to them— | |
(a) to be activities that it is appropriate for them to carry on in association | 20 |
with the carrying out of their primary functions; and | |
(b) to be connected, otherwise than merely in financial terms, with | |
activities undertaken by them for the carrying out of those functions. | |
(2) C4C’s primary functions are— | |
(a) securing the continued provision of Channel 4; and | 25 |
(b) the fulfilment of the public service remit for that Channel under section | |
258. | |
(3) Section 24(5)(b) and (6) of the 1990 Act (power of C4C to establish, acquire an | |
interest in or assist a qualifying company) shall cease to have effect. | |
(4) For sub-paragraphs (3) and (4) of paragraph 1 of Schedule 3 to the 1990 Act | 30 |
(power of C4C to do things incidental or conducive to the carrying out of their | |
functions) there shall be substituted— | |
“(3) The Corporation may do anything which appears to them to be | |
incidental or conducive to the carrying out of their functions. | |
(4) The powers of the Corporation under sub-paragraph (3) include | 35 |
power, to the extent that it appears to them incidental or conducive | |
to the carrying out of their functions to do so— | |
(a) to borrow money; | |
(b) to carry on activities (other than those comprised in their | |
duty to carry out their primary functions) through Channel 4 | 40 |
companies; and | |
(c) to participate with others in the carrying on of any such | |
activities.” | |
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(5) Schedule 9 (which makes provision for the approval by OFCOM, and for the | |
enforcement, of arrangements made by C4C about the carrying on of their | |
activities) shall have effect. | |
195 Removal of members of C4C | |
(1) In paragraph 3 of Schedule 3 to the 1990 Act (term of office of members of C4C), | 5 |
after sub-paragraph (2) there shall be inserted— | |
“(2A) OFCOM may at any time, by notice to a member of the Corporation, | |
terminate the appointment of that member. | |
(2B) Before terminating a person’s appointment under sub-paragraph | |
(2A), OFCOM must consult the Secretary of State.” | 10 |
(2) This section applies only to a member whose appointment was made, or last | |
renewed, after the coming into force of this section. | |
196 Deficits and surpluses of C4C | |
(1) Sections 26 and 27 of the 1990 Act (revenue deficits of C4C to be funded by | |
providers of Channel 3 services and application of excess revenues of C4C) | 15 |
shall cease to have effect. | |
(2) This section has effect in relation to a deficit or excess for a year ending after | |
the commencement of this section. | |
197 Borrowing limit for C4C | |
(1) The Secretary of State may provide for a limit on the borrowing that C4C is | 20 |
allowed to undertake. | |
(2) The order may fix the limit either— | |
(a) by specifying the sum which the outstanding borrowing of C4C must | |
not at any time exceed; or | |
(b) by providing a method of determining the sum which that borrowing | 25 |
must not exceed. | |
(3) C4C are not to borrow money if the effect of the borrowing would be to cause | |
the amount of their outstanding borrowing to be, or to remain, in excess of the | |
limit (if any) that is for the time being in force. | |
(4) For the purposes of this section the amount of C4C’s outstanding borrowing at | 30 |
any time is the aggregate amount outstanding at that time in respect of the | |
principal of sums borrowed by them, but after allowing sums borrowed to | |
repay existing loans to be applied for that purpose. | |
(5) Before making an order under this section, the Secretary of State must consult | |
C4C. | 35 |
(6) The consent of the Treasury is required for the making of an order under this | |
section. | |
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The Welsh Authority | |
198 Function of OFCOM in relation to the Welsh Authority | |
It shall be a function of OFCOM, to the extent that provision for them to do so | |
is contained in this Act and Part 5 of the 1996 Act, to regulate the services | |
provided by the Welsh Authority. | 5 |
199 Welsh Authority’s function of providing S4C and S4C Digital | |
(1) The Welsh Authority shall continue in existence with the substitution of the | |
following function for their functions under section 57 of the 1990 Act. | |
(2) The Welsh Authority shall have the function of providing television | |
programme services of high quality with a view to their being available for | 10 |
reception wholly or mainly by members of the public in Wales. | |
(3) The carrying out of that function— | |
(a) must include the continuing provision of the television broadcasting | |
service known as Sianel Pedwar Cymru (“S4C”); and | |
(b) may include the continuing provision of the service provided in digital | 15 |
form and known as S4C Digital. | |
(4) The power of the Welsh Authority to provide S4C Digital includes a power to | |
secure that arrangements are made and remain in force for it to be broadcast in | |
digital form. | |
(5) It shall be the duty of the Welsh Authority to secure that S4C and S4C Digital | 20 |
each represents a public service for the dissemination of information, | |
education and entertainment. | |
(6) The Welsh Authority may use part of the signals carrying S4C to provide— | |
(a) subtitling in relation to programmes included in the service; and | |
(b) other services which are ancillary to programmes included in S4C and | 25 |
which are directly related to their contents. | |
(7) In providing S4C Digital the Welsh Authority may also provide— | |
(a) assistance for disabled people in relation to programmes included in | |
the service; and | |
(b) any other service (other than one mentioned in paragraph (a)) which is | 30 |
an ancillary service in relation to S4C Digital. | |
(8) The Secretary of State may by order modify this Act and such other enactments | |
as he thinks fit for the purpose of— | |
(a) replacing the requirement of the Welsh Authority to provide S4C with | |
a requirement to provide a service in digital form; | 35 |
(b) requiring the Welsh Authority to secure that arrangements are made | |
for that service and S4C Digital to be merged and provided as one | |
service (also to be known as “S4C Digital”); and | |
(c) applying enactments relating to the provision of S4C or S4C Digital to | |
the provision of the merged service. | 40 |
(9) An order under subsection (8) may require the Welsh Authority to ensure that, | |
from the coming into force of a requirement to provide a merged service in | |
digital form until a time determined in the manner described in the order, the | |
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(9) whole or a part of the merged service is also to be provided for broadcasting in | |
analogue form. | |
(10) In this section “programme” does not include an advertisement. | |
200 Powers to provide other services | |
(1) The Welsh Authority are not, in the carrying out of their function under section | 5 |
199, to provide any television programme service (apart from S4C and S4C | |
Digital) unless— | |
(a) the service appears to them to satisfy the requirements of subsection | |
(3); and | |
(b) the provision by them of the service has been approved by an order | 10 |
made by the Secretary of State. | |
(2) The functions of the Welsh Authority include the provision of services that are | |
neither television programme services nor sound services but— | |
(a) are provided with a view to being made available for reception wholly | |
or mainly by members of the public in Wales or otherwise to be | 15 |
received or used by persons in Wales; | |
(b) are services appearing to them to satisfy the requirements of subsection | |
(3); and | |
(c) are services the provision of which by the Authority has been approved | |
by an order made by the Secretary of State. | 20 |
(3) A service provided under this section must be a public service of high quality | |
for the dissemination of information, education or entertainment (or a | |
combination of them) wholly or mainly to members of the public in Wales. | |
(4) The Welsh Authority are not to provide a television broadcasting service under | |
this section unless it is one the provision of which by them broadens the range | 25 |
of television broadcasting services available for reception by members of the | |
public in Wales. | |
(5) The Welsh Authority must ensure, in the case of every television programme | |
service provided with the approval of the Secretary of State under this section, | |
that a substantial proportion of the programmes included in the service | 30 |
consists of programmes in Welsh. | |
(6) An order under this section approving the provision of a service must set out— | |
(a) the nature and other characteristics of the service that is approved; and | |
(b) in the case of a service that is a television programme service, a public | |
service remit for that service. | 35 |
(7) In providing a service approved under this section the Welsh Authority may | |
also provide— | |
(a) assistance for disabled people in relation to programmes included in | |
the service; | |
(b) other services which are ancillary to programmes included in the | 40 |
service and which are directly related to their contents; and | |
(c) any other service (other than one mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b)) | |
which is an ancillary service in relation to so much of the service as is | |
provided in digital form. | |
(8) A television programme service provided under this section in digital form is | 45 |
a qualifying service for the purposes of the 1996 Act. | |
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(9) In this section “sound service” means a service which would fall to be | |
regulated under section 240 if provided by an S4C company. | |
201 Other activities of Welsh Authority | |
(1) The activities that the Welsh Authority are able to carry on include activities | |
which appear to them— | 5 |
(a) to be activities that it is appropriate for them to carry on in association | |
with the carrying out of their function of providing S4C, S4C Digital or | |
a service the provision of which is approved under section 200; and | |
(b) to be connected, otherwise than merely in financial terms, with | |
activities undertaken by them for the carrying out of that function. | 10 |
(2) The approval of the Secretary of State is required for the carrying on by the | |
Welsh Authority of activities authorised only by subsection (1). | |
(3) The approval of the Secretary of State— | |
(a) must be contained in an order made by him; and | |
(b) may be a general approval in relation to a description of activities or a | 15 |
specific approval in relation to particular activities. | |
(4) The activities capable of being authorised under subsection (1)— | |
(a) do not include the provision of a licensable service; but | |
(b) do include activities for securing the provision of such a service by an | |
S4C company and other activities connected with the provision of such | 20 |
a service by such a company. | |
(5) The activities referred to in subsection (4)(b) include— | |
(a) the formation of a company to provide a programme service; | |
(b) the taking of steps by means of which a company that is providing such | |
a service becomes an S4C company. | 25 |
(6) For sub-paragraphs (2) and (3) of paragraph 1 of Schedule 6 to the 1990 Act | |
(power of Welsh Authority to do things incidental or conducive to the carrying | |
out of their functions) there shall be substituted— | |
“(2) The Authority may do anything which appears to them to be | |
incidental or conducive to the carrying out of their functions. | 30 |
(3) The powers of the Authority under sub-paragraph (2) include | |
power, to the extent that it appears to them incidental or conducive | |
to the carrying out of their functions to do so— | |
(a) to carry on activities (other than those comprised in their | |
duty to carry out their functions under section 199 of the | 35 |
Communications Act 2003) through S4C companies; and | |
(b) to participate with others in the carrying on of any such | |
activities.” | |
(7) In this section “licensable service” means a service that would fall to be | |
regulated under section 206 or 240 if provided by an S4C company. | 40 |
(8) Section 57(1A)(b) and (1B) of the 1990 Act (power of Welsh Authority to | |
establish, acquire an interest in or assist a qualifying company) shall cease to | |
have effect. | |
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