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Communications Bill


Communications Bill
Part 3 — Television and Radio Services
Chapter 4 — Regulatory provisions

    280

 

     (5)    The Secretary of State is not to make an order proscribing a service unless he is

satisfied that the making of the order is—

           (a)           in the public interest; and

           (b)           compatible with the international obligations of the United Kingdom.

     (6)    The television and sound services to which this section applies are—

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           (a)           television licensable content services provided otherwise than by

broadcasting from a satellite;

           (b)           digital television programme services;

           (c)           digital additional television services;

           (d)           radio licensable sound services provided otherwise than by being

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broadcast from a satellite;

           (e)           digital sound programme services; and

           (f)           digital additional sound services.

     (7)    A service to which this section applies is a foreign service if it—

           (a)           is a service capable of being received in the United Kingdom for the

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provision of which no Broadcasting Act licence is either in force or

required to be in force; but

           (b)           is also a service for the provision of which such a licence would be

required—

                  (i)                 in the case of a service falling within subsection (6)(a) to (c), if

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the person providing it were under the jurisdiction of the

United Kingdom for the purposes of the Television without

Frontiers Directive; and

                  (ii)                in any other case, if the person providing it provided it from a

place in the United Kingdom or were a person whose principal

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place of business is in the United Kingdom.

 320   Effect of proscription order

     (1)    This section applies where a service is for the time being proscribed by an order

under section 319.

     (2)    The proscribed service is not to be included in—

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           (a)           a multiplex service; or

           (b)           a cable package.

     (3)    In this section “multiplex service” means a television multiplex service, a radio

multiplex service or a general multiplex service.

     (4)    In this section “cable package” means (subject to subsection (5)) a service by

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means of which programme services are packaged together with a view to

their being distributed—

           (a)           by means of an electronic communications service;

           (b)           so as to be available for reception by members of the public in the

United Kingdom; and

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           (c)           without the final delivery of the programme services to the persons to

whom they are distributed being by wireless telegraphy.

     (5)    Programme services distributed by means of an electronic communications

service do not form part of a cable package if—

           (a)           the distribution of those services forms only part of a service provided

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by means of that electronic communications service; and

 

 

Communications Bill
Part 3 — Television and Radio Services
Chapter 4 — Regulatory provisions

    281

 

           (b)           the purposes for which the service of which it forms a part is provided

do not consist wholly or mainly in making available television

programmes or radio programmes (or both) for reception by members

of the public.

 321   Notification for enforcing proscription

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     (1)    Where OFCOM determine that there are reasonable grounds for believing that

there has been a contravention of section 320 in relation to a multiplex service

or a cable package, they may give a notification under this section to—

           (a)           the provider of that multiplex service; or

           (b)           the person providing the cable package.

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     (2)    A notification under this section is one which—

           (a)           sets out the determination made by OFCOM; and

           (b)           requires the person to whom it is given to secure that the proscribed

service (so long as it remains proscribed) is not—

                  (i)                 included in the notified person’s multiplex service, or

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                  (ii)                distributed as part of his cable package,

                         at any time more than seven days after the day of the giving of the

notification.

     (3)    If it is reasonably practicable for a person to whom a notification is given under

this section to secure that the proscribed service ceases to be included in that

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person’s multiplex service, or to be distributed as part of his cable package,

before the end of that seven days, then he must do so.

     (4)    It shall be the duty of a person to whom a notification is given under this

section to comply with the requirements imposed by the notification and by

subsection (3).

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     (5)    That duty shall be enforceable in civil proceedings by OFCOM—

           (a)           for an injunction;

           (b)           for specific performance of a statutory duty under section 45 of the

Court of Session Act 1988 (c. 36); or

           (c)           for any other appropriate remedy or relief.

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     (6)    In this section “cable package” and “multiplex service” each has the same

meaning as in section 320.

 322   Penalties for contravention of notification under s. 321

     (1)    OFCOM may impose a penalty on a person who contravenes a requirement

imposed on him by or under section 321.

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     (2)    Before imposing a penalty on a person under this section OFCOM must give

him a reasonable opportunity of making representations to them about their

proposal to impose the penalty.

     (3)    The amount of the penalty imposed on a person is to be such amount not

exceeding £5,000 as OFCOM determine to be—

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           (a)           appropriate; and

           (b)           proportionate to contravention in respect of which it is imposed.

     (4)    In making that determination OFCOM must have regard to—

 

 

Communications Bill
Part 3 — Television and Radio Services
Chapter 4 — Regulatory provisions

    282

 

           (a)           any representations made to them by the person notified under section

321; and

           (b)           any steps taken by him for complying with the requirements imposed

on him under that section.

     (5)    Where OFCOM impose a penalty on a person under this section, they shall—

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           (a)           notify the person penalised; and

           (b)           in that notification, fix a reasonable period after it is given as the period

within which the penalty is to be paid.

     (6)    A penalty imposed under this section must be paid to OFCOM within the

period fixed by them.

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     (7)    The Secretary of State may by order amend this section so as to substitute a

different maximum penalty for the maximum penalty for the time being

specified in subsection (3).

     (8)    No order is to be made containing provision authorised by subsection (7)

unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a

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resolution of each House.

     (9)    For the purposes of this section there is a separate contravention in respect of

every day on which the proscribed service is at any time included in a person’s

multiplex service or distributed as part of his cable package.

     (10)   In this section “multiplex service” and “cable package” each has the same

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meaning as in section 320.

Party political broadcasts on television and radio

 323   Party political broadcasts

     (1)    The regulatory regime for every licensed public service channel, and the

regulatory regime for every national radio service, includes—

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           (a)           conditions requiring the inclusion in that channel or service of party

political broadcasts and of referendum campaign broadcasts; and

           (b)           conditions requiring that licence holder to observe such rules with

respect to party political broadcasts and referendum campaign

broadcasts as may be made by OFCOM.

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     (2)    The rules made by OFCOM for the purposes of this section may, in particular,

include provision for determining—

           (a)           the political parties on whose behalf party political broadcasts may be

made;

           (b)           in relation to each political party on whose behalf such broadcasts may

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be made, the length and frequency of the broadcasts; and

           (c)           in relation to each designated organisation on whose behalf

referendum campaign broadcasts are required to be broadcast, the

length and frequency of such broadcasts.

     (3)    Those rules are to have effect subject to sections 37 and 127 of the Political

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Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (c. 41) (only registered parties and

designated organisations to be entitled to party political broadcasts or

referendum campaign broadcasts).

 

 

Communications Bill
Part 3 — Television and Radio Services
Chapter 4 — Regulatory provisions

    283

 

     (4)    Rules made by OFCOM for the purposes of this section may make different

provision for different cases.

     (5)    Before making any rules for the purposes of this section, OFCOM must have

regard to any views expressed by the Electoral Commission.

     (6)    In this section—

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                    “designated organisation”, in relation to a referendum, means a person or

body designated by the Electoral Commission under section 108 of the

Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (c. 41) in respect

of that referendum;

                    “national radio service” means a national service within the meaning of

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section 240 of this Act; and

                    “referendum campaign broadcast” has the meaning given by section 127

of that Act.

Monitoring of programmes

 324   Retention and production of recordings

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     (1)    The regulatory regime for every programme service licensed by a Broadcasting

Act licence includes conditions imposing on the provider of the service—

           (a)           a requirement in respect of every programme included in the service to

retain a recording of the programme in a specified form and for a

specified period after its inclusion;

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           (b)           a requirement to comply with any request by OFCOM to produce to

them for examination or reproduction a recording retained in

pursuance of the conditions in the licence; and

           (c)           a requirement, if the provider is able to do so, to comply with any

request by OFCOM to produce to them a script or transcript of a

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programme included in the programme service.

     (2)    The period specified for the purposes of a condition under subsection (1)(a)

must be—

           (a)           in the case of a programme included in a television programme service,

a period not exceeding ninety days; and

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           (b)           in the case of a programme included in a radio programme service, a

period not exceeding forty-two days.

     (3)    For the purpose of maintaining supervision of the programmes included in

programme services, OFCOM may themselves make and use recordings of

those programmes or any part of them.

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     (4)    Nothing in this Part is to be construed as requiring OFCOM, in the carrying out

of their functions under this Part as respects programme services and the

programmes included in them, to view or listen to programmes in advance of

their being included in such services.

 

 

 
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