Digital Economy Bill [HL]

House of Lords

Session 2009 - 10
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Digital Economy Bill [HL]

Digital Economy Bill [HL]
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(b)
operates a computer program or server that forms part
of the system that enables the names included in the
register to be used to access internet portal addresses or
other information by means of the internet;
“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the
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Secretary of State;
“registrar”, in relation to an internet domain registry, means a
person authorised by the registry to act on behalf of end-users
in connection with the registration of internet domain names;
“relevant body” means a company formed and registered under
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the Companies Act 2006 or a limited liability partnership.”
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Appointment of manager of internet domain registry
(1)
After section 124N of the Communications Act 2003 insert—
“124O
Appointment of manager of internet domain registry
(1)
This section applies where—
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(a)
the Secretary of State has given a notification under section
124N to an internet domain registry specifying a failure,
(b)
the period allowed for making representations has expired, and
(c)
the Secretary of State is satisfied that the registry has not taken
the steps that the Secretary of State considers appropriate for
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remedying the failure and any consequences of the failure.
(2)
The Secretary of State may by order appoint a manager in respect of the
property and affairs of the internet domain registry for the purpose of
securing that the registry takes the steps described in subsection (1)(c).
(3)
The person appointed may be anyone whom the Secretary of State
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thinks appropriate.
(4)
The appointment of the manager does not affect—
(a)
a right of a person to appoint a receiver of the registry’s
property, or
(b)
the rights of a receiver appointed by a person other than the
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Secretary of State.
(5)
The Secretary of State must—
(a)
keep the order under review, and
(b)
if appropriate, discharge all or part of the order.
(6)
The Secretary of State must discharge the order on the appointment of
35
a person to act as administrative receiver, administrator, provisional
liquidator or liquidator of the registry.
(7)
When discharging an order under this section, the Secretary of State
may make savings and transitional provision.
(8)
The Secretary of State must send a copy of an order made under this
40
section to the registry as soon as practicable after it is made.
(9)
In subsection (4), “receiver” includes a manager (other than a manager
appointed by the registry) and a person who is appointed as both
receiver and manager.

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(10)
In subsection (6)—
“administrative receiver” means an administrative receiver within
the meaning of section 251 of the Insolvency Act 1986 or Article
5(1) of the Insolvency (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 (S.I. 1989/
2405 (N.I. 19));
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“administrator” means a person appointed to manage the affairs,
business and property of the registry under Schedule B1 to that
Act or Schedule B1 to that Order.
124P
Functions of manager etc
(1)
An order under section 124O may make provision about the functions
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to be exercised by, and the powers of, the manager.
(2)
The order may, in particular—
(a)
provide for the manager to have such of the functions of the
registry’s directors as are specified in the order (including
functions exercisable only by a particular director or class of
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directors), and
(b)
provide for the registry’s directors to be prevented from
exercising any of those functions.
(3)
The order may make provision about the remuneration of the manager,
including in particular—
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(a)
provision for the amount of the remuneration to be determined
by the Secretary of State, and
(b)
provision for the remuneration to be payable from the property
of the registry.
(4)
In carrying out the functions conferred by the order, the manager acts
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as the registry’s agent.
(5)
The Secretary of State may apply to the court for directions in relation
to any matter arising in connection with the functions or powers of the
manager (and the costs of the application are to be paid by the registry).
(6)
On an application under subsection (5) the court may give such
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directions or make such orders as it thinks fit.
(7)
In this section “the court” means—
(a)
in England and Wales, the High Court or a county court,
(b)
in Scotland, the Court of Session or the sheriff, and
(c)
in Northern Ireland, the High Court.
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(8)
Where the registry is a limited liability partnership, this section applies
as if references to a director of the registry were references to a member
of the limited liability partnership.”
(2)
In section 192(1)(d) of that Act (appeals against decisions of the Secretary of
State), after sub-paragraph (ii) insert—
40
“(iia)
an order under section 124O;”.
(3)
In section 402(1) of that Act (powers of the Secretary of State to make orders
and regulations), after “conferred by” insert “section 124O and”.

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Application to court to alter constitution of internet domain registry
After section 124P of the Communications Act 2003 insert—
“124Q
Application to court to alter constitution of internet domain registry
(1)
This section applies where—
(a)
the Secretary of State has given a notification under section
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124N to an internet domain registry specifying a failure,
(b)
the period allowed for making representations has expired, and
(c)
the Secretary of State is satisfied that the registry has not taken
the steps that the Secretary of State considers appropriate for
remedying the failure and any consequences of the failure.
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(2)
The Secretary of State may apply to the court (as defined in section
124P) for an order under this section.
(3)
The court may make an order—
(a)
making alterations of the registry’s constitution, and
(b)
requiring the registry not to make any alterations, or any
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specified alterations, of its constitution without the leave of the
court.
(4)
An order under this section may contain only such provision as the
court considers appropriate for securing that the registry remedies the
failure specified in the notification under section 124N and any
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consequences of the failure.
(5)
In this section—
“constitution” means, in the case of a company, the articles of
association and, in the case of a limited liability partnership, the
limited liability partnership agreement;
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“limited liability partnership agreement” means the agreement or
agreements, whether express or implied, between the members
of a limited liability partnership, and between the partnership
and the members of the partnership, determining—
(a)
the mutual rights and duties of the members, and
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(b)
their rights and duties in relation to the partnership.”
Channel Four Television Corporation
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Functions of C4C in relation to media content
(1)
Before section 199 of the Communications Act 2003 insert—
“198A
C4C’s functions in relation to media content
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(1)
C4C must participate in—
(a)
the making of a broad range of relevant media content of high
quality that, taken as a whole, appeals to the tastes and interests
of a culturally diverse society,
(b)
the making of high quality films intended to be shown to the
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general public at the cinema in the United Kingdom, and
(c)
the broadcasting and distribution of such content and films.
(2)
C4C must, in particular, participate in—

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(a)
the making of relevant media content that consists of news and
current affairs,
(b)
the making of relevant media content that appeals to the tastes
and interests of older children and young adults,
(c)
the broadcasting or distribution by means of electronic
5
communications networks of feature films that reflect cultural
activity in the United Kingdom (including third party films),
and
(d)
the broadcasting or distribution of relevant media content by
means of a range of different types of electronic
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communications networks.
(3)
In performing their duties under subsections (1) and (2) C4C must—
(a)
promote measures intended to secure that people are well-
informed and motivated to participate in society in a variety of
ways, and
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(b)
contribute towards the fulfilment of the public service
objectives (as defined in section 264A).
(4)
In performing their duties under subsections (1) to (3) C4C must—
(a)
support the development of people with creative talent, in
particular—
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(i)
people at the beginning of their careers in relevant
media content or films, and
(ii)
people involved in the making of innovative content
and films,
(b)
support and stimulate well-informed debate on a wide range of
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issues, in particular by challenging established views,
(c)
promote alternative views and new perspectives, and
(d)
provide access to material that is intended to inspire people to
make changes in their lives.
(5)
In performing those duties C4C must have regard to the desirability
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of—
(a)
working with cultural organisations,
(b)
encouraging innovation in the means by which relevant media
content is broadcast or distributed, and
(c)
promoting access to and awareness of services provided in
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digital form.
(6)
In this section—
“participate in” includes invest in or otherwise procure;
“relevant media content” means material, other than
advertisements, which is included in any of the following
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services that are available to members of the public in all or part
of the United Kingdom—
(a)
television programme services, additional television
services or digital additional television services,
(b)
on-demand programme services, or
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(c)
other services provided by means of the internet where
there is a person who exercises editorial control over the
material included in the service;

and a film is a “third party film” if C4C did not participate in making it.

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(7)
The services that are to be taken for the purposes of this section to be
available to members of the public include any service which—
(a)
is available for reception by members of the public (within the
meaning of section 361); or
(b)
is available for use by members of the public (within the
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meaning of section 368R(4)).”
(2)
In section 199(2) of that Act (functions of C4C), for “C4C’s primary functions
are” substitute “In subsection (1) “primary functions” means—
(za)
the performance of C4C’s duties under section 198A;”

and in the heading for that section, at the beginning insert “Other”.
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(3)
In Schedule 9 to that Act (arrangements about carrying on C4C’s activities)—
(a)
in paragraph 1(1), after paragraph (a) (but before “and”) insert—
“(aa)
as soon as practicable after the day on which section
198A comes into force,”,
(b)
in paragraph 10, in the definition of “relevant licence period”, after
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paragraph (a) (but before “and”) insert—
“(aa)
in relation to the notification under paragraph
1(1)(aa), the period beginning on the day on
which section 198A comes into force and ending
on the last day of the first licence period to expire
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after that day;”, and
(c)
in that definition, in paragraph (b), for “any other such notification”
substitute “any other notification under paragraph 1”.
(4)
Accordingly, in the heading for Part 3 of that Act (television and radio
services), at the end insert “ETC”.
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(5)
In section 24(1) of the Broadcasting Act 1990 (Channel 4 to be provided by
C4C), for “The function of the Corporation shall be to” substitute “The
Corporation must”.
(6)
In paragraph 1 of Schedule 3 to that Act (status and capacity of C4C)—
(a)
in sub-paragraph (4)(b), for “primary functions” substitute “Channel 4
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functions”, and
(b)
after that sub-paragraph insert—
    “(5)
In sub-paragraph (4) “Channel 4 functions” means—
(a)
securing the continued provision of Channel 4, and
(b)
the fulfilment of the public service remit for that
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Channel under section 265 of the Communications
Act 2003.”
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Monitoring and enforcing C4C’s media content duties
(1)
After section 198A of the Communications Act 2003 insert—
“198B
Statement of media content policy
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(1)
C4C must prepare a statement of media content policy—
(a)
at the same time as they prepare the first statement of
programme policy that is prepared under section 266 after this
section comes into force, and
(b)
subsequently at annual intervals.
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(2)
C4C must monitor their performance in carrying out the proposals
contained in their statements of media content policy.
(3)
A statement of media content policy must—
(a)
set out C4C’s proposals for securing that, during the following
year, they will discharge their duties under section 198A, and
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(b)
include a report on their performance in carrying out the
proposals contained in the previous statement.
(4)
In preparing the statement, C4C must—
(a)
have regard to guidance given by OFCOM, and
(b)
consult OFCOM.
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(5)
C4C must publish each statement of media content policy—
(a)
as soon as practicable after its preparation is complete, and
(b)
in such manner as they consider appropriate, having regard to
any guidance given by OFCOM.
(6)
OFCOM must—
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(a)
from time to time review the guidance for the time being in
force for the purposes of this section, and
(b)
revise that guidance as they think fit.
198C
OFCOM reports on C4C’s media content duties
(1)
For each relevant period, OFCOM must—
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(a)
carry out a review of the extent to which C4C have discharged
their duties under section 198A, and
(b)
prepare a report on the matters found on the review.
(2)
OFCOM must publish each report under this section—
(a)
as soon as practicable after its preparation is complete, and
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(b)
in such manner as they consider appropriate.
(3)
“Relevant period” means each period selected by OFCOM for the
purposes of section 264(1)(b) that ends after this section comes into
force.
198D
Directions in relation to C4C’s media content duties
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(1)
This section applies if OFCOM—
(a)
are of the opinion that C4C have failed to perform one or more
of their duties under section 198A or section 198B(1), (3) or (5),
(b)
are of the opinion that the failure is serious and is not excused
by economic or market conditions, and
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(c)
determine that the situation requires the exercise of their
functions under this section.
(2)
In making a determination under subsection (1)(c), OFCOM must have
regard, in particular, to—
(a)
C4C’s statements of media content policy,
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(b)
C4C’s effectiveness and efficiency in monitoring their own
performance, and
(c)
general economic and market conditions affecting the provision
of relevant media content (as defined in section 198A).

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(3)
OFCOM may give directions to C4C to do one or both of the
following—
(a)
to revise the latest statement of media content policy in
accordance with the direction;
(b)
to take such steps for remedying the failure as OFCOM specify
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in the direction.
(4)
A direction given under this section must set out—
(a)
a reasonable timetable for complying with it, and
(b)
the factors that OFCOM will take into account in determining
whether or not a failure has been remedied.
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(5)
OFCOM must consult C4C before giving a direction under this
section.”
(2)
After section 271 of that Act insert—
“271A
Remedying failure by C4C to perform media content duties
(1)
This section applies if OFCOM are satisfied—
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(a)
that C4C have failed to comply with a direction under section
198D in respect of a failure to perform one or more of their
duties under section 198A,
(b)
that C4C are still failing to perform that duty or those duties,
and
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(c)
that it would be both reasonable and proportionate to the
seriousness of the failure to vary the licence under which
Channel 4 is licensed (“the Channel 4 licence”) in accordance
with this section.
(2)
OFCOM may, by notice to C4C, vary the Channel 4 licence by adding
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such conditions, or making such modifications of conditions, as
OFCOM consider appropriate for remedying (entirely or partly) C4C’s
failure to perform the duty or duties under section 198A.
(3)
If, at any time following such a variation, OFCOM consider that any of
the additional conditions or modifications is no longer necessary, they
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may again vary the licence with effect from such time as they may
determine.
(4)
OFCOM must consult C4C before exercising their power under this
section to vary the Channel 4 licence.”
Independent television services
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Determination of Channel 3 licence areas
(1)
In section 14 of the Broadcasting Act 1990 (establishment of Channel 3)—
(a)
omit subsection (7) (restriction on providing a single Channel 3 service
for the whole of England or the whole of Scotland), and
(b)
after that subsection insert—
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“(7A)
The areas mentioned in subsection (2) must at all times include
at least one area that comprises, or falls entirely within,
Scotland.”