Search results : 806

A radio advertisement for the short-term lender Pounds to Pocket was branded “socially irresponsible” by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on 25 September 2013, and banned from being rebroadcast in its current form. The ASA took action after a listener complained that the advertisement, which featured an alien character called Bert, trivialised the process of applying for credit and taking on debt. The advertisement began with a voiceover saying: “Breaking news. Alien life forms are coming to Pounds to Pocket for help with their finances.” A character with a distorted 'alien' voice then...

On 7 October 2013, Ofcom’s decided that material broadcast on CBS Reality’s Caught on Camera programme was offensive and not justified by its context. Ofcom derives its statutory authority to regulate the standards of television pursuant to the Communications Act 2003. One of Ofcom’s duties pursuant to section 3(2)(e) of the Communications Act 2003 is to ensure that programmes broadcast on television adequately protect the public from the inclusion of offensive and harmful material. Rule 2.3 of the Broadcasting Code requires broadcasters to ensure that broadcasted material that may cause offence...

On 27 September 2013, Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, overturned two determinations by the Authority for Television On Demand (ATVOD) for editorial content. Ofcom oversees providers of on demand programmes via the internet, On Demand Programme Service (ODPS) providers. Ofcom works in conjunction with two co-regulators: the ATVOD and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for advertising content. ATVOD makes determinations, appealable to OFCOM, regarding what constitutes an ODPS; whether or not a person is providing an ODPS; what constitutes a programme included in an ODPS; and whether...

On 3 October 2013, the Court of Justice gave a preliminary ruling in the Case of Peter Pinckney v. KDG Mediatech AG, C-170/12, regarding the jurisdictional rules set out in the Council Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001. Mr Pinckney claimed to be the author of 12 songs which were recorded by the group Aubrey Small on a vinyl record. The record was then, without his consent, reproduced on compact discs by an Austrian company named Mediatech, which were subsequently sold by companies in the United Kingdom on their website. This website was accessible from Toulouse, France, where Mr Pinckney lived. He sued...

In a decision on 23 August 2013, Ofcom (Office of Communications) considered whether Takbeer TV Limited (TTVL) was in breach of its obligations to act responsibly regarding the content of religious programmes and to ensure a particular religion or religious denomination was not subjected to religious abuse pursuant to the Broadcasting Code. Ofcom derives its statutory authority to regulate the standards of television and radio pursuant to the Communications Act 2003. One of Ofcom’s duties under section 3(2)(e) of the Communications Act 2003 is to ensure that programmes broadcast on television and...