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Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, has decided that the fifth series of “Celebrity Big Brother”, produced by Brighter Pictures (part of Endemol) and broadcast by Channel Four, was in breach of the Broadcasting Code. The Code requires that broadcasters, who are required by the Communications Act 2003 to apply “generally accepted standards”, must ensure that material which may cause offence is justified by the context, and that children must be protected from unsuitable material by means of appropriate scheduling. Ofcom had received 44,500 complaints about comments made about, and alleged bullying...

In two separate judgments delivered on 26 June 2007 (C-284/04 and C-369/04), the European Court of Justice ruled that the award by national regulatory authorities of licences, such as third generation mobile telecommunications licences (known as ‘UMTS’ or ‘3G’), did not constitute an economic activity within the meaning of the Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 (Sixth VAT Directive). The 3G technology allows the provision of Internet and multimedia services to mobile devices thanks to a greater capacity to transfer data. These references for a preliminary ruling were made in the...

Under Part VI of the Freedom of Information Act (Other Public Bodies And Offices: General)(2000) the British Broadcasting Corporation (and other public service broadcasters) constitutes a public authority, which may be required to disclose information it holds to anyone requesting that information. However, the law qualifies the extent of its application to the BBC. There is a “derogation”: it only applies to the “The British Broadcasting Corporation, in respect of information held for purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”. In November 2004, an internal report was written...

One of the BBC’s six public purposes is to promote education and learning, and this is a core part of the Corporation’s public service remit. Under its Charter, a decision on how the BBC delivers this purpose must be based on the interests of the public after considering the effects on the market. BBC Jam was an online service for 5 to 16-year-olds of all abilities, reflecting the UK school curricula. The service had been approved by the minister in January 2003; it also required state aid approval from the European Commission and this was granted in October 2003. Approval of the service included...

Ofcom, the UK communications regulator, has published its first annual report on public service broadcasting. It is required under the Communications Act 2003 to publish reports at least every five years on the effectiveness of public service broadcasters in delivering the range of public service broadcasting, and this will contribute up until the next review. The annual report is purely factual and does not contain any editorial material; it examines output hours for public service programming, viewing figures and the views of regular viewers on the output. The report found that public service...