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In October 2001, the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) announced details of its new ownership and control policy for commercial broadcasting. The Radio and Television Act 1988 requires the BCI to formulate and apply a policy that takes account of plurality of ownership and diversity of content in broadcasting. The Broadcasting Act 2001 (see IRIS 2001-4: 9), which makes provision for the introduction of a host of new analog and digital radio and television services, also addresses the issue of diversity of sources and content of programming. In April 2001 the BCI decided to undertake a review...

RTÉ, the national public service broadcaster, established under the Broadcasting Act, 1960, has dual funding from an annual licence fee and advertising income. Successive governments in recent years have declined to increase the level of the licence fee, which at IEP 70 (EURO 88.88) remains one of the lowest in Western Europe. The Broadcasting Act, 2001 (see IRIS 2001-4: 9) makes provision for RTÉ to be involved in digital terrestrial television. In preparation, RTÉ sought an increase of IEP 50 (EURO 63.49). However, the Government, on the basis of a consultant's report, only awarded IEP 14.50...

The controversial Oliver Stone film "Natural Born Killers" has recently been released on video in Ireland, seven years after it was banned by the Film Censor under the Censorship of Films Acts, 1923-70. The ban was upheld by the Films Appeal Board in January 1995. A ban lasts for seven years, after which the film can be resubmitted to the Censor for a certificate for public showing (see IRIS 2000-2: 8). The reason for the ban was the film's depiction of violence and its propensity to incite to crime. In January 2000, TV3, the national commercial broadcaster, planned to broadcast late at night...

In a recent judgment with implications for all sections of the media, the High Court of Ireland granted an appeal by the Minister for Education and Science against a decision of the Information Commissioner ordering the disclosure of certain information. The Information Commissioner had decided that three newspapers should, under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act, 1997 (see IRIS 1997-10: 8), be given access to certain Department of Education records relating to the results of the Leaving Certificate Examination (the State examination which takes place at the end of the second-level education...

Recently, the High Court restricted the parties' use of the media while proceedings were still ongoing. The plaintiffs were Microsoft Corporation and Symantec Corporation, companies incorporated in the USA, involved in publishing, developing and producing computer software programs, and Business Software Alliance, a trade association of software publishers incorporated in the USA. The defendant was Brightpoint Ireland Ltd., a company incorporated in Ireland, engaged in distributing, incorporating and installing telephones. The plaintiffs began proceedings for copyright infringement, trademark...