The Office of Communications or, as it is more often known, Ofcom is the independent regulator and competition authority for the communication industries in the United Kingdom[1]. Communication is the process of conveying information from a sender to a receiver with the use of a medium in which the communicated information is understood the same way The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Ofcom was initially established in the enabling device, the Office of Communications Act 2002, but received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003. The Communications Act 2003 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom (citation 2003 c On December 29, 2003, Ofcom inherited the duties that had previously been the responsibility of five regulatory bodies:
- the Broadcasting Standards Commission,
- the Independent Television Commission,
- the Office of Telecommunications (Oftel),
- the Radio Authority, and
- the Radiocommunications Agency. Events 1170 - Thomas Becket: Thomas Becket Archbishop of Canterbury is assassinated inside Canterbury Cathedral by followers of King Henry II Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. The Independent Television Commission (ITC licensed and regulated commercial Television services in the United Kingdom (except S4C in Wales
The inaugural chairman of Ofcom is David Currie, Dean of Cass Business School at City University and a life peer under the title Lord Currie of Marylebone. David Anthony Currie Baron Currie of Marylebone is the current chairman of Ofcom and a member of the House of Lords under the title of Baron Currie of Marylebone City University London ( CUL) is a British University based in Northampton Square, Islington, London. In the United Kingdom, life peers are created members of the Peerage whose titles may not be inherited (those whose titles are inheritable are known as Hereditary Its inaugural chief executive was Stephen Carter, formerly a senior executive of JWT UK and NTL. JWT is the current name of the United States largest and world's fourth largest Advertising agency. Its second, and current chief executive, is Ed Richards, formerly Ofcom strategy partner and COO and, previous to joining Ofcom, a government advisor.
The short form of the name is given as OFCOM (all capitals) in the Communications Act 2003, which established the Office of Communications. Ofcom itself uses the mixed case form seen here, which is also the more widespread in the media.
Ofcom's main office is at Riverside House, 2a, Southwark Bridge Road, Southwark, London SE1 9HA. Southwark or The Borough is an area of south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark, situated 1 London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.
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Responsibilities
Ofcom's responsibilities are wide-ranging, covering all manner of industries and processes. It has a statutory duty to further the interests of citizens and consumers by promoting competition and protecting consumers from harmful or offensive material.
Some of the main areas over which Ofcom presides are licensing, undertaking research, creating codes and policies, addressing complaints and looking into competition. Research is defined as Human activity based on Intellectual application in the investigation of Matter. Ofcom has developed a reputation for its tendency to issue a large number of consultations (there was even a consultation on the consultations). This however reflects Ofcom's intention to operate in a more open and accountable manner, being receptive to public and industry comments.
Consultations
Ofcom considers consultations to be a vital way of helping it to make the right decisions based upon the right evidence. Ofcom's formal process of consultation starts with their publishing a document (all of which are published on their website), asking for views and responses. If the document is long and complicated, Ofcom will usually publish a plain English summary. Plain English (sometimes referred to more broadly as Plain language) is a communication style that focuses on considering the audience's needs when writing
Ofcom will then usually allow a period of ten weeks for interested persons, companies or organisations to read the document and send in their responses. After this ten week period, Ofcom will normally publish all of the responses on their website (excluding any which are marked by the respondent as confidential).
After the consultation has closed, Ofcom will prepare a summary of the responses, and may use this as a basis for some of their decisions. [1]
Programme complaints
As the regulatory body for media broadcasts, part of Ofcom's duties are to examine specific complaints by viewers/listeners about programmes. When Ofcom receives a complaint it firstly asks the broadcaster for a copy of the programme, and it then examines the programme to see whether it is in breach of the broadcasting code. Ofcom also asks for a response from the broadcaster to the complaint. Considering these, Ofcom will mark the complaint as either upheld or not upheld, or alternatively 'resolved'.
In June 2004, Ofcom, having received complaints from twenty-four viewers, censured Fox News commentator John Gibson for stating that the BBC had "a frothing-at-the-mouth anti-Americanism that was obsessive, irrational and dishonest". "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " John David Gibson (born July 25, 1946) is an American Conservative radio talk show host Anti-Americanism, often anti-American sentiment, is opposition or hostility to the people culture or policies of the United States. [2]. Ofcom held that these statements were untrue opinions based on false evidence that necessitated that Fox offer the BBC rebuttal time [3].
Perhaps one of the most controversial decisions made by Ofcom regarding a complaint was that regarding Jerry Springer: The Opera. Jerry Springer The Opera is a British musical written by Stewart Lee and Richard Thomas, based on the Television show Having received a large number of complaints from various viewers, Ofcom decided there had been no breach of the broadcasting code, citing the broadcaster's right of freedom of expression under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without Censorship or Limitation. The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (also called the "European Convention on Human Rights" and "ECHR" was adopted under the
One recent decision which attracted much media attention was Ofcom's decision to restrict junk food advertising aimed at children.
In January 2007 Ofcom received over 44,500 complaints regarding the fifth series of Celebrity Big Brother and racial issues concerning Shilpa Shetty and Jade Goody. Celebrity Big Brother 2007 was the highly controversial fifth series of the United Kingdom Reality television series Celebrity Big Brother Big Brother is a Reality television series broadcast in the United Kingdom and Shilpa Shetty ( Tulu: ಶಿಲ್ಪ ಶೆಟ್ಟಿ born 8 June 1975) is an Indian film actress and model. Jade Cerisa Lorraine Goody (born 5 June 1981 is a British Television Celebrity. This was Ofcom's highest ever complaints response, and higher than that of any other media regulator.
Licensing
Ofcom is responsible for the management, regulation, assignment and licensing of the electromagnetic spectrum in the UK, and licenses portions of it for use in TV and radio broadcasts, mobile phone transmissions, private communications networks, and so on. The electromagnetic (EM spectrum is the range of all possible Electromagnetic radiation frequencies Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. The process of licensing varies depending on the type of usage required. Some licenses simply have to be applied for and paid for, others are subject to a bidding process. Most of the procedures in place have been inherited from the systems used by the legacy regulators. However, Ofcom may change some of the processes in future.
See also
References
- ^ http://www.ofcom.org.uk/ Ofcom Website
External links
The Office of Fair Trading ( OFT) is a Non-ministerial government department of the United Kingdom, established by the Fair Trading Act 1973, The Press Complaints Commission is a regulatory body for British printed Newspapers and Magazines consisting of representatives of the major publishers The Internet Service Providers Association, or ISPA is a British body representing providers of Internet ServicesDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic