[cma-l] Community Radio and Ofcom's requirements

[Alan Coote]

Jaqui,

 

To add to your excellent email and for completeness, the following statement can also be found in Ofcom’s definition of Community Radio. 

 

Community Radio “uses any profit that is produced in the provision of the service wholly and exclusively for securing or improving the future provision of the service, or for the delivery of social gain to members of the public or the community that the service is intended to serve.”

 

The Ofcom annual return expects that profits / underspends are accounted for in the year.  It clearly would be bad governance not to have adequate contingency funds set aside. 

 

Additionally, from the above it is clear that stations may use funds to spawn new community projects.

 

BUT (I can’t resist another chance to dig at the ridiculous over regulation of CR), the 50% commercial revenue rule actively reduces the potential social gain a community station can have in its area. Image, without this limitation the huge benefits CR would have from commercially derived revenue.

 

Ironically, many commercial radio stations have greater and wider social gain than their community radio counterparts.  Listen to your local commercial station as we move closer to Christmas.

 

There is not a single good reason this rule benefits anyone other than the powerful commercial radio sector. 

 

Will the CMA finally acknowledge that the 50% rule does not characterise CR and lobby for a change?

  

Regards

 

Alan

 

Alan Coote

Managing Director 

The Bay Radio

Office 01202 580200

Studio 01202 571028

Mobile 07801 518858

 

Email  <mailto:alan.coote at thebayradio.com> alan.coote at thebayradio.com

Web  <http://www.thebayradio.com/> www.thebayradio.com

The Bay Radio, 25B Elliott Road, Bournemouth, BH11 8LQ

      

 

 

Description: The-Bay-logo-small.gif 

 

 

 

From: cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk [mailto:cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk] On Behalf Of jaqui devereux
Sent: 27 September 2010 11:40 AM
To: cma-l
Subject: [cma-l] Community Radio and Ofcom's requirements

 

Dear all

We write to remind you all of the need to submit all your reports to Ofcom in good time - the latest Ofcom Broadcast Bulletin has found 17 community stations in breach of their licence conditions, mostly due to late submission of reports and information.  If you need help or advice on this or any other matters please do contact the CMA and we will do our best to assist.

We would encourage all stations to read the Bulletin on a regular basis as it can be a useful tool to help when training your volunteers to reinforce what they can and cannot do.

Please find below Ofcom's preamble in the latest Bulletin:

"Community radio stations are, under the terms of The Community Radio Order 2004 (“the Order”), defined as local radio stations provided primarily for the good of members of the public or for a particular community, rather than primarily for commercial reasons. They are also required to deliver social gain, be run on a not-for-profit basis, involve members of their target communities and be accountable to the communities they serve.

Anyone applying for a community radio licence is required to set out proposals as to how they will meet these various statutory
requirements. If they are awarded a licence, their proposals are then included in their licence so as to ensure their continued delivery.
This part of a community radio station's licence is known as the 'key commitments'.

Given that each station's 'key commitments' are designed to ensure that the station continues to provide the service for which it has
been licensed, it is of fundamental importance that Ofcom is able to monitor delivery of these 'key commitments'. Licensees are therefore required to submit an annual report setting out how they have been meeting their licence obligations.

In addition to the requirements set out above, there are also statutory restrictions on the funding of community radio stations
(section 105(6) of the Broadcasting Act 1990, as modified by the Community Radio Order 2004). Specifically, no community radio station is allowed to generate more than 50% of its annual income from the sale of on-air advertising and sponsorship. In certain circumstances, some stations are not allowed to carry any paid for advertising or sponsorship.

Like the 'key commitments' explained above, it is of fundamental importance that Ofcom is able to verify that a licensee is complying
with its licence requirements relating to funding. In this respect too, we require licensees to submit an annual report setting out how
they have met their licence obligations.

Station annual reports also inform Ofcom‟s own annual report on the sector and late submission of annual reports from individual stations impacts on this.

Failure by a licensee to submit an annual report when required represents a serious and fundamental breach of a community radio
licence, as the absence of the information contained in the report means that Ofcom is unable properly to carry out its regulatory
duties."

Please do not hesitate to contact us if yo have any queries,

Best wishes

Jaqui

-- 
Jaqui Devereux
Director, Community Media Association



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