Six broadcasters found in breach of Ofcom rules

Five TV channels and one radio stations have been found in breach of Ofcom rules and regulations after failing to submit their Relevant Turnover returns.

The principles which Ofcom applies when determining what fees should be paid by licensees are set out in the Statement of Charging Principles. Chief among these principles is that for all television and for national and local analogue radio licensees, the fees they are required to pay are based on a percentage of their turnover from related activities. This is known as Relevant Turnover.

As a part of Ofcom contracts, broadcasters are required each year to submit to Ofcom a statement of its Relevant Turnover for the last but one calendar year. This provision of information is a licence requirement. As well as enabling the charging of fees, this information is also used by Ofcom to fulfill its obligations regarding market reporting. It can therefore be seen that submission of Relevant Turnover is an extremely important requirement upon all relevant broadcasting licensees.

Ofcom has now put Radio XL, Prime TV, Sikh TV, Euro Bangla TV, DM Digital and Hidayat TV on notice. Their present contravention of their licences is being considered for the imposition of a statutory sanction, including licence revocation.