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Overview of SRH 355 Reviews

355 Reviews - Ofcom Obligations

Whenever a local radio licence undergoes a 'change of control', typically when a station is sold, Ofcom is required under section 355 of the Communications Act 2003 to undertake a review of its programme output.

Specifically, Ofcom must review the likely effect of the change of control on:

Ofcom must determine whether the change of control would prejudice any of the three matters listed above. If it decides that it would, then it must amend the licence, by imposing new programming obligations. However, these may only reflect what the previous owner was actually delivering.

The Procedure

Section 355 is worded in such a way as to oblige Ofcom to look for benefits or otherwise to the consumer (listener), rather than to anything that might be the detriment or benefit of the licensee (eg whether or not particular programmes being provided are expensive or sponsored).

Consequently the Radio Team aligns the station’s output against the demands of the Format (which forms part of the licence) in order to determine whether or not amendments should be made.

Formats are instruments of ‘minimal’ demands and control, constructed first and foremost to identify and safeguard the target demographic. Stations interpret the direction and character of the station through the detail of each Format.

It follows that there will be many different ways of targeting that demographic, and whilst it is clearly not the intention of the Act to prevent new owners from putting their stamp on a station, it is possible that certain aspects of programming which may have become part of audience expectation could be regarded as legitimate items for protection if they are not already specifically demanded by the Format detail.

SRH Findings

The obligations already enshrined within each Format give the SRH stations their specific output character, and it is Ofcom’s view that these are good examples of Format regulation resulting in quality and a good range of broadcasting. The presence of such obligations is sufficient to capture the stations’ present character of service without the need to enshrine further obligations.

Ofcom’s finding that no changes should be made to SRH Formats is not an indication that Section 355 reviews are purely a ‘paper exercise’. Rather, it is an indication that SRH stations are, in the main, stations operating with quite individual Formats demanding specific, specialist output.



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