Broadcasting Act 1990

3 (1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2), no person who is the holder of a licence to provide—

(a) a Channel 3 service or Channel 5, or

(b) a national radio service,

shall be a participant with more than a 20 per cent. interest in a body corporate which runs a national or local newspaper.

(2) Sub-paragraph (1) shall not impose any restriction on the holder of a licence to provide a regional Channel 3 service as respects participation in a body corporate which runs a local newspaper except where the service and the newspaper each serve an area which is to a significant extent the same as that served by the other.

(3) No person who—

(a) is the holder of any such licence as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (1), and

(b) is a participant with more than a 5 per cent. interest in a body corporate which runs a national newspaper (but, in accordance with that sub-paragraph, is not a participant with more than a 20 per cent. interest in it),

shall be a participant with more than a 5 per cent. interest in any other such body corporate.

(4) No person who is the holder of a licence to provide a relevant local radio service or a relevant local delivery service shall be a participant with more than a 20 per cent. interest in a body corporate which runs a local newspaper.

(5) The Secretary of State may by order—

(a) vary sub-paragraph (1), (3) or (4) by substituting a different percentage for the percentage for the time being specified there;

(b) prescribe restrictions (in addition to that imposed by sub-paragraph (3)) on the extent to which the holder of such a licence as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) may be a participant in two or more bodies corporate which run national or local newspapers;

(c) prescribe restrictions on the extent to which the holder of a licence to provide a relevant service falling within paragraph 1(2)(f) or (3)(b) in Part III of this Schedule may be a participant in a body corporate which runs a national newspaper, or in two or more such bodies corporate;

(d) prescribe restrictions on the extent to which the holder of such a licence as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (4) may be a participant in two or more bodies corporate which run local newspapers;

(e) prescribe restrictions on the extent to which the holder of a licence to provide any specified description of service falling within paragraph 1(2)(b) or (c) or (3)(d) in Part III of this Schedule may be a participant in a body corporate which runs a national or local newspaper, or in two or more such bodies corporate.

(6) For the purposes of this paragraph a person runs a national or local newspaper if—

(a) he is the proprietor of such a newspaper; or

(b) he controls a body which is the proprietor of such a newspaper.