Communications Act 2003

355 Variation of local licence following change of control

(1) The regulatory regime for every local sound broadcasting service provided by a body corporate includes—

(a) a condition requiring the licence holder to give OFCOM advance notification of any proposals known to it that may give rise to a relevant change of control; and

(b) a condition requiring the licence holder to provide OFCOM, in such manner and at such times as they may reasonably require, with such information as they consider necessary for the purposes of exercising their functions under this section and section 356.

(2) OFCOM must carry out a review where—

(a) they receive notification, in accordance with a condition of a local sound broadcasting licence, of proposals that may give rise to a relevant change of control; or

(b) a relevant change of control takes place (whether or not that change has been previously notified to OFCOM).

(3) The review shall be a review of the effects or likely effects, in relation to the matters mentioned in subsection (4), of—

(a) the change to which the proposals may give rise; or

(b) the change that has taken place.

(4) Those matters are—

(a) the quality and range of programmes included in the service;

(b) the character of the service;

(c) the extent to which OFCOM’s duty under section 314 is performed in relation to the service.

(5) The matters to which OFCOM must have regard in determining for the purposes of this section the character of a local sound broadcasting service, include, in particular, the selection of spoken material and music in programmes included in the service.

(6) Where OFCOM carry out a review under subsection (2), they must publish a report of that review—

(a) setting out their conclusions; and

(b) specifying any steps which they propose to take under section 356.

(7) In this section “relevant change of control” means a change in the persons having control over—

(a) a body holding the licence to provide a local sound broadcasting service; or

(b) any body which—

(i) is connected with a body holding such a licence; and

(ii) is involved, to a substantial extent, in the provision of the programmes included in the service provided under that licence, or is likely to become so involved.

(8) Expressions used in this section and in Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act (restrictions on licence holders) have the same meanings in this section as in that Schedule.