Ofcom The Office of Communications, usually known as Ofcom, is the UK's communications regulator. Introduction Ofcom was designed to be a 'super regulator', required in an age where many media platforms are converging. Ofcom was initially established in the Office of Communications Act 2002, but received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003. On the December 29th of 2003, Ofcom inherited the duties that had previously been the responsibility of five regulatory bodies: the Broadcasting Standards Commission the Independent Television Commission the Office of Telecommunications (Oftel) the Radio Authority the Radiocommunications Agency The inaugural chairman of Ofcom is David Currie, Dean of Cass Business School at City University and a life peer under the title Lord Currie of Marylebone. Its chief executive Stephen Carter was formerly a senior executive of J Walter Thompson UK and NTL. The short form of the name is given as OFCOM (all capitals) in the Communications Act 2003, which established the Office of Communications. Ofcom itself uses the mixed case form seen here, which is also the more widespread in the media. Ofcom's main office is at Riverside House, 2a, Southwark Bridge Road, Southwark, London SE1 9HA. Duties Ofcom's duties are wide-ranging, covering all manner of industries and processes. It has a statutory duty to further the interests of citizens and consumers by promoting competiton and protecting consumers from harm or offensive material. Some of the main things which Ofcom preside over are licensing, undertaking research, creating codes and policies, dealing with complaints and looking into competition. Ofcom has also become well known for its tendency to issue lots and lots of consultations (there was even a consultation on the consultations). However, this is the way Ofcom intends to run its business, being more open, accountable, and receptive to public and industry comments. Consultations Ofcom considers consultations to be a vital way of helping it to make the right decisions based upon the right evidence. Ofcom's formal process of consultation starts with their publishing a document (all of which are published on their website), asking for views and responses. If the document is long and complicated, Ofcom will usually publish a plain English summary. Ofcom will then usually allow a period of ten weeks for interested persons, companies or organisations to read the document and send in their responses. After this ten week period, Ofcom will normally publish all of the responses on their website (excluding any which are marked by the respondent as confidential). After the consultation has closed, Ofcom will prepare a summary of the responses, and may use this as a basis for some of their decisions. http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/ In June 2004, Ofcom, having received complaints from twenty-four viewers, censured Fox commentator John Gibson for stating that the BBC had “a frothing-at-the-mouth anti-Americanism that was obsessive, irrational and dishonest”, that the BBC “felt entitled to lie and, when caught lying, felt entitled to defend its lying reporters and executives”, that BBC reporter, Andrew Gilligan, had “insisted on air that the Iraqi army was heroically repulsing an incompetent American military”, and that “the BBC, far from blaming itself, insisted its reporter had a right to lie— exaggerate— because, well, the BBC knew that the war was wrong, and anything they could say to underscore that point had to be right”http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,109821,00.html. Ofcom held that these statements were untrue opinions based on false evidence that necessitated that Fox offer the BBC rebuttal time.http://www.ofcom.org.uk/bulletins/prog_cb/pcb_11/upheld_cases?a=87101 Licensing Ofcom is in charge of a large chunk of the electromagnetic spectrum, and licenses portions of it for use in TV and radio broadcasts, mobile phone transmissions, private communications networks, and so on. The process of licensing varies depending on the type of usage required. Some licenses simply have to be applied for and paid for, others are subject to a bidding process. Most of the procedures in place have been inherited from the systems used by the legacy regulators. However, Ofcom may change some of the processes in future. Related articles Advertising Standards Authority Press Complaints Commission UK topics External link Ofcom website category: portmanteaus FAVORITE ARTICLES: History of the World    History of the United States    History of Europe    Ancient History    History    Military History    World War I    Bombing of Dresden    California    US Constitution    Frank Sinatra    Boston    Marbury v. Madison This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ofcom