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U.K. ISPs, Rights Holders Partner to Address File-Sharing

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 24, 2008 - 8:27am.

London - Six British Internet service providers have signed on to a voluntary code of conduct -- in the face of looming legislation -- that will see them send hundreds of thousands of letters to suspected illegal file-swappers and work with music and other rights holders "towards a significant reduction in illegal filesharing." U.K. ISPs Virgin Media, BSkyB, Carphone Warehouse, BT, Orange and Tiscali are party to the agreement, which came after negotiations facilitated by the U.K.'s Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), and also includes record label trade group the BPI, and the Motion Picture Association of America.

tags: Law | Policy | P2P | Music | Movies | MPAA | Copyright | IFPI | BPI | Orange | BT | Tiscali | Ofcom | BSkyB | Carphone Warehouse | Virgin Media |

U.K. and Ofcom Support Proposal to Sell Unused Broadcast Spectrum

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 27, 2006 - 11:50am.
London - The U.K. government and Ofcom, the U.K. telecommunications watchdog, have both endorsed a plan to allow parts of unwanted or unused spectrum to be auctioned in order to raise funds for the government. "The government agrees with the audit that there is scope for more effective use of public sector spectrum through the introduction of spectrum trading and increased sharing with other users, and will work with Ofcom to enable this," the U.K. government said. The government insisted that it would ensure that enough spectrum is available for national security, defense and public services. The U.S. government hopes to raise billions of dollars when it auctions off spectrum freed by the transition to digital television broadcasting, now scheduled to take place on Feb. 17, 2009.
tags: U.K | Sell | Support | Ofcom | Proposal | Unused Broadcast Spectrum |

U.K. Regulator Ofcom Calls for End of Analog TV by 2012

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 14, 2004 - 4:36am.
London -- Ofcom, the U.K. media and communications watchdog, announced on Tuesday that the switchover to digital TV could happen in some areas of the country as soon as 2007. What's more, Ofcom said that all U.K. broadcasters would have to stop sending analog signals by 2012. The government said the reasoning behind its efforts to make the U.K. the first country in the world with a digital-only TV network was twofold: It wants to free up more of the broadcast spectrum and spur new technologies that will lead to more channels and interactive features, and clearer signals. To date, about one out of every two British households owns a digital TV, meaning that as many as 90 million devices will have to be switched over to digital by Dec. 31, 2012. The regulator has asked for responses to Tuesday's proposal by Oct. 25. U.S. broadcasters face a legal mandate to switch to digital by Dec. 31, 2006, but this directive hinges on 85% of consumers having purchased digital televisions capable of receiving digital signals.
tags: Ofcom | Analog TV | End | U.K. Regulator |