GMTV Could Face Record Fine Over Phone-In Scandal
GMTV could receive a record fine from Ofcom over the GMTV premium rate phone-in scandal.
GMTV – 75% owned by ITV and 25% owned by Disney – could be subject to a record fine of up to £2.8 million, according to a report on MediaGuardian.co.uk.
The report says that Ofcom has proposed to impose the maximum possible financial penalty for serious breaches of the regulator’s broadcasting code – a fine of up to 5% of the qualifying revenue.
It adds that as Ofcom’s definition of qualifying revenue as annual advertising income equates in GMTV’s case to £56 million, it could be hit with a fine of up to £2.8 million.
Ofcom is understood to have informed ITV of the sanction it intends to impose over the phone-in scandal, with ITV having the option of an appeal against the scale of the penalty before the regulator publishes its final ruling.
The GMTV phone-in scandal began after a Panorama investigation alleged that the broadcaster’s phone quiz service supplier, Opera Interactive Technology, had failed to deliver fair competitions and had effectively cost participants more than £40 million over a four-year period.
At the end of June, Ofcom handed out the largest financial penalty imposed on a public service broadcaster when it forced Five to pay £300,000 following breaches of the broadcasting code by its phone-in quiz Brainteaser (see Record Fine For Richard & Judy Phone Quiz Operator).
The scandal prompted GMTV managing director, Paul Corley, to resign in July (see GMTV MD To Leave Following Phone-In Scandal).
The assorted phone-in scandals had a big effect on viewer trust this year and it was unsurprisingly one of the big themes at this year MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television Festival (see TV Festival Looks At Viewer Trust).
Earlier today, ITV chief executive unveiled a five year content-focused plan designed to grow the broadcaster’s business (see ITV Outlines Five Year Plan To Grow Business).
He also revealed that its ITV Play call-TV programming will be axed by the end of the year, saying that the late-night strand has been damaged by the negative publicity over phone-in competitions.
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