According to press reports officials of the Independent Television Commission initially recommended that all four applicants for the Channel 5 television license should pass the programme quality thresholds. It is believed that the government-appointed members of the ITC overruled the verdict of the commission’s professional regulators.
This is expected to fuel the row because both Virgin Television and UKTV were failed by the ITC on the basis of programming quality. Virgin Television has been granted a High Court review of the ITC decision, to be heard on 17 Jan. UKTV and New Century were refused the right to have a separate judicial review but will be able to have their arguments heard.
Controversy is also raging over whether Channel 5 Broadcasting was allowed to enhance its bid after the applications were submitted.
Media Jobs
Hello. We have downloaded cookies on your device. Some of these cookies are essential for the website to function. Others are non-essential and are used for analytics and advertising.
We need your consent for these types of cookies.
To withdraw your consent or change your cookie choices, please do this through your browser settings.
Otherwise, click OK to accept and continue.
