Britain: An official handbook > 1966

Programmes
Advertising
Pay Television
Wire
Broadcasting
SOUND AND TELEVISION BROADCASTING
regions through the link system operated by the ITA. This consists of some
6,000 miles of vision links, about 60 per cent of which are two-way circuits.
Both the BBC and the ITV services include programmes of music, drama,
light entertainment, variety, films, news reports covering international
national, and local events, political programmes, and outside broadcasts’
particularly of national and state occasions and sport. Religious broadcasts
and broadcasts for schools and adult students also feature regularly as do
programmes designed to stimulate thought and widen people’s horizons,
such as interviews with outstanding personalities, investigations into matters
of public interest, and programmes on the arts; and there are programmes of
specialised interest, such as children’s and family programmes, programmes
for women, regional programmes, and programmes on agriculture. In
addition, there are special series of party political broadcasts under arrange¬
ments agreed between the broadcasting authorities and the leading political
parties. The addition of a second BBC channel has made longer programmes
possible, allowing subjects to be examined in greater depth.
The BBC seeks to avoid giving publicity to any individual firm or organised
interest except in so far as is necessary in providing effective and informative
programmes under the terms of the Charter. The ITA broadcasts advertise¬
ments (on which the programme companies depend for their revenue) subject
to the relevant provisions in the Television Act, namely, that there should
be no sponsoring of programmes by advertisers, that all advertisements should
be clearly distinguishable as such and recognisably separate from the pro¬
gramme, and that the amount of time given to advertising should not be so
great as to detract from the value of the programmes as a medium of informa¬
tion, education and entertainment. Certain types of advertising are prohibited
notably the advertising of cigarettes, betting, and ‘cures’ for alcoholism. The
ITA also has rules agreed with the Postmaster General about certain classes
of broadcasts (including, in particular, religious services) in which advertise¬
ments may not be inserted and, on the advice of the Advertising Advisory
Committee and the Medical Advisory Panel drew up certain ‘principles for
television advertising’ with a view to the exclusion of misleading or unsuitable
advertisements from the programmes. These principles formed the basis of
the ‘Code of Advertising Standards and Practice’ which, under the Act, the
ITA keeps under review. The cost of inserting advertisements in the ITA
service is borne by the advertisers, who pay the programme companies for
advertising time.
An experiment in pay television by wire, a service whereby subscribers pay
for programmes they choose to view, will be taking place shortly in a few
selected areas, starting in the London Boroughs of Westminster and South¬
wark. The Postmaster General has licensed Pay-TV Limited to operate the
service, subject to certain conditions and safeguards, for a period of three years
from the date of commencement of service.
The company is to operate in conjunction with British Relay Limited
which will make available its television wire broadcasting system (see below)
for distributing the pay television service.
Wire broadcasting a system whereby programmes are received at a central
point, whence they are distributed by wire to listeners and viewers—began
in the United Kingdom in 1925 as a private venture and remains in the
hands of private enterprise. Wire broadcasting companies operate under