Britain: An official handbook > 1977

BROADCASTING
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the other at the weekend). The companies operate on a commercial basis,
deriving their revenue from the sale of advertising time. The financial resources,
advertising revenue and programme production of the companies vary
considerably, depending largely on the size of population in their areas.
(Independent television serves a population of some 11-5 million people in the
London area compared with some 107,000 people in the Channel Islands.)
In consultation with the IBA, each company plans the content of the pro¬
grammes to be broadcast in its area. These consist partly of material produced
by the company itself, partly of that produced by the other programme com¬
panies, and partly of that purchased from elsewhere. The five largest companies
(Thames, ATY, Granada, Yorkshire and London Weekend) produce a larger
proportion of their own programmes and provide more programmes for
broadcast elsewhere on the national network than do the smaller ones. A common
news service is provided by Independent Television News Ltd., a non-profit-
making company in which all the programme companies are shareholders. The
negotiations concerning the supply, exchange and purchase of programmes and
their co-ordinated transmission through the independent television network
take place largely on the Network Planning Committee which consists of
representatives of all the programme companies and of the IBA.
Local broadcasting by independent radio stations has been introduced by the
IBA. The companies providing programmes are under contract to the IBA,
operate under its control and are financed by advertising revenue.
Control by
the IBA
Domestic
Television
and Radio
When a company, on the basis of negotiations with the other companies, has
decided on a programme schedule for its area, it is required to submit this to the
IBA for approval. The authority has wide-ranging powers to control and regulate
the content and quality of programmes; for example, it ensures that a ‘proper
balance’ of views is expressed and has drawn up a code on violence which
includes special precautions to be taken when children are likely to be viewing.
Although newspapers can acquire an interest in programme companies there
are safeguards to prevent their shareholdings leading to results contrary to the
public interest. In certain circumstances local newspapers have a right to a
share in the control of local radio companies.
Television viewing has become by far the most popular leisure activity in
Britain and some 95 per cent of the population have television in their own
homes. Average viewing time per head of population in the first three months of
1976 was over 19 hours a week. There are three television channels: BBC-i and
ITV which broadcast on both 405 lines very high frequency (vhf) and 625 lines
ultra high frequency (uhf), and BBC-2 which broadcasts on 625 lines uhf only.
Some 99 per cent of the population live within range of vhf, and more than 95
per cent within range of uhf transmissions. A majority of people possess uhf
receivers, and when most of the old vhf-only receivers have been replaced the
vhf broadcasts of BBC-i and ITV will cease. Colour programmes were first
introduced on BBC-2 in 1967 and were extended to BBC-i and ITV in 1969
when they began uhf broadcasts. A high proportion of programmes on the three
uhf services is transmitted in colour, though they can also be received in
black and white.
The Government has accepted in principle the recommendation of a report
on broadcasting coverage (see Bibliography, p. 473) that a fourth television
channel in Wales should be allotted to a separate service in which Welsh-
language programmes would be given priority.