Decision by Ofcom - DM Global Media Limited
| Published date | 23 March 2016 |
| Issuer | Office of Communications |
Sanction 100 (15)
1
Sanction: Decision by Ofcom
To be imposed on DM Global Media Limited
For the failure to provide recordings to Ofcom in accordance with its licence
conditions.
Sanction against:
DM Global Media Limited (“DM Global” or “the
Licensee”) in respect of its service DM News Plus
(TLCS-100193):
For:
I. Six breaches of TLCS Licence Condition
11(2)(b)
Licence Condition 11(2)(b): “the Licensee shall:
(a) make and retain or arrange for the retention of a
recording in sound and vision of every
programme included in the Licensed Service for
a period of 60 days therein; and
(b) at the request of Ofcom forthwith produce to
Ofcom any such recording for examination or
reproduction”.
II. Four breaches of TLCS Licence Condition
20(1)(a)
Licence Condition 20(1)(a):
“(1) The Licensee shall comply with such directions
and requests for information as may be given to him
by Ofcom following receipt by him from Ofcom of a
copy of a fairness complaint that relates to the
provision of the Licensed Service, and in particular
the Licensee shall, if so requested:
(a) provide Ofcom with a recording in sound and
vision of the programme, or any specified part of
it, to which the complaint relates if and so far as
such a recording is in his possession”.
Decision:
Financial penalty of £25,000
(payable to HM Paymaster General)
Sanction 100 (15)
2
Executive Summary
1. DM News Plus is a news and general entertainment channel, available on digital
satellite, which broadcasts in Urdu, Punjabi, Pothohari and English to the UK Asian
community.
2. For the reasons set out in full in this Decision, under powers delegated from the Ofcom
Board to two senior members of the Ofcom Executive and a non-executive member of
the Ofcom Content Board (together “the Panel”), the Panel is minded to impose a
statutory sanction on DM Global. This is in light of repeated breaches of TLCS Licence
Condition 11(2)(b) (“LC 11(2)(b)”) and Licence Condition 20(1)(a) (“LC 20(1)(a)”) by the
Licensee in relation to its service DM News Plus.
3. In findings included in Broadcast Bulletins 270
1
, 273
2
, 275
3
and 277
4
Ofcom found that
the Licensee breached TLCS LC 11(2)(b) on six occasions and TLCS LC 20(1)(a) on
four occasions.
4. The findings related to the Licensee’s failure to provide or failure to provide forthwith
complete recordings of its programmes in response to 10 separate requests from Ofcom
following the receipt of standards or fairness complaints in respect of each of the
programmes in question. These programmes were:
Gloria TV, 7 March 2014, 15:00
Iseeria Online, 10 April 2014, 11:00
Rohani Alam Online, 20 May 2014, 10:00
Sentinelle TV, 1 June 2014, 00:00
Sentinelle TV, 8 June 2014, 00:00
Sentinelle TV, 9 June 2014, 00:00
Sentinelle TV, 23 June 2014, 00:00
Penny Appeal, 21 July 2014, 21:00
Sentinelle TV, 3 August 2014, 00:00
Sentinelle TV, 11 August 2014, 00:00
The Decision and level of sanction
5. In accordance with its procedures for the consideration of statutory sanctions in
breaches of broadcast licences (“the Sanctions Procedures”)
5
, Ofcom has considered
whether these Licence Condition breaches are sufficiently serious, deliberate, repeated
or reckless to warrant the imposition of a sanction on the Licensee in this case. Ofcom
1
Available at http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/enforcement/broadcast-
bulletins/obb2691/obb270.pdf
2
Available at http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/enforcement/broadcast-
bulletins/obb273/Issue273.pdf
3
Available at http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/enforcement/broadcast-
bulletins/obb275/Issue275.pdf
4
Available at http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/enforcement/broadcast-
bulletins/obb277/Issue277.pdf
5
Available at:
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/broadcast/guidance/proceduresjuly2013/Procedures_for_co
nsideration.pdf
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