Channel TV investigated over awards phone vote

By Gemma Hockey

Comedy duo Ant and Dec won the People’s Choice award - but votes were still being taken after it had been presented.

CHANNEL Television faces a fine or could even lose its licence to broadcast following an alleged breach of broadcasting regulations when it acted as the compliance licensee for the British Comedy Awards.

Regulator Ofcom said yesterday that it was investigating the viewers’ vote for the People’s Choice Award that went to Ant and Dec. Rowan O’Sullivan, director of the company’s enterprise division, explained what had happened.

‘The 2005 Comedy Awards were broadcast on 14 December on ITV1 at 9pm but, due to the requirement for the ITN News to be shown at 10.30pm, the final half hour of the programme was shown “as live”. In spite of this, the final segment contained instances in which viewers were encouraged to vote for the People’s Choice Award despite the fact that the votes had already been counted and the award presented. This was noted on the night too late for effective action to be taken,’ he said.

Mr O’Sullivan said the awards were an annual event produced for the ITV Network by Michael Hurll Television. Since 2000, Channel TV has been the compliance licensee. This entails ensuring that the programme meets all relevant legal and regulatory requirements.

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This article posted on May 10, 2008 at 9:30 am, filed under News.

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