§ 24. Mr. R. E. Winterbottomasked the Assistant Postmaster-General if, before licensing sponsored television, he has sought an estimate of the cost of an adaptor to enable existing television receivers to obtain more than one programme; and what the estimate was.
§ Mr. GammansNo definite figure can yet be provided by the radio industry, but I understand the cost would not be large compared with the price of the set itself.
§ Mr. WinterbottomCould the Assistant Postmaster-General be more precise in his reply? I understand that the cost of the adaptor will be about £17 per set. Will he please tell us whether that is the correct figure?
§ Mr. GammansIf the hon. Member understands the figure to be £17, then he knows far more about it than I do, because we have had no communication whatever from the radio industry that it is likely to be anything like that sum.
Mr. C. I. Orr-EwingIs my hon. Friend aware that it is absolutely impossible to work out the price for such an adaptor until the technical information is available and that it is quite unreasonable for hon. Members opposite to publish false information to try to deceive the House and the country?
§ Mr. WinterbottomWill the Assistant Postmaster-General give an assurance to the House that as soon as a price for the 1232 adaptor has been arrived at and communicated to the B.B.C., the House will have the information?
§ Mr. GammansThe price will not be communicated to the B.B.C. It will be a question of offering the adaptor to the public, and if the public do not want it they need not buy it.