§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the introduction of subscription fees for British Broadcasting Corporation television to be technologically feasible; and what technology he expects to be deployed.
§ Mr. RentonThe technology for subscription television is already available in some forms and the BBC has started a downloaded night hours subscription service, in conjunction with British Direct Television providing information for the medical profession. Other forms of subscription technology are still being developed.
§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department at what level he expects British Broadcasting Corporation subscription fees to be set; and whether there will be exceptions or reduced fees for(a) pensioners and (b) those on social security.
§ Mr. RentonWe envisage that the level of subscription fees will be for the BBC to determine, as will the decision whether or not to offer reduced fees to any category of subscriber.
§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what level of income he expects the British Broadcasting Corporation to raise by subscription in its first year of operation.
§ Mr. RentonThe extent and pace of the move towards subscription are a matter for the BBC to judge. The consequences for the level of the licence fee after April 1991 will be a matter for discussion with the Government as proposed in the White Paper.
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§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the British Broadcasting Corporation will retain its public service broadcasting commitment after the introduction of subscriptions.
§ Mr. RentonI refer the hon. Member to our White Paper "Broadcasting in the '90s: Competition, Choice and Quality" (November 1988, Cm 517), which makes clear our commitment to the continuation of the BBC as the cornerstone of public service broadcasting.
§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has on the rate at which the technological costs of broadcasting are increasing.
§ Mr. RentonA wide range of different technologies is used in broadcasting, some of which are mature and some still developing. Although we do not regularly monitor changes in their cost, it is likely that the position varies from one technology to another, depending partly on the stage of development which they have reached.
§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will introduce safeguards to limit concentration of ownership of television stations.
§ Mr. RentonYes. Existing statutory safeguards are contained in the Broadcasting Act 1981 and the Cable and Broadcasting Act 1984. Paragraphs 6.48 to 6.53 of our recent White Paper "Broadcasting in the '90s: Competition, Choice and Quality" (November 1988, Cm. 517) made clear our determination that ownership in the independent sector should be widely spread, and sought views on a number of principles on which ownership rules in the proposed legislation might be based.
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to make an announcement about the establishment of community radio stations.
§ Mr. RentonMy right hon. Friend anounced on 2 November 1988 that he had approved a proposal by the Independent Broadcasting Authority to establish 20 incremental radio stations. We understand that they expect to announce their decisions on the first five stations in the spring.