The Office of Communications

Research(OFCOM)

Ofcom was founded on 29th December 2003THE MAIN AREAS OF OFCOM INCLUDE:

● LICENSING

● CODES AND POLICIES

● RESEARCH

● COMPLAINTS

● COMPETITION

● PROTECTING THE RADIO SPECTRUM FROM ABUSE (E.G. PIRATE RADIO)

OFCOM IS THE COMMUNICATION REGULATOR IN THE UK… THEY REGULATE; TV, RADIO, VIDEO-ON-DEMAND SERVICES, FIXED LINE TELECOMS, MOBILES, POSTAL SERVICES PLUS THE AIRWAVES THAT WIRELESS DEVICES OPERATE ON.

MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE IN THE UK GET THE MOST FROM THEIR COMMUNICATIONS AS WELL AS PROTECTING PEOPLE FROM SCAMS AND SHARP PRICES, WHILST ALLOWING COMPETITION TO THRIVE.

OFCOM OPERATES UNDER A NUMBER OF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT… IN PARTICULAR, ‘ACTS OF COMMUNICATION 2003’

tHIS MEANS OFCOM MUST ACT WITHIN THE POWERS AND DUTIES THE PARLIAMENT HAVE SET FOR IT IN LEGISLATION.

The Communications Act says that Ofcom’s principal duty is to further the interests of citizens and of consumers, where appropriate by promoting competition.

OFCOM… SET AND ENFORCE REGULATORY RULES.

THEY ALSO… Have power to enforce competition law in certain sectors.

FINALLY… Ofcom is funded by fees from industry for regulating broadcasting and communications networks, and grant-in-aid from the Government.

HISTORY OF OFCOM… Creation announced in the Queen’s speech in June 2001.

Once launched, inherited duties that were previously been the responsibility of five different regulators. (Broadcasting Standards Commission, Independent Television Commissions, Office of Telecommunications (Oftel), Radio Authority and Radiocommunications Agency.)

“With a Conservative government, Ofcom as we know it will cease to exist… Its remit will be restricted to its narrow technical and enforcement roles. It will no longer play a role in making policy. And the policy-making functions it has today will be transferred back fully to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.”- David Cameron (2009)

CONTINUING…

In April 2015, Ofcom announced that as of 1 July, phone companies will have to provide customers with a set charge for the cost of calling numbers starting 084, 087 and 09. The streamlining of these charges must be printed in each customer's contract and monthly bills. The change will affect over 175 million phone numbers making it the biggest overhaul of telephoning in over a decade.

On 1 January 2016 the regulation of video on demand was transferred to Ofcom from ATVOD, the Authority for Television On Demand.

RADIO JOINT AUDIENCE RESEARCH

(RAJAR)

ABOUT RAJAR… ● It is the official body in charge of measuring radio audiences in the United

Kingdom.

● Set up by the BBC and the RadioCentre in 1992 to measure their audiences using the same system. It replaced the BBC’s Daily Survey and Commercial Radio’s JICRAR survey.

● A non profit making organisation.

● RAJAR data is the industry wide currency for planning, buying and selling advertising on Commercial Radio.

● Owned and controlled by the industry it serves.

● Has a continuous programme of innovation and development to meet its market’s needs.

The current annual sample is approximately 110,000 respondents aged 15+. Participants are asked to keep a diary recording their radio listening for a week.

RAJAR BOARD:RAJAR non executive Chairman

RAJAR CEO

3 BBC representatives

3 RadioCentre representatives

1 IPA representative

1 ISBA observer

RAJAR currently surveys over 300 individual stations broadcasting in the UK, of which 55 belong to the BBC.

HISTORY… The first RAJAR contract commenced with the measurement of radio audiences for Quarter 4, 1992 and was in operation up to and including Quarter 4, 1998. From Quarter 1 1999 the origins of current survey were put in place.

In 1996 and 1997, RAJAR carried out a review of methods, followed by an extensive experimental programme of new diary and sample designs. Following this review, the new RAJAR contract specification included three key new features:

1. A 'personalised' diary, customised to include the stations required by each individual respondent.

2. Only one adult per household to be interviewed, instead of all household members.

3. Measurement of audiences on a rolling basis, with listening data built up over three, six or twelve months, according to the size of the station, with publication of all stations results every quarter.

CONTINUING… When planning the second RAJAR Contract from 1998 onwards, there was an

obvious need to adjust the current system to an increasing complex radio market, in particular the growth in the number of stations. A new diary had to be design was required.

Following a tender process, a new contract was awarded, starting in Q2 2007. Ipsos retained the fieldwork while sample design and weighting is handled by RSMB.1. Changes to the main contract include:A new diary featuring platform columns as well as location, allowing reporting on each platform separately.

2. The move from postcode sectors to districts as building blocks to define TSAs, which led to a reduction in the number of segments, therefore bringing less volatility to the reported data.

FINALLY… From Quarter 3, 2011 RAJAR introduced an online version of radio

listening diary (Radio Diary) as an additional collection methodology across all TSAs. It is recognised that respondent engagement is critical to the continued quality of the survey and that by offering a choice as to how people record and return their listening data will help maintain the current high levels of participation and completion into the future.