BBC HIT WITH £95K FINE OVER UNFAIR RADIO COMPETITIONS

BBC HIT WITH £95K FINE OVER UNFAIR RADIO COMPETITIONS

The BBC has been fined £95,000 for broadcasting unfair competitions on two of its radio stations.

Competitions were run on Dermot O'Leary's Radio 2 show and Tony Blackburn's programme on BBC London 94.9FM.

Media watchdog Ofcom said in a statement the shows were guilty of serious breaches of the Broadcasting Code as listeners were unable to either enter or win the competitions.

The BBC was said to have "repeatedly taken pre-meditated and deliberate decisions to include audience competitions in pre-recorded programmes".

"The BBC invited listeners to enter these competitions at the time of the broadcasts, in the full knowledge that the audience stood no chance of either entering or winning," the Ofcom report said.

The regulator added the competitions had not been run for profit and acknowledged steps made by the BBC to ensure compliance with the Broadcasting Code.