PLASA
PLASA's bid to become the industry Band Manager
In late 2006, Ofcom (the UK's telecoms regulator) published the Digital Dividend Review in which it laid out its plans for clearing out a large number of radio frequencies and auctioning them to the highest bidder.
It quickly became clear that the proposed auction would have disastrous consequences for the production and events industries since they would not be able to match the deeper pockets of those in the telecoms sector. As a consequence, they would find themselves effectively 'evicted' from the radio frequencies so essential to the delivery of live events, theatre, newsgathering and film & TV production across the UK.
Thanks to a lengthy and intense lobbying campaign conducted by PLASA and BEIRG (British Entertainment Industry Radio Group), Ofcom came to recognise the serious impact of their decision and granted special exemptions to the PMSE (Programme Making and Special Events) sector, subsequently announcing their intention to appoint a new PMSE-aligned Band Manager by means of a 'beauty contest.'
Whilst the campaign achieved some short-term protection for the sector, it by no means secured a long-term future for the industry and so PLASA has put forward its name to be the industry Band Manager in order that it can fully safeguard the interests of all those who work in the sector.
Ofcom had been due to make the appointment in the spring of 2010, but in a statement posted on the Ofcom website on Thursday 15 April 2010, the regulator announced that it would now defer any decisions until after London2012.
In its statement, Ofcom committed to address the 'cliff edge' which would otherwise have resulted in no guaranteed spectrum access for the sector beyond 2018 and also extended the timelines for access to channel 69 until at least 1 July 2012.
PLASA welcomes these important statements on security of tenure for PMSE spectrum access and will continue to actively promote the industry's interests and be pro-active in the bid process.
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