Ofcom: BEN TV in breach of broadcast licence

BEN TV, an entertainment and news channel targeted at diaspora African and Caribbean audiences, has been found in breach of its licence conditions by UK regulator Ofcom.

In its latest ‘Broadcast and On-Demand Bulletin’, Ofcom said that on two occasions BEN TV’s licence-holder, Greener Technology Limited (GTL), failed to respond to an information request about sponsorship campaigns broadcast on Ben TV between October 18 and November 17 last year.

Ofcom said the failure by BEN TV to provide this information represented a “significant breach” of its licence as it meant the regulator was unable to fulfil its statutory duty to “assess and regulate broadcast content”.

“Ofcom has previously recorded breaches against GTL for breaches of its licence conditions,” said the regulator. “We will check the licensee’s arrangements to retain and provide recordings and information to Ofcom in the near future. We remind GTL that, should similar compliance issues arise, Ofcom will consider taking further regulatory action.”

BEN TV broadcasts to Western Europe and parts of Asia and Northern Africa. In the UK it is available on Sky channel 182 and to stream online from BENtelevision.com.