I originally made this request to the ASA who have referred me to you where I have copied my original request

The request was successful.

Dear Office of Communications,
From: tony lowery 08/01/2015

original request to ASA 1 December 2014

Dear Ofcom

T.V. Competitions have increased many fold over the last few years,
all of these have to by law provide a means of making a free entry.

1. What steps does the Ofcom take to monitor and ensure that free
entries are treated the same as all other entries?

2. When if ever has a free entry won a large competition prize
offered on TV?

3. When if ever has a free entry won a major prize offered in/on
any media?

Yours faithfully,

tony lowery

Yours faithfully,

tony lowery

Alistair Hall, Office of Communications

Dear Mr Lowery
Freedom of Information: Right to know request
Thank you for your request about the regulation of broadcast competitions,
which we received on 8 January 2015 and have considered under the Freedom
of Information Act 2000.
You requested the following information:

* What steps does the Ofcom take to monitor and ensure that free entries
are treated the same as all other entries?
* When if ever has a free entry won a large competition prize offered on
TV?
* When if ever has a free entry won a major prize offered in/on any
media?

Ofcom is required under the Communications Act 2003 to draw up a
Broadcasting Code
(“the Code”) which sets out standards for the content of television and
radio services through a number of rules which broadcasters must follow.
The Code can be found at:
[1]http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/broadca...
Rule 2.13 of the Code states that: “Broadcast competitions and voting must
be conducted fairly”. In 2007/8, following a number of very high profile
cases involving failures and errors in the conduct of broadcast
competitions and votes involving premium rate telephony services (“PRS”),
Ofcom took robust action, including imposing substantial financial
penalties on a number of broadcasters. We also issued detailed guidance
for broadcasters to be read in relation to the Code’s requirements in this
area. This includes some information on free entry routes. The guidance is
available here:
[2]http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binarie...
In addition, broadcasters require a licence from Ofcom in order to
transmit their services. These licences contain a number of requirements
and conditions with which broadcasters must comply, or face regulatory
action by Ofcom, including the potential revocation of their licence and
therefore their ability to broadcast. One of these licence conditions for
television broadcasters (condition 5A or 6A depending on the type of
licence) requires that PRS used in broadcast competitions and votes (and
all other entry or participation routes used alongside PRS) must be
subject to ‘third party verification’ (e.g. the scrutiny of external
auditors). This includes ensuring that all eligible entries (whether via a
free or other paid entry route) have equal prominence in the selection
process. Full details on these licence conditions are available here:
[3]http://licensing.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/t...
Ofcom assess complaints about a broadcaster’s compliance with any aspect
of the Code in relation to specific programmes on a case by case basis and
in line with our published procedures available here:
[4]http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/broadca...
Ofcom’s [5]Broadcast Bulletin, published every fortnight on our website,
includes decisions about the complaints we have received. The Bulletin
covers a range of cases, including those which Ofcom has escalated for
full investigation, and those which, after careful assessment, Ofcom has
decided not to pursue because they did not raise issues warranting
investigation.
Ofcom does not hold information on when free competition entries have won
major prizes on TV or any other media.
If you are concerned about the conduct of any broadcast competition and a
broadcaster’s compliance with Ofcom’s requirements, please submit a
complaint to us with details of the relevant programme, date and time of
its broadcast and details of your concern.
Complaints may be registered via the following link to our website in the
first instance, or by calling our Consumer Contact Team on 0300 123 3333 /
020 7981 3040 (09:00 to 17:00hrs, Monday to Friday):
[6]http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/complain/t...
Please be aware that complainants should submit their complaint to Ofcom
within 20 working days of the broadcast of the relevant programme or of
the occurrence of the matter complained of. Ordinarily, Ofcom will not
accept a complaint which is made after this deadline.
I hope this information is of assistance.
If you have any queries then please contact
[7][Ofcom request email]. Please remember to quote the
reference number 1-277316595 in any future communications.
Yours sincerely
 
 
::    Alistair Hall
[8][Ofcom request email]
 
::    Ofcom
Riverside House
2a Southwark Bridge Road
London
SE1 9HA
020 7981 3000
[9]www.ofcom.org.uk
 
 
 
If you are unhappy with the response or level of service you have received
in relation to your request from Ofcom, you may ask for an internal
review.   If you ask us for an internal review of our decision, it will
be treated as a formal complaint and will be subject to an independent
review within Ofcom.  We will acknowledge the complaint and inform you of
the date by which you might expect to be told the outcome.
The following outcomes are possible:
• the original decision is upheld; or
• the original decision is reversed or modified.
 
Timing
If you wish to exercise your right to an internal review you should
contact us within two months of the date of this letter. There is no
statutory deadline for undertaking internal reviews and it will depend
upon the complexity of the case. However, we aim to conclude all such
reviews within 20 working days, and up to 40 working days in exception
cases. We will keep you informed of the progress of any such review. If
you wish to request an internal review, you should contact:
 
Graham Howell
The Secretary to the Corporation
Ofcom
Riverside House
2a Southwark Bridge Road
London SE1 9HA
 
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision.  The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
 
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
 
 

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tony lowery left an annotation ()

Thank you for comprehensive response and it does provide me with more confidence when entering these competitions that my entry has same chance of winning as any other.

Thanks again Tony Lowery.