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| Wednesday, January 31, 2007 |
| UK crackdown to hit TV quiz channels hard |
Television channels in the United Kingdom, which have been for long raking in millions from unsuspecting viewers through phone-in quizzes, are being bridled.
Phone-in quiz TV companies are set to lose a fortune in the crackdown.
UK's gaming regulators will force some shows to change the ways in which they operate or they will have to give at least one-fifth of their revenue to good causes.
The quiz channels have been criticised for charging about 75 pence for a call - and more if the call is from a mobile phone - whether or not the callers even get through.
The Gambling Commission of the UK is considering how new laws, coming into force in September 2007, will affect lotteries, prize competitions and free draws.
The commission, which regulates gaming in Britain, will publish its findings in the spring.
Some of the quiz shows have been asked to effect changes in their style of operation such as making it easier for people to play for free, which could result in a channel losing its revenue significantly, or being classed as a "complex lottery."
Said a government official: "They will have to be registered as a lottery. Lotteries are for good causes. They will have to get a complex lottery licence, and a part of that will be that a minimum of 20% has to go to good causes."
TV companies, which have been using the channels to make up for lost revenue as advertising continues to fall, may move court against the Gambling Commission's decision.
TV quiz shows have mushroomed in recent years in the UK and are now said to be making up to £180 million a year. People taking part in the games can pay between 60 pence and £1.50 a call.
ITV Play, which made over £9 million in profits in the first half of last year, is the best-known since it airs the quiz programme on ITV1 after midnight.
British Members of Parliament (MPs) had last week called for TV quiz to be classed as gambling.
A report by the MPs warned that viewers risk being "ripped off" by call TV shows, where the odds of getting through to the studio can be as long as 8,500-1.
The report, by the all-party Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, had called for tighter regulation of the shows and warned that players are generally not told that the chances of getting through to the studio are very slim.Labels: media |
| posted by a correspondent @ 10:02 AM |
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