Regulator launches review of premium rate quiz shows

LONDON - Premium rate phone regulator Icstis is to review the practices of quiz shows on digital TV that charge their audience through premium rate phone lines, whether they get through to the show or not.

The investigation is being headed by Icstis director George Kidd, and aims to clear up any misunderstandings the general public may have when phoning quiz channels, which use premium lines for entry into their competitions.

Icstis said that it would be gathering "as much evidence as possible" over the coming months to look into the problem of lack of information to viewers, who may be liable to run up expensive phone bills if they do not realise they are being charged a premium rate, even if they not get through to a given competition. 

A spokesman for Icstis said that although the industry was already well regulated and that some broadcasters capped the number of calls an individual could make to television quiz shows with premium rate numbers, this was not always the case.

The spokesman said: "We have seen complaints fall recently, but there are still certain issues of transparency that need to be addressed.

"Icstis has never been in the business of nannying broadcasters, but in some cases there may be a need to put a limitation on the amount of calls that an individual can make to premium lines. Where we have to place restrictions on the industry, we will."

Last week, Icstis found the Channel 4 programme 'Big Brother' guilty of misleading viewers regarding evicted contestants returning to the house as part of this year's show after more than 2,600 complaints.
 
Channel 4 was found guilty, along with its premium rate phone line operators iTouch and Minick, by the regulatory body.

Icstis logged 2,635 complaints from members of the public after it was announced that contestants, who had previously been evicted, were being given the chance to return to the house and potentially win the £100,000 cash prize.

In August, The Gambling Commission launched its own public consultation into premium-rate competitions.
 
The consultation is seeking to define whether participation competitions on shows such as are based on skill, or are simply "lotteries", adding to the revenues gained from running participation through premium rate phone lines.

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