Part 1: Public service television Programming quotas for public service television Section 9: Quotas: original productions
Section 278 of the CA 2003 provides that a minimum proportion of broadcasting hours must be allocated to original productions. The proportion for each licensed public service channel (i.e. channels 3, 4 and 5: section 362), as well as the proportion to be determined in peak viewing times) is determined by OFCOM. The Secretary of State is responsible for defining "original productions" by order (section 278(6)). In doing so, they may confer such discretions on OFCOM as they think fit (section 278(7)).
	This section amends section 278 to change the way in which the provider of a licensed public service channel may deliver their original production quota(s).
	Subsection (2) of this section amends section 278(1) of the CA 2003. It replaces the previous requirement on the provider of a licensed public service channel to allocate time "in the channel" to the broadcasting of original productions with a more general requirement to "make available" these productions in the form of "qualifying audiovisual content" (see section 11).
	Subsection (2) also replaces references to a "proportion" of hours which must be made available with references to a "duration (in total)", which is to be expressed as a number of hours. The number of hours that the provider of each licensed public service channel must include is to be determined by OFCOM. OFCOM may also consider that it is appropriate for some of those hours to be provided in peak viewing times (the "additional peak viewing time objective"). In this case, OFCOM may determine the number of hours to be included in the channel in peak viewing times.
	Subsection (4) inserts a new subsection (7A) into section 278. This new subsection allows the Secretary of State to authorise OFCOM to exclude certain types of content (for example, teleshopping) from counting towards the quota. The Secretary of State is also empowered to require OFCOM to publish guidance in relation to these exclusions, and to authorise OFCOM to require licensed PSBs to have regard to that guidance.
	Subsections (3) and (5) make consequential amendments.