ARLA/CLUSTER: Reino Unido: Combater as rádio pirata poderia render aos londrinos 1.000.000 Liras

[João Costa > CT1FBF]

Tackling pirate radio could save Londoners £1 million

A new approach to tackling pirate radio has eradicated the problem in
one London borough, and could save up to £1 million for Londoners by
being rolled out across the capital.

Pirate radio harms local communities and the critical communications
used by the emergency services. Ofcom, which manages radio
frequencies, is hosting a summit on 3 November to explore the new
approach to tackling the problem.

Pirate stations typically use high-rise buildings for their
broadcasts, with illegal transmitters installed on rooftops or hidden
in lift shafts. This damages residential properties owned by local
authorities, disrupting residents’ lives and putting people at risk
from falling equipment.

Ofcom has been working in north London, one of the UK’s most affected
areas, with housing body Homes for Haringey. In 2014, 19 pirate radio
stations were illegally broadcasting in Haringey. By quickly removing
their transmitters and regularly patrolling and securing rooftops,
pirate radio has now been eradicated in the borough.

As a result, Homes for Haringey has saved £90,000 in enforcement and
maintenance costs over the past year.

On 3 November, Ofcom is meeting with local authorities from across
London to share the success of the Homes for Haringey partnership. If
this collaborative and proactive approach is rolled out across the
capital, local authorities stand to save an estimated total of £1
million per year.

Clive Corrie, Head of Ofcom’s Spectrum Enforcement team, said:
"Illegal broadcasting harms local communities and risks lives by
interfering with vital communications used by the emergency services
and air traffic control.

"By working in partnership with local authorities, Ofcom is tackling
this problem. We also strongly urge those broadcasting illegally to
get involved with internet or community radio, a legitimate route on
to the airwaves.”

Astrid Kjellberg-Obst, Executive Director of Operations at Homes for
Haringey, said: "Pirate radio stations damage people’s homes and can
be extremely distressing to our residents.

"We’ve seen huge success in tackling the problem with the measures
that we’ve introduced, removing all pirate radio stations from
Haringey and saving the borough tens of thousands of pounds in the
process. We will continue to work with Ofcom to keep Haringey
pirate-free.”

Harmful interference to emergency services

Pirate radio causes interference to critical radio services, including
those used by the emergency services and air traffic control.

In 2014, the UK’s air traffic control service NATS has reported 55
cases of communications interference from pirate radio.

Ofcom also receives reports each week from the emergency services and
other, legitimate radio services of illegal interference.

Ofcom has powers to seize illegal broadcasting equipment and prosecute
those involved.

Accessible, legal alternatives to get on to the airwaves

For anyone wanting to broadcast a radio station, Ofcom offers
accessible, legal alternatives to get on to the airwaves. Since 2005,
Ofcom has issued community radio licenses, enabling small stations
across the UK to get on-air right and serve their local communities.
More than 200 community radio services are now broadcasting.

Ofcom is also supporting a new, innovative way for smaller stations to
broadcast on digital radio. If tests are successful the system, called
‘small scale DAB’, promises to open up digital radio to smaller
broadcasters for a fraction of current costs.