The media regulator Ofcom has today fined St Albans and Watford Broadcasting Limited £20,000 in respect of its service, Hertfordshire Mercury FM. The station was fined for unfair conduct in regard to its on air quiz, Secret Sound.
The competition consisted of playing a mysterious sound on air and inviting the audience to guess what it was either by phone call or text message. Mercury FM was found to be in breach of two rules of the Broadcasting Code with the competition, including deliberately choosing entrants with wrong answers to participate to prevent the prize from being won.
The media regulator also found that the Licensee had failed to put in place any effective or sufficient compliance procedures, processes or checks to ensure that the content in question was compliant with the Code.
