Independent
Broadcasting
Authority
[No. 17 of 2002 347
(b) a commercial broadcasting service;
(c) a community and religious broadcasting service; or
(d) a subscription broadcasting service.
(5) The Minister may, in consultation with the Authority, by
Statutory instrument, exempt any person, institution or organisation
from any of the provisions of this section.
20. (1) The Authority shall, if it determines that there is need for
the provision of additional broadcasting services, publish a notice in
the Gazette and in a national newspaper inviting applications for licences
to provide the broadcasting service specified in the notice.
Application
for licence
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) and subject to the provisions
of this Act, an application for a broadcasting service licence shall be
submitted to the Authority in the prescribed form and manner and
shall be accompanied by the prescribed fee and such information or
documents as may be prescribed or as the Authority may require.
(3) The Authority shall examine all applications submitted under
subsection (2) with a view to short-listing those applicants who, in its
opinion, may qualify to be licensed.
(4) Every applicant short-listed in terms of subsection (3) shall be
required to attend a public inquiry conducted by the Authority for the
purposes of determining the applicant's suitability to be licensed at a
time and place to be determined in a written notice to such applicant.
(5) The Authority may refuse to consider an application, upon
receiving satisfactory proof of service of the notice referred to in
subsection (4), if the applicant fails to attend the inquiry.
(6) After considering an application for a licence in terms of this
section, the Authority may issue or refuse to issue a broadcasting licence
to the applicant and shall notify the applicant in writing of the decision
and in the case of a refusal to issue a licence, of the reasons for the
refusal.
(7) The Authority shall, from time to time, conduct a public inquiry
to determine priorities within the broadcasting industry.
21. (1) A commercial broadcasting licence may be granted by the
Authority to —
(a) provide a diverse range of programming addressing a wide
section of the Republic;
(b) provide programming in the official language or in any other
local language of the Republic widely spoken in the
Republic or any particular area; and
Commercial
Broadcasting
Services