ITV plc

Ofcom imposed financial penalties totaling £5.675 million on ITV companies for serious and repeated breaches of the Broadcasting Code involving premium-rate viewer participation services. The regulatory cases concerned multiple ITV programs and raised significant concerns about whether viewers paying to enter competitions or participate in votes were being treated fairly. Ofcom has described the matter as a premium-rate phone-in scandal that raised serious questions about trust between broadcasters and viewers. The record concerns Ofcom's findings and sanctions. It does not characterize every ITV broadcast or competition as affected. Source / proof: Ofcom: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/broadcast-standards/marking-500-broadcast-bulletins