Inside 2007 phone-in scandal - Ant and Dec 'nearly ruined' to Richard and Judy apology

dailystar.co.uk:

BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.In essence, the scandal began when members of the public were invited to call a premium-rate phone number to enter various competitions or cast their votes on reality TV shows - and encouragement to do so continued even after the potential winners had been chosen.ITV also admitted to overcharging its viewers via the red button services offered during series three of The X Factor.Things kicked off in February 2007, when The Mail on Sunday received leaked emails regarding Richard and Judy’s show, which revealed the You Say We Pay segment of the show saw its cut-off happen just nine minutes into the programme.Telephone service provider Eckoh would email production company Cactus TV a list of 24 potential winners, from which one would be chosen.

But after this was sent, another message would appear on screen to invite viewers to keep phoning in for a chance to win.During the phone-in scandal, broadcasting watchdog Ofcom revealed it has 23 open investigations against various broadcasters, while phone-paid services authority ICSTIS had a further 15.Ofcom’s chief executive Ed Richards released a statement at the time which read: “Widespread concern about the use of premium rate telephone lines by broadcasters and editorial standards in those programmes has raised serious questions about trust between broadcasters and viewers.“Ofcom has been monitoring the issue closely and has launched a number of individual investigations since the start of the year.“However it is clear from the number of cases underway that a broader set of issues need to be examined as a matter of priority.“This inquiry will seek to establish the root cause of the compliance issues which have emerged over recent weeks, and.