Authority for Television On Demand
| Abbreviation | ATVOD |
|---|---|
| Type | Private company limited by guarantee |
| Legal status | Quango |
| Purpose | independent co-regulator for the editorial content of UK video on demand services |
| Headquarters | 27 Sheet Street, Windsor, UK |
|
Region served
|
United Kingdom |
|
Official language
|
English |
|
Independent Chair
|
Ruth Evans |
|
Independent Deputy Chair
|
Nigel Walmsley |
|
Chief Executive Officer
|
Pete Johnson |
| Robin Foster, Ian McBride, Paul Whiteing, Alexander Kann, Nicola Phillips, James Tatam | |
|
Formerly called
|
The Association for Television On-Demand |
The Authority for Television On Demand (ATVOD) was an industry body designated by Ofcom as the "co-regulator" of television on demand (VOD) in the UK from 2010 until 2015. ATVOD was founded following a European Union directive on the regulation of audiovisual media. It was responsible for regulating on-demand services such as ITV Player and Channel 4’s All 4, as well as paid-for content on websites which are deemed to be "tv-like". ATVOD's role with regard to VOD ended on 31 December 2015, when the function was taken over by Ofcom directly.
The Audiovisual Media Services Directive 2007 (2007/65/EU) of the European Union was implemented into UK law through Part 4A of the Communications Act 2003. The Directive updated the Television Without Frontiers Directive 1989 (89/552/EEC) to cover the extension of traditional television regulation to TV-like VOD. This directive was implemented in the UK on 19 December 2009 with regulations amending the Communications Act 2003. As a result, Ofcom consulted with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport about proposals for the creation of a regulator for UK-based VOD.
ATVOD, formerly the Association for Television On-Demand, had originally been created as a self-regulatory industry body with the support and encouragement of the Government. It was chosen to be Ofcom's co-regulator of UK-based VOD in editorial matters and the Advertising Standards Authority was chosen to be Ofcom's co-regulator of UK-based VOD in advertising matters. This arrangement was given legal force when the government issued the Audiovisual Media Services Regulations 2010 which came into force on 18 March 2010. The Communications Act 2003 was further revised giving ATVOD greater enforcement powers in relation to VOD services. Minimum editorial and advertising standards were drawn up and published.
Legislation enabled ATVOD to regulate "On-Demand Programme Services" (ODPS) as the body designated by Ofcom. A service was considered an ODPS if it met the following criteria:
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