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<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>Copyright 2005 Guardian Newspapers Limited <BR>The
Guardian (London) - Final Edition<BR><BR>April 13, 2005<BR><BR>SECTION: Guardian
City Pages, Pg. 21<BR><BR>LENGTH: 187 words<BR><BR>HEADLINE: Ofcom to look at
ultra-local TV<BR><BR>BYLINE: Owen Gibson<BR><BR>BODY:<BR>Examining local
television services, cutting mobile phone charges and<BR>working towards digital
switchover are among priorities for the coming<BR>year, media and telecoms
watchdog Ofcom said yesterday as it published<BR>its annual plan.<BR><BR>Ofcom,
which brought the work of five communications watchdogs under<BR>one roof when
it began operating in December 2003, promised that the<BR>coming year would be
one of "delivery" after spending its inaugural<BR>year establishing itself and
publishing a welter of consultation<BR>documents.<BR><BR>It said it would carry
out further work on the "role and prospects"<BR>for local television services,
particularly on the digital terrestrial<BR>platform.<BR><BR>The BBC has
announced a trial of "ultra-local" news services, and<BR>Ofcom will examine
whether local television could be a viable use for<BR>the spectrum released by
the transition to digital television,<BR>pencilled in for 2007 to
2012.<BR><BR>It plans to pursue issues identified by its public
service<BR>broadcasting review this year, including talks on the future
of<BR>Channel 4 and its idea for a "public service publisher" to compete<BR>with
the BBC.</BODY></HTML>