Alcohol Commercial communications for alcoholic drinks shall not encourage immoderate consumption of alcohol or present abstinence or moderation in a negative light. Commercial communications for alcoholic drinks shall not claim that alcohol has therapeutic qualities or that it is a stimulant sedative tranquillizer or means of resolving personal conflicts. They shall not place emphasis on a high alcoholic content as being a positive quality of […]
Childrens Advertising There is a separate Code relating to Children’s Commercial Communications. A child for the purpose of the code is generally a person aged under 18 years. Some parts of the code are referable to protections applicable to persons under 6, 13 and 15 years of age. The same definitions as apply to the General Commercial Communications Code are applicable to the Code dealing […]
Advertising Codes The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland has published a General Commercial Communications Code and a Children’s Commercial Communications Code. The Codes apply to advertising and equivalent promotion. The purpose is to ensure that the public can be confident that commercial communications are legal, honest, truthful, decent and protect the interests of the audience. The Codes apply to all sound and radio announcements and other […]
Fair Practices Under the Broadcasting Act each public service broadcaster namely RTE and TG4 must prepare a code of fair trading practice setting out principles when commissioning programmes from independent producers. BAI prepares and issues guidance to the public service broadcasters on the form of the code of fair trading practice. BAI publishes this guidance for public service broadcasters. It indicates the code should be sufficient […]
BAI Makes Codes The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland publishes various codes and standards under section 42 of the Broadcasting Act. They govern standards and practices which are to be observed by broadcasters. A copy of the code is to be published on the broadcaster’s website. The broadcasting rules are binding on a broadcaster. The Authority shall every two years or lesser period, review the broadcasting […]
National Postcode System The Civil Communications Regulation of Postal Services Amendment Act 2015 provides for the national postcode system. The system assigns a unique seven-digit postcode to each postal address. The legislation facilitates the holding, retention and processing of data in connection with the system. The legislation provides for legitimate postcode activity. The Minister may specify new legitimate postcode activity. The legitimate postcode activities include […]
Premium Rate Services Under section 90 of the Postal and Telecommunications Services Act 1983 (No. 24 of 1983) Telecom Eireann was empowered to make schemes relating to tariffs terms and conditions of service. It introduced a data virtual private network facility, answering facility and 1890 calls. Premium rate services in telecommunications commenced in 1988. They involved a service part of which is charged through the […]
Digital Services The Broadcasting Act, 2001 set the framework for digital terrestrial television services. The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (“BCI”) became responsible for broadcasting services in the existing licensed independent TV and radio sectors. Broadcasting services covers services transrouted by wireless, telegraphy, cable, microwave distribution systems or satellite. A transmission company was established to assume the former transmission function performed by the (RTE) broadcasting authority. The BCI […]
Wireless Telegraphy Wireless telegraphy was patented by Marconi in 1896 and his Wireless Telegraphy company commenced exportation the following year. In 1904 parliament, prohibited the establishment of wireless telegraphy stations and installations except under license from the Postmaster General. The British Broadcasting Company was licensed in 1923. The company was replaced by the British Broadcast Corporation in 1927. The BBC took part in the early […]
Background The first postal service in Ireland commenced in the 17th century. A 1711 Act unified the post office for England Scotland and Wales and Ireland. Later, an independent and distinct Irish post office evolved, centred in Dublin controlled by its own Postmasters General. In 1831, the Irish and British post offices were amalgamated. In 1835 the Post Office took over the running of the […]
An Post The shares of An Post are issued to the Minister for Finance. Originally, the postal company had a monopoly. An Post remains the dominant postal service provider but has been subject to communications regulation derived from EU Directives on liberalization of State monopolies. The legislation now provides for the grants of the licences to provide postal services. These functions have been transferred to […]
Telegraphs Under older legislation, the definition of a telegraph was a wire used for the purpose of telegraphic communication with any casing, coating, tube enclosing the same and any apparatus connected for the purpose of telegraphic communication. This included apparatus transmitting messages and other communications by electrical signals. Accordingly, it includes telephone, wireless telegraphy, and broadcasting. In 1837, Wheatstone and Cooke patented communications by electromagnetic […]
Emergence of Telegraph Basic forms of electronic telecommunication emerged in the 19th century. The early forms of telecommunication comprised wireless signals used in tandem with telegrams. Telephones and wireless emerged at the end of the 19th century. The wireless signal sent by code became a means of communication The earliest telecommunication signals were used by the military. In the mid 19th century railway companies developed […]
EU Competition The European Union commenced the process of liberalisation of the telecommunication texture in the early 1990s. The purpose was that the market should be fully opened up to competition by 1998. so that businesses could provide services in all telecommunication areas. In order to protect areas where it would be uneconomic to provide a service, requirements for universal service were part of the […]
Broadcasting The Audio-Visual Media Services Directive underpins the single market in broadcasting. It covers both traditional broadcast and on-demand services. It sets minimum regulatory standards that states and national regulators must implement. It aims to preserve cultural diversity; protect children protect consumers; safeguard media pluralism; combat racial and religious hatred; and guarantee the independence of national regulators. The Directive employs the country of origin principle. […]
Liberalisation The European Union Directive on postal service liberalizes access to the postal market. The directive established a timeframe for progressive liberalization in two stages: On 1st January 2003 letters weighing less than 100 gram of which the postage cost is over three times that of a standard letter. On 1st January 2006 letters weighing less than 50 grams (for which the postage cost is […]
Data Protection Law The EU has been central in promoting data protection laws. The EU data protection directive applies to data processed by an automated means such as a computer or contained in or intended to be part of a non-automated filing system such as traditional paper filing. It does not cover processing in the context of household or personal activities. Also excluded are certain […]
Independent Regulation and Competition The EU has sought to introduce competition into the provision of electronic communications. The liberalisation also extends to directories, telephone enquiries, frequencies, TV, satellites and cable networks. A regulatory framework for electronic communications has been established. The principal purpose is to facilitate market entry. The EU rules establish a harmonized framework for the regulation of e-commerce networks and services. Member states […]
Unsolicited Communications to (Persons) I A person shall not use or cause to be used any publicly available electronic communications service to send to a subscriber or user who is a natural person an unsolicited communication for the purpose of direct marketing by means of— an automated calling machine, a facsimile machine, or electronic mail, unless the person has been notified by that subscriber or […]
EU Consumer Rights Directive The Consumer Rights Directive 2011 modifies and supplements the law set out in the earlier Distance Selling and Doorstep Contracts Regulations. There are five principal categories of transaction to which the regulations are applicable; contracts for the sale of goods; contracts for the supply of services; contracts for the supply of digital content in an intangible medium; contracts for the supply […]
Directive on Information Society Services The EU Directive on e-commerce facilitates the sale of goods and supply of services over the internet within the EU. It is designed to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal EU market by ensuring free movement of \”information society services\” between member states. The Directive covers online activity such as online information, advertising, online shopping and online contracting. […]
Overview E-Commerce is business conducted over the internet. For the most part, the general legal rules apply to E-Commerce. The law of contract, the Sale of Goods Act and the consumer protection rules apply in the same broad way, as they apply to conventional transactions. In the early part of the century, a number of pieces of legislation were passed to facilitate and ensure legal […]
Data Protection Legislation and Reform Data protection law restricts the collection, storage and use of personal data. Personal data is that which concerns a living person. The objective is to protect privacy and to restrict the use of information to legitimate purposes. Personal data must be collected for specified explicit and legitimate purposes and must not be processed in a way, incompatible with those purposes. […]