I want a licence to broadcast – how do I get this?

In order to obtain a licence to broadcast one must do so by contacting the Broadcasting Commision of Ireland.

Licences are issued by using the mechanisms set out in sections 5, 6 and 14 of the Radio and Television Act, 1988 and sections 5 and 6 of the Broadcasting (Amendment) Act 2007.

Commercial Licences

Generally the following steps are carried out by the BCI in order to obtain a licence:

1. Expressions of interest phase.
2. A report on the expressions of interest is prepared for the Board of the Broadcasting Commision of Ireland (BCI).
3. A report on the findings of the Board of the BCI is then presented to the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) who will indicate to the BCI if it may proceed to seek formal applications in the specified franchise area.
4. Based on the expressions of interest, the BCI will then seek applications for the operation of these services by way of advertisements in the national press and relevant regional press in the franchise areas concerned.
5. The BCI issues a guide to submissions document to assist interested groups. This document is specific to the franchise area and will contain details of how the application should be formatted and the process by which the licence will be awarded. The guides can be found on the BCI website at the following location:  BCI - Guide to submissions (Commercial) .

Temporary and Institutional broadcasting licence

Temporary and Institutional services do not require all of the steps in the licencing process for longer term licences.  The BCI does not seek expressions of interest for these services.  It is an open process whereby potential applicants may apply to the BCI at any time for a maximum of thirty (30) days in a calendar year.  The guide to submissions documents can be found on the BCI website at the following Location: BCI - Guides to submssions (Temporary and Institutional)

• Further information on ComReg's role in Broadcasting