Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 546: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if, in view of the announcement that RTÉ will be free to air in the North of Ireland and BBC in the South of Ireland, this arrangement will include their respective Internet players, RTÉ Player in the North of Ireland and the BBC iPlayer in the South of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7611/10]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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The Memorandum of Understanding that I signed with my UK counterpart, Secretary of State Ben Bradshaw, MP, on 1 February 2010 deals with broadcast services and related radio spectrum issues in the context of the provision of digital terrestrial services on the island of Ireland.

The Memorandum aims to facilitate the widespread availability of RTÉ in Northern Ireland and BBC in the south. It is my intention that RTÉ services will be available on a 'free-to-air' basis throughout the island of Ireland. The manner in which BBC services will be provided will, in the first instance, be a matter for the BBC.

The Memorandum does not encompass the provision of public broadcast services on other platforms, such as the Internet, and the availability of the BBC iPlayer services in Ireland is a commercial matter for the BBC.

In regard to the availability of the RTÉ Player, I can confirm that, on 12 January 2010, RTÉ became one of the first broadcasters in the world to launch a comprehensive international online TV catch-up service when it made its Internet-based RTÉ Player service available on a worldwide basis.

A copy of the Memorandum of Understanding is available on www.dcenr.ie.