UK Fraud Office not to pursue TV phone-in probe

LONDON Oct 1 (Reuters) - Britain's Serious Fraud Office said on Wednesday it would not launch a full investigation into the premium-rate phone-in row which damaged viewer confidence in broadcasters last year.

Several broadcasters including the publicly owned BBC [BBC.UL] and commercial broadcaster ITV (ITV.L) were criticised for misleading the public through fake quizzes and competitions.

The SFO said it had looked at the problem since last year but decided not to launch a full investigation because none of the allegations met its criteria for investigation.

The SFO, a government department which investigates complex frauds, considers a range of factors when deciding whether to accept a case, including complexity, whether the value of the alleged fraud exceeded 1 million pounds, and whether there was an international dimension. (Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by Quentin Bryar)