132.— (1) The Communications Regulator, at the request of RTÉ, shall issue to RTÉ a licence in respect of the establishment, maintenance and operation of a single television multiplex, which multiplex shall, in so far as it is reasonably practicable, be capable of being transmitted by digital terrestrial means to the whole community in the State.

(2) The Communications Regulator, at the request of RTÉ and after consultation with the Minister and with the Authority regarding the digital capacity requirements of TG4, the television programme service contractor, the Houses of the Oireachtas Channel, the Irish Film Channel, and any television service designated under section 130(1)(a)(iv), shall issue to RTÉ a licence in respect of the establishment, maintenance and operation of one further television multiplex, which multiplex shall, in so far as it is reasonably practicable, be capable of being transmitted by digital terrestrial means to the whole community in the State.

(3) The Communications Regulator, at the request of the Authority, shall issue to the Authority under the Acts of 1926 to 2009, subject to this Part, television multiplex licences in respect of the establishment, maintenance and operation of 4 television multiplexes, which multiplexes shall, in so far as it is reasonably practicable, be capable of being transmitted by digital terrestrial means to the whole community in the State, in accordance with contracts to be entered into by the Authority under section 136 (2).

(4) The Communications Regulator shall consult with the Authority regarding the desirability of it issuing to the Authority under the Acts of 1926 to 2009, subject to this Part, further television multiplex licences in respect of the establishment, maintenance and operation of additional television multiplexes, which multiplexes shall, in so far as it is reasonably practicable, be capable of being transmitted by digital terrestrial means to the whole community in the State, in accordance with additional contracts entered into by the Authority under section 136 (2).

(5) Nothing in this section shall be read as preventing the Communications Regulator, following consultation with the Minister and with the Authority, from issuing under the Acts of 1926 to 2009, other licences authorising the combination, by means of a multiplex other than a multiplex to which subsections (1), (2) or (3) relate, of programme material and related and other data in a digital form, subject to such conditions as the Authority may consider necessary to impose in a contract entered into under section 71.