Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 23
23
Accepted
BBC actively increasing UK intellectual property ownership amidst capital allocation and risk management.
Conclusion
We asked the BBC, given it was not meeting its ambitions for new IP, what steps it would take to increase this. The BBC told us it had appointed a new CEO for BBC Studios production, was bringing in new talent, investing earlier with creatives to secure and grow UK IP, and continuing to support independent producers while increasing the proportion of programming it owns. The BBC said BBC Studios’ commercial model allowed it to take “a bit more risk” than purely advertisingfunded broadcasters, and that the BBC was actively buying UK IP and building it in partnership to retain more value in the UK.50 The BBC also explained that there was an ongoing capitalallocation tradeoff between extracting dividends to support public service content and reinvesting in BBC Studios to build enterprise value and future returns, which it said was being actively managed by the commercial and main boards, but again, this is not visible to us.51 49 Q 41 50 Qq 46, 47 51 Q 41 14 3 Sustaining a universal BBC Serving all audiences in a digital age
Government Response Summary
BBC Studios makes and distributes content, nurturing well-known brands and formats. BBC Studios is committed to developing long-term Intellectual Property (IP), which remains central to its strategy for growing the Global Content Studio. Alongside BBC Studios-created IP, it also invests in and exploits third-party IP.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
4.1 The BBC agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 4.2 BBC Studios makes and distributes some of the world’s most sought-after content, as well as nurturing well-known brands and formats - both for the BBC, but also for other partners and platforms globally. Its mixed model means it is focused on developing new IP as well as nurturing existing IP and creating formats from it that are sold globally (for example, Strictly Come Dancing for the BBC, and Dancing with the Stars for the US market with Disney/ABC; or Death Valley which was one of the biggest Comedy launches in the UK in the last five years and which has now been sold to 100 markets globally). It also takes on work for hire with major international platforms and broadcasters, such as the award-winning Baby Reindeer and Conclave. The BBC operates under fair trading and has no internal quotas, so BBC Studios wins business with the BBC as part of a fair and competitive process. It is worth noting that the entire commissioning market has fallen over the last few years, which affects all producers. 4.3 BBC Studios is committed to developing long-term Intellectual Property (IP), which remains central to its strategy for growing the Global Content Studio. BBC Studios’ mandate to drive long term sustainable returns means we will develop all IP which delivers value, albeit the BBC remains our biggest single customer. 4.4 Alongside BBC Studios-created IP, it also invests in and exploits third-party IP (for example, Bluey – the most-streamed show in the USA for two years running) to diversify the business and build future value, targeting opportunities and investing in sources that can ultimately generate Owned IP.