Recommendations & Conclusions
10 items
1
Conclusion
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
For public service broadcasting to prosper in the future the Government will need to act—changes that require ministerial authority are needed in order to ensure that the public service broadcasting system remains sustainable in the context of today’s greatly expanded and increasingly global media market. (Paragraph 12) Public service broadcasting: …
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For public service broadcasting to prosper in the future the Government will need to act—changes that require ministerial authority are needed in order to ensure that the public service broadcasting system remains sustainable in the context of today’s greatly expanded and increasingly global media market. (Paragraph 12) Public service broadcasting: still relevant?
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the need for action to ensure sustainable public service broadcasting and is conducting its own review, along with Ofcom's, promising to bring findings together and set out its position and next steps later this year, including a commitment to legislating.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
6
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
The pandemic has reinforced the importance of local and regional-specific news provision. The provision of news to Nations and Regions should not suffer further as a result of budgetary restraints. We perceive a real risk to the provision of regional- specific news programming, and we are adamant that the quality, …
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The pandemic has reinforced the importance of local and regional-specific news provision. The provision of news to Nations and Regions should not suffer further as a result of budgetary restraints. We perceive a real risk to the provision of regional- specific news programming, and we are adamant that the quality, and relevance to local people, of programming for the Nations and Regions must not be further jeopardised. Regional news programming must be representative of, and relevant to, the audiences it is broadcast to. We recommend that Ofcom undertake a review into the quality and relevance of the local and regional news provision, to be reported on before the new BBC Charter negotiations begin. (Paragraph 40) The future of public service broadcasting 51
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Government response AI summary
The government's strategic review of public service broadcasting will examine the remits of PSBs and consider necessary changes, but it does not commit to the recommended Ofcom review into local and regional news provision.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
7
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
Reaching younger audiences now, and building relationships with them, is of the utmost importance if PSBs are going to remain popular and sustainable in the long- term. They way in which people access content, particularly those under the age of 35, is rapidly changing and the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated …
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Reaching younger audiences now, and building relationships with them, is of the utmost importance if PSBs are going to remain popular and sustainable in the long- term. They way in which people access content, particularly those under the age of 35, is rapidly changing and the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated that change. Young audience behaviour is an indicator of future trends and PSBs are at risk of losing touch with under 35s. Unless PSBs do more to attract younger audiences, the core principle of universality that underpins their existence will be threatened. For these efforts to be successful, we recommend that changes be made to the regulatory structure to enable PSBs to innovate more rapidly and easily, and to be able to better compete online.
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the challenge of retaining younger audiences and is considering, through a strategic review of public service broadcasting, whether legislative and regulatory changes are needed to help PSBs innovate and compete online.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
11
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
The continued rise in TV licence non-payment in the UK is a cause for concern, as is the fact that the BBC’s target of a 5.9% evasion rate by March 2021 will be missed by a significant margin. We are also concerned that the failure to resolve definitively speculation about …
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The continued rise in TV licence non-payment in the UK is a cause for concern, as is the fact that the BBC’s target of a 5.9% evasion rate by March 2021 will be missed by a significant margin. We are also concerned that the failure to resolve definitively speculation about decriminalisation of TV licence fee evasion could exacerbate the situation and recommend that the Government provides some certainty on this matter as soon as possible.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it is actively considering the decriminalisation of TV licence evasion as part of ongoing reforms and the broader licence fee settlement, but has not yet provided a definitive position.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
13
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
Current requirements on PSBs have generated a thriving production economy that has attracted the attention of streaming services, but the rise of video on demand is putting pressure on the Terms of Trade. Subscription video on demand services should invest in the production ecology as well as benefit from it, …
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Current requirements on PSBs have generated a thriving production economy that has attracted the attention of streaming services, but the rise of video on demand is putting pressure on the Terms of Trade. Subscription video on demand services should invest in the production ecology as well as benefit from it, but any move to reform the Terms of Trade must take into account the diverging business models of the different commissioners in the UK production ecology. (Paragraph 72) Regulation and legislation
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Government response AI summary
The government states that issues concerning the relationship between PSBs and SVoDs, including the Terms of Trade, are primarily matters for contractual negotiations, where PSBs determine the value. It will keep this under review.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
14
Conclusion
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
We are not persuaded by arguments that prominence can be left to the market simply because PSB content is popular and if an organisation such as Freeview, which represents the interests of over 70 TV channels, finds it difficult to negotiate with global platforms and TV manufacturers, it is unlikely …
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We are not persuaded by arguments that prominence can be left to the market simply because PSB content is popular and if an organisation such as Freeview, which represents the interests of over 70 TV channels, finds it difficult to negotiate with global platforms and TV manufacturers, it is unlikely that individual PSBs will find it any easier. As we touch on later in the Report, competition policy authorities are currently evolving their approach to platforms and applications with ‘strategic market status’ and how these can act as gatekeepers in online markets with potential for anti-competitive exercise of market power. Manufacturers of TV hardware (and their operating systems and consolidator TV apps) should be thought of in exactly the same way.
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the importance of discoverability for PSB content and commits to acting on Ofcom’s prominence recommendations through legislation when the timetable allows, with next steps expected later this year, as part of its strategic review.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
15
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
The Government has been too slow to act on Ofcom’s 2019 recommendations to update prominence legislation. We are frustrated that the Government expects the process to take a further two years; new primary legislation is urgently needed and the media ecology advances far too quickly for the Government to delay …
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The Government has been too slow to act on Ofcom’s 2019 recommendations to update prominence legislation. We are frustrated that the Government expects the process to take a further two years; new primary legislation is urgently needed and the media ecology advances far too quickly for the Government to delay any further. We recommend that the Government prioritise new primary legislation to update the Communications Act 2003 and grant PSBs prominence which extends beyond the Electronic Programme Guide. The Government should seek to publish the Bill in draft in the upcoming parliamentary session, ahead of finding time to introduce and enact this legislation before the end of 2022. To ensure that prominence can be extended to online viewing platforms, such as smart TVs, we also recommend that PSB video on demand players be covered by their public service broadcasting remits.
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the importance of PSB prominence and commits to acting on Ofcom’s recommendations through legislation, but defers a specific timeline, stating it will do so 'as soon as the legislative timetable allows' and will set out next steps later this year.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
16
Conclusion
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
We acknowledge that some of the programmes have a small print acknowledgement of the original producers, but question whether this is quite within the spirit of accrediting everyone involved with the right branding. We believe that it is important that PSB originated content is clearly identifiable as such.
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We acknowledge that some of the programmes have a small print acknowledgement of the original producers, but question whether this is quite within the spirit of accrediting everyone involved with the right branding. We believe that it is important that PSB originated content is clearly identifiable as such.
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Government response AI summary
The government states that brand attribution and data sharing are matters for contractual negotiations between PSBs and streaming services, as PSBs are best placed to determine the value. It will keep the issue under review.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
21
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
That reluctance should not be allowed to relegate the UK PSBs to a less prominent position on hardware than non-PSB commercial content providers who purchase prominence. There is little point in requiring a PSB regime if it can be hidden from view by the actions of hardware providers. We recommend …
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That reluctance should not be allowed to relegate the UK PSBs to a less prominent position on hardware than non-PSB commercial content providers who purchase prominence. There is little point in requiring a PSB regime if it can be hidden from view by the actions of hardware providers. We recommend that the Government should make international manufacturers aware of the importance of prominence of PSB content to the UK and its willingness to consider regulation should PSB prominence be undermined by hardware design.
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Government response AI summary
The government recognizes the importance of PSB content prominence and states this work is ongoing and part of its strategic review, committing to act on Ofcom’s prominence recommendations, including legislation, as soon as the timetable allows, with next steps expected later this year.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
30
Recommendation
Sixth Report - The future of public ser…
Deferred
We welcome the recent promotion of S4C in Wales to channel 104 on Virgin Media but we are concerned about the lack of discoverability for minority language content in this increasingly digital market. The role that minority language broadcasters play is an important one and confirms the need for updated …
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We welcome the recent promotion of S4C in Wales to channel 104 on Virgin Media but we are concerned about the lack of discoverability for minority language content in this increasingly digital market. The role that minority language broadcasters play is an important one and confirms the need for updated prominence legislation The future of public service broadcasting 55 to protect the ability for their content to be found by viewers. We recommend that the Government’s work on updating media legislation ensure that minority language content is given sufficient prominence on the relevant platforms. (Paragraph 123) 56 The future of public service broadcasting
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees on the importance of minority language content and commits to taking forward Ofcom’s prominence proposals through legislation to ensure its discoverability, as soon as the legislative timetable allows.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport