The future of public service broadcasting

Culture, Media and Sport Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 27 Mar 2020 Closed: 18 Jun 2021 Parliament page
The inquiry will look at the future of public service broadcasting (PSB) within the wider media and digital ecology, including funding, content and regulation of PSBs and how this compares with alternative subscription, streaming services and Freeview services. In addition to the BBC, there are a number of other broadcasters … Read more
22 Recommendations
8 Conclusions
2 Reports
6 Oral sessions
3 Letters
6 Events
Activity timeline 12 events
3 Nov
2021
Report published
17 Jun
2021
Report published
25 Mar
2021
Report published
25 Mar
2021
Correspondence
15 Dec
2020
Oral evidence
17 Nov
2020
Oral evidence
17 Nov
2020
Correspondence
3 Nov
2020
Oral evidence
15 Sep
2020
Oral evidence
3 Sep
2020
Correspondence
14 Jul
2020
Oral evidence
16 Jun
2020
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 6 sessions
15 Dec 2020
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Dame Melanie Dawes · Ofcom Kevin Bakhurst · Ofcom Rt Hon John Whittingdale OBE MP · Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
17 Nov 2020
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Dr Caitriona Noonan · Cardiff University Jacqueline Baker · B Inclusive Task Force John McVay OBE · Pact Professor Jeanette Steemers · King’s College London Professor Philip Schlesinger · Glasgow University
3 Nov 2020
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Chris Bird · Amazon Georgia Brown · Screen Sectors Skills Task Force Iain Bundred · BBC Richard Lewis · YouTube
15 Sep 2020
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Ali Law · Sky Anne Mensah · Netflix Benjamin King · Netflix Maria Kyriacou · ViacomCBS Mitchell Simmons · ViacomCBS Zai Bennett · Sky
14 Jul 2020
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Dame Carolyn McCall · ITV Magnus Brooke · ITV
16 Jun 2020
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Alex Mahon · Channel 4 Clare Sumner CBE · BBC James Purnell · BBC
Recommendations & Conclusions
10 results
Clear
1 Conclusion Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
For public service broadcasting to prosper in the future the Government will need to act—changes...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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6 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
The pandemic has reinforced the importance of local and regional-specific news provision.
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- … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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7 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
Reaching younger audiences now, and building relationships with them, is of the utmost importance if...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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11 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
The continued rise in TV licence non-payment in the UK is a cause for concern,...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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13 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
Current requirements on PSBs have generated a thriving production economy that has attracted the attention...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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14 Conclusion Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
We are not persuaded by arguments that prominence can be left to the market simply...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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15 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
The Government has been too slow to act on Ofcom’s 2019 recommendations to update prominence...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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16 Conclusion Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
We acknowledge that some of the programmes have a small print acknowledgement of the original...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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21 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
That reluctance should not be allowed to relegate the UK PSBs to a less prominent...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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30 Recommendation Deferred
Sixth Report - The future of publi…
We welcome the recent promotion of S4C in Wales to channel 104 on Virgin Media...
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 … Read more
Government Response
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.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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Government Response AI assessment · 30 of 22 classified
Accepted 3
Accepted in Part 2
Acknowledged 4
Deferred 10
Not Addressed 3
Rejected 8
Total 22 recs + 8 conclusions
Correspondence 3 letters
25 Mar 2021 To committee Letter from the Chair to Tim Davie, Director-General, BBC, re licence fee evasion, 25 March 2021
Parliament page
17 Nov 2020 To committee Letter from Rt Hon Oliver Dowden CBE MP, Secretary of State for DCMS, re BBC Licence Fee settlement, 10 November 2020
Parliament page
3 Sep 2020 To committee Letter from Dame Carolyn McCall, Chief Executive, ITV, re oral evidence follow up, 23 July 2020
Parliament page