New rules to help United Kingdom public service broadcasters (PSBs) compete against American streaming giants in the digital age have been foreshadowed by Government.
In a speech to the Royal Television Society Cambridge Convention, Minister for the Media, John Whittingdale (pictured) said plans to expand the types of programs the nation’s PSBs are required to produce and air included those with a “distinctively British” content.
“In the face of increased foreign investment and competition, the move will ensure the UK continues to be a creative powerhouse for unique, high-quality TV shows which showcase British culture and are enjoyed the world over,” Mr Whittingdale said.
He also announced legislation that would ensure PSB content was always carried and discoverable to UK audiences on connected devices and major online platforms — including smart TVs, set-top boxes and streaming sticks — as more viewers turned to them from traditional television.
“PSBs currently have requirements in their remits to broadcast ‘original’ content. This was previously considered sufficient to ensure their programing had a characteristically British dimension,” Mr Whittingdale said.
“However, the globalisation of broadcasting means that more of the content we watch is set in non-specific locations or outside the UK, with an international cast communicating in US English,” he said.
“This risks TV made in the UK becoming indistinguishable from that produced elsewhere.”
Mr Whittingdale said that as a result, Ministers were considering adding to the definition of ‘original productions’ and making the focus of the PSB system more explicit on content that contributed to British culture and allowed UK audiences to see their own way of life and representations of themselves reflected on TV.
“Global investment is extremely welcome, but I want to make sure it doesn’t water down British creativity or the British brand,” the Minister said.
“So in our upcoming White Paper, I intend to include proposals that will expand the remit of public service broadcasters, so that it includes a requirement for them to produce ‘distinctively British’ content,” he said.
London, 18 September 2021
