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Media Act 2024

Contents

Policy background

Context

  1. Public service broadcasting generally refers to the provision of television programmes for the public benefit. In order to meet their public service obligations, public service broadcasters ("PSBs") must provide a range of high-quality and diverse TV programming which meets the needs of audiences across the UK. The current PSBs are the BBC, S4C and the Channel 3, 4 and 5 licence holders.
  2. Public service content is intended to be socially valuable. Important national and international events are covered by PSBs and they are a trusted source of accurate and impartial news and current affairs. Public service content is also intended to be universal – available to the overwhelming majority of the population without charge.
  3. Since the concept of PSB first emerged over 80 years ago, the legislative framework has had to evolve in line with changing technology. Most recently, the proliferation of smart TVs, coupled with high-speed fixed and mobile internet connections, has allowed viewers to access TV programmes flexibly from an ever greater range of providers. As a result, audiences are increasingly moving away from watching linear television on a traditional TV set.
  4. At the same time, while public service content is still highly valued by viewers, changes in viewing habits and constantly developing technology means that PSBs are experiencing new challenges. For example, in the last decade, internet-based media services, and in particular subscription-based VoD services, have become increasingly popular with viewers and now compete with PSBs for content, revenue and audiences. The Government is of the view that the legal framework for PSB needs to change to assist the PSBs in meeting these challenges.
  5. In November 2020 the Government announced a strategic review of public service broadcasting, and appointed a PSB Advisory Panel to assist in the review. This followed a report by the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee (Public Service Broadcasting: As Vital As Ever (November 2019)), which was itself followed by reports from the DCMS Select Committee (March 2021), and OFCOM (July 2021) about the future of PSB. OFCOM’s report – titled Small Screen Big Debate: Recommendations to Government on the Future of Public Service Media – is the latest of their quinquennial reports. The consensus across these reports was that the PSB system needed a refresh to reflect:
    1. Changing technology: Just as the advent of cable and satellite services revolutionised broadcasting in the 1980s and 1990s, so the increasing adoption of internet-delivered services is revolutionising broadcasting now, creating new delivery methods with their own gatekeepers and business models;
    2. Changing consumer habits: Today’s viewers now have a huge amount of choice in terms of what they watch and how they watch it – and they are taking advantage of it. In particular, they have continued to move away from linear ("live") viewing to on-demand viewing. But they are also shifting to different platforms, types of content and methods of viewing; and
    3. Increased competition: Changes in technology and consumer habits have set the stage for new global players to emerge (particularly, but not exclusively, subscription-based VoD services).
  6. The Government is also strongly committed to securing that the public value of radio is maintained and in February 2020 commissioned the Digital Radio and Audio Review, which was undertaken in conjunction with a broad cross-section of industry stakeholders with the objective of assessing likely future trends in listening and to make recommendations on ways of strengthening UK radio and audio.
  7. The report of the Review was published in October 2021. It found that a growing proportion of radio listening is now online, particularly via voice-activated connected audio devices, and that there was likely to be a shift in bargaining power in favour of voice assistant platforms vis-à-vis radio broadcasters over the coming years. It therefore included recommendations as to potential legislative intervention to secure radio’s position in this environment into the future.

Broadcasting White Paper and Digital Radio and Audio Review

  1. In June 2021, the Government announced that the conclusions of its strategic review would be set out in a broadcasting white paper. Up next – the Government’s vision for the broadcasting sector was published on 28 April 2022, on the same day as the Government’s response to the Digital Radio and Audio Review. Up next set out a range of actions that the Government intends to take to reform the legal framework that governs public service broadcasting among other things, while the Government’s response to the Digital Radio and Audio Review acknowledged that the case had been made for new regulation to protect radio’s long term position in the context of the rapid growth in usage of smart speakers and other connected devices. The Media Act includes provision to deliver those reforms.

Outline of the Act

Part 1 - Public service television

  1. This Part of the Act updates and simplifies the current public service remit for television. It also seeks to change the legislative framework for PSB to give PSBs greater flexibility in how they contribute to that remit. In particular, it provides that public service content made available on a wide range of audiovisual services, including VoD services, can contribute towards fulfilment of the remit. This part also amends certain quotas (quantitative obligations placed on a public service broadcaster, generally to commission and/or broadcast at least a certain amount of a certain type of content) to allow PSBs to deliver against these quotas by way of any on-demand services which are, or are part of, a designated "internet programme service" (see Part 2). This Part also repeals sections 218 to 223 of the Communications Act 2003, which relate to the public teletext service. (Provision of the service ceased in 2009.)

Part 2 - Prominence on television selection services

  1. Prominence effectively means giving designated PSB channels and services a privileged (or "prominent") position on services through which audiences access this content. The existing regulatory framework for ensuring carriage and prominence of PSB channels, set out in the Communications Act 2003, does not extend to the PSBs’ online services, including on-demand and livestreamed programme services, nor services that enable viewers to navigate and select TV programmes beyond the TV guide (electronic programme guide), such as the user interfaces ("UIs") on smart TVs, set-top boxes and streaming sticks. This Act addresses this by giving designated PSB services prominence on major TV services.

Part 3 - Public service broadcasters

  1. Channel Four Television Corporation (C4C) faces long-term sustainability challenges, in part because the linear advertising revenue on which it substantially relies is in decline. In this context, the Act gives C4C a new duty which requires that the Corporation carry out their activities in the way that they consider most likely to enable the Corporation to maintain or increase the amount of activity that is done in pursuance of their primary functions, and to securely meet the costs of carrying out its primary functions. The Act also provides C4C with additional flexibility to meet these sustainability challenges, and discharge their new duty, by removing a restriction on C4C’s involvement in programme-making.
  2. S4C is the UK’s only dedicated Welsh language broadcaster, and as such has a unique cultural and social value, as well as making a vital economic impact. S4C began broadcasting in 1982, and broadcasts sport, drama, music, factual, entertainment and events programmes, across a range of platforms. In response to the independent review of S4C, Building an S4C for the future, published in 2018, the Government committed to implementing a number of recommendations to support S4C in adapting to rapid technological and market change. The Act accordingly updates S4C’s public service remit, and provides greater clarity on its ability to invest and generate commercial revenue. The new unitary board and audit arrangements, recommended by the review and already implemented on an administrative basis, is given a statutory footing. Finally, this part also enables S4C and the BBC to agree an alternative arrangement for BBC support to S4C, which in the Government’s view better suits the evolving broadcasting landscape and the changing way in which people access content.

Part 4 - On-demand programme services

  1. VoD services (referred to as On-demand Programme Services in legislation, "ODPS"), such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, provide huge value to UK audiences and growing contributions to the UK economy. These services, other than BBC’s iPlayer, are not subject to OFCOM’s Broadcasting Code, which sets out appropriate standards for content including harmful or offensive material, due accuracy in news, fairness and privacy. This Act gives OFCOM powers to draft and enforce a new Video-on-demand Code, similar to the Broadcasting Code, to ensure TV-like content, no matter how audiences choose to watch it, will be subject to similar standards. This new regime is aimed at the largest, most TV-like VoD services to ensure that major services which engage UK audiences at scale are subject to the same or similar obligations as UK broadcasters. This part also contains provisions to implement requirements on VoD service providers to ensure that on-demand services are accessible to people with disabilities. These align with the statutory requirements for access services in place for linear broadcasters.

Part 5 - Regulation of radio services

  1. Analogue (AM / FM) commercial radio services in the UK are regulated under a licensing framework which was developed in the 1990s, before the emergence of online listening. This Act removes a number of regulatory burdens, including requirements on stations to provide specific genres of content, as well as amending OFCOM’s duties around localness to focus on a narrow duty to secure the availability to listeners of local news and information. It also allows for the UK licensing regime to be extended to radio stations based overseas but seeking to provide a service to UK listeners, as well as updating the legislative powers relating to any potential future switch-off of analogue services. It also expands existing grant-making powers to allow funding for community-related programmes to be made to small commercial stations and producers of audio content.

Part 6 - Regulation of radio selection services

  1. With the rapid growth of listening via voice-activated connected audio devices over recent years, UK radio is increasingly operating within an environment which is occupied by larger platforms with competing services and the capability to drive audiences elsewhere. This Act ensures that UK radio stations are not charged by these platforms for the provision of their live services to listeners, that platforms cannot overlay content (such as advertising) over the top of those services, and that stations are reliably provided in response to listeners’ voice commands. It also enables station providers to request a default route for their stations to be delivered to listeners.

Part 7 - Miscellaneous and general

  1. Part 7 contains miscellaneous and general provisions dealing with consequential provision, extent of the Act and commencement. It contains three further sections. First, it inserts common provision about penalties which may be imposed by OFCOM in relation to Part 2 (prominence on television selection services) and Part 6 (regulation of radio selection services). Second, section 50 repeals section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013. Further to the recommendations of the Leveson Inquiry in 2012, the Press Recognition Panel was established. Sections 34 to 42 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 contain the legislative incentives relating to the awards of costs and exemplary damages to join an approved self-regulator. In November 2016, the Government launched a consultation on whether to commence section 40 of the 2013 Act. The Government response was published in March 2018 with the Government concluding that section 40 was no longer necessary. This Act repeals section 40. Third, section 51 introduces Schedule 12, which makes amendments to primary broadcasting legislation to address failures of retained EU law to operate effectively and other deficiencies arising from the withdrawal of the UK from the UK.

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