Public service media is endangered, and broadcasters must work together and with global technology firms to survive. The solution, according to Ofcom, the regulator in the United Kingdom, is that public service media should be easy to find and discover on third-party platforms, like YouTube.
The system of public service media is now under serious threat, Ofcom says, with audience choice wider than it’s ever been, broadcasters experiencing fundamental financial challenges and structural change in the advertising market. In this environment, public service broadcasters are finding it much harder to fund the production and distribution of high-quality media from the United Kingdom to all audiences.
Ofcom says that the video-on-demand players of public service media organisations account for only 9% of all viewing, significantly less than online video subscription services at 15% and online video sharing platforms at 19%.
Among its recommendations is that public service broadcasters should work urgently with YouTube to ensure that their programming is prominent and easy to find. It says there is a strong case for the government to legislate to enable the change.
If no action is taken, Ofcom warns, the very existence of public service broadcasters, who are the main providers of public service media, will be threatened. Time is running out, it says, to save this pillar of United Kingdom culture and way of life.
In a report titled Transmission Critical: The future of public service media, the regulator recommends a six-point action plan, focussed on:
- prominence and discoverability for public service media on YouTube
- stable and adequate funding to sustain public service media
- urgent clarity on the future of television distribution
- ambitious partnerships amongst the public service media organisations
- investment in media literacy to support audiences
- streamlined regulation that strips away unnecessary restrictions.
“Public service media is stitched into the cultural fabric of UK society. It starts conversations, educates and informs, and brings us together in moments of national importance,” said Cristina Nicolotti Squires, the director of the broadcasting and media group at Ofcom, who was formerly director of content at Sky News and editor at ITN for 5 News.
“In a world dominated by global streaming platforms, public service media risks becoming an endangered species, and time is running out to intervene to protect it,” she said. “Our six-point plan would involve collective action from broadcasters, online platforms, the Government and Ofcom. It maps out a clear route that would help sustain public service media for the future.”
Transmission Critical: The future of public service media is published by Ofcom and is available from its web site.