MIGRAIN: Industries - Public service broadcasting

 Ofcom review of PSB in Britain

In 2020 Ofcom published its findings from a five year review of public service broadcasting in Britain. Read the introduction to their report - pages 3-7. You'll need your Greenford Google login to view the document.

1) Look at page 3. Why is it a critical time for public service broadcasting? Audience viewing habits continue to change rapidly and competition from global content providers is ever-increasing. 

2) Read page 4. How has TV viewing changed in recent years? Live broadcast viewing has declined, as audiences increasingly choose to view content at a time that suits them on global online and on-demand content services. These trends are affecting all broadcasters, including the PSB channels.

3) Still on page 4, what aspects of PSB do audiences value and enjoy? Audiences continue to highly value the purposes and objectives of PSB, including trustworthy news and programmes that show different aspects of UK life and culture. The PSB channels have generally fulfilled the statutory PSB remit but maintaining the current level and range of programmes is challenging. People are watching the PSB channels less, as they are no longer the

only or necessarily audiences’ preferred source of content that ‘informs, educates and entertains’.

4) Look at pages 4-5. Find and note down the statistics in this section on how much TV audiences tend to watch and how they watch it.  Viewers and listeners of all ages have rapidly adopted these newer media, with the average viewer now spending over an hour a day watching services like Netflix and YouTube.

5) Read the section on page 5 discussing the importance of PSB. Again, find the statistics and explain the value of public service broadcasting in Britain. The PSB channels are still distinctive in the amount and range of first-run, original UK programmes1 they broadcast. Collectively, they provide audiences with approximately 32,000 hours of new UK content in a wide range of subjects, including news, current affairs, drama and children’s programmes. This far outweighs what is available on other commercial broadcast channels and the global streaming services.

6) Look at the section on commercial challenges. How have revenues fallen for PSB channels? Between 2014 and 2018, net advertising revenue for the advertising-funded PSB channels has fallen by an average rate of 3.8% per year (compound annual growth rate or CAGR2) equivalent to approximately £325m. In the same period, the BBC’s revenues from the licence fee have fallen by an average of 4% each year. Significant growth in third-party funding, such as co-production, and increases in portfolio channel and online advertising has offset some of this decline. However, third-party funding is typically available for a limited range of genres, such as high-end drama, and

continued growth in portfolio channels advertising cannot be guaranteed. Provision and investment in arts, religion, children’s and formal education programmes on the PSB channels continued to be relatively low over the review period. In 2014, there were 1,234 hours of these genres, falling to 1,148 in 2018. In both years, this programming represented 6% of total PSB investment in first-run UK content.

7) Read page 6. What services increasingly play a role in our media lives in the digital age? A range of other media services, including commercial broadcasters like Sky and on-demand services like Netflix, extend the choice of content available to audiences. Some have increased their investment in original UK content and so made a valuable contribution to a thriving UK media industry. Notably, Sky has increased spend on original UK drama and has renewed its commitment to its news service, provided on a free-to-air basis. SVoD services have been particularly effective in engaging younger audiences, and our research suggests audiences aged 16-34 years old are more likely to watch a BBC programme on Netflix than the BBC i Player.

Goldsmiths report on Public Service TV

Read this report from Goldsmiths University - A future for public service television: content and platforms in a digital world.

1) What does the report state has changed in the UK television market in the last 20 years? ITV has been transformed over the past 25 years as a result of the changes introduced by the 1990 Broadcasting Act and the greatly increased competition it now faces in a multichannel world. It has lost its pre-eminence and its mandated public service commitments have been reduced. It has cut spending on some genres and exited others. The model under which it provides public service content is now threatened because of the diminishing value of its prominence on the electronic programme guide.

2) Look at page 4. What are the principles that the report suggests need to be embedded in regulation of public service broadcasting in future? Principles of independence, universality, citizenship, quality and diversity need to be embedded into the regulation and funding of an emerging digital media landscape.

3) What does the report say about the BBC? The BBC is the most important part of the television ecology, but the model of universality underpinning its public service credentials is under threat. The BBC has been contracting in real terms and it is hard to sustain the case that it is damaging competitors. The licence fee is vulnerable in the face of changes in technology and consumption, and it is in any case far from an ideal system: it has failed to guarantee real independence and is charged at a flat rate. The BBC’s independence has also been compromised by the insecurity of its establishment by a royal charter and the process behind the appointments to its governing body.

4) According to the report, how should the BBC be funded in future? If Ofcom is handed the responsibility of regulating the BBC, it must be given the resources and the structures to regulate the BBC independently of both government and its commercial rivals.

5) What does the report say about Channel 4? Channel 4 occupies a critical place in the public service ecology – supporting the independent production sector and airing content aimed specifically at diverse audiences. Its remit has remained flexible and it has moved with the times. But it has cut programme spending; it has largely abandoned arts programming and has been criticised for not doing enough for older children. Recently, Channel 4 has been threatened with privatisation, in whole or in part, a proposal that would threaten its public service remit.

6) How should Channel 4 operate in future?  Channel 4 should continue to innovate and experiment across different platforms and it should aim to arrest the fall in the number of independent suppliers that it works with.


Final questions - YOUR opinion on public service broadcasting

1) Should the BBC retain its position as the UK’s public service broadcaster? Yes because the BBC can provide reliable news and information.

2) Should the BBC retain its position as the UK’s public service broadcaster? Yes because the BBC can provide reliable news and information.

3) Should the BBC funding model (licence fee) change? How? They may choose not to because of commercial impact. This could damage commercial broadcasters.