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 increasing.

2) Read page 4. How has TV viewing changed in recent years?

Live TV viewing has become less popular for audiences today in exchange for on-demand and online services that let them choose when they can watch shows, especially younger people who are more likely to primarily use Netflix and YouTube.. However, audiences continue to value public service broadcasting when it comes to trustworthy programmes that are seen as essential to British culture. 

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.

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.

The average viewer now spends over an hour a day watching services like Netflix and YouTube. However, audiences watch on average over three hours of live broadcast TV each day and over half of that is to the PSB channels. 

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.

Audiences value programmes that inform our understanding of the world and show

different aspects of UK life and culture. 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.

6) Look at the section on commercial challenges. How have revenues fallen for PSB channels?

Advertising revenue for the advertising-funded PSB channels has fallen by an average rate of 3.8% per year. The BBC’s revenues from the licence fee have fallen by an average of 4% each year.

7) Read page 6. What services increasingly play a role in our media lives in the digital age?

Commercial broadcasters like Sky, on-demand services like Netflix and online services like various social media and YouTube.

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?

The proliferation of channels has reduced the market share of the public service broadcasters – the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 – although they have largely retained their prominence and developed portfolio services. Sky has emerged as a major force, contributing to the success of pay television. New technology has facilitated on-demand access to television content, and created new services and platforms, while consumer behaviour has started to change rapidly, particularly among the young.

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?

- In return for public service broadcasters meeting the obligations of their licences, their content should be guaranteed prominence on electronic programme guides, smart TVs and on the interfaces of on-demand players as they emerge.

- Re-transmission fees should be paid by pay-TV platforms to public service television operators to address the current undervaluation of public service content by these distributors.

- Ofcom should supplement its occasional reviews of public service broadcasting with a regular qualitative audit of public service content in order to ensure that audiences are being served with high-quality and diverse programming. This should include detailed data on the representation and employment of minority groups and a comprehensive account of the changing consumption patterns of younger audiences.

- Ofcom should continue to monitor the independent production sector and take action, where necessary, if consolidation continues to increase and if diversity of supply is affected.

3) What does the report say about the BBC?

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?

The government should replace the licence fee as soon as is practically possible with a more progressive funding mechanism such as a tiered platform-neutral household fee, a supplement to Council Tax or funding via general taxation with appropriate parliamentary safeguards. 

5) What does the report say about Channel 4?

Channel 4 supports the independent production sector and airs content aimed specifically at diverse audiences. Its remit has remained flexible and it has moved with the times. However, it has cut programme spending; it has largely abandoned arts programming, has been criticised for not doing enough for older children and has been threatened with privatisation that would threaten its public service remit.

6) How should Channel 4 operate in future?

Channel 4 should not be privatised and should significantly increase its provision for older children and young adults and restore some of the arts programming that has been in decline in recent years. It should continue to innovate and experiment across different platforms

7) Look at page 10 - new kids on the block. What does the report say about new digital content providers and their link to public service broadcasting?

Television with the characteristics of public service broadcasting now appears outside the public service system: from Sky and other commercial broadcasters, on subscription video-on-demand services such as Netflix and Amazon, and through the new Local TV services. Meanwhile, a broad range of cultural institutions – including museums, performing arts institutions and community organisations – are now producing video content of public service character.

Final questions - YOUR opinion on public service broadcasting

1) Should the BBC retain its position as the UK’s public service broadcaster?

The BBC should maintain its role as the main public service broadcasting channel in the UK, however, in order for it to adapt to the ever changing media ecology in the digital age, I believe it will need to be separated from the government. 

2) Is there a role for the BBC in the 21st century digital world?

Television still plays a huge role in the average person's media consumption as a trusted source of information and entertainment that is able to strongly reach and influence the masses and the BBC is reflective of this. It has taken steps to innovate in accordance to the digital age with its online services, and impartiality is a vital value for media providers to hold in high regard in the age of social media and misinformation. 

3) Should the BBC funding model (licence fee) change? How?

The BBC's funding model as it currently stands is progressing its fall into irrelevance. Most younger audiences are choosing to not pay the license fee, decreasing the size of the BBC's audience and influence and causing its revenues to steadily fall year after year. Instead of the license fee, the BBC's funding should be included as part of usual tax that is paid to the government for as long as it is supported by the government.