YouTube could be forced to promote British public service TV content
BBC
and
Channel 4
, according to the British media watchdog, the Office of Communications (ofcom)
Ofcom
on Monday said there needed to be 'prominence and discoverability' for content from public service broadcasters (PSBs) on the online platforms that audiences increasingly use.
It added that in particular it was 'critical that the public service broadcasters and YouTube ... work together to ensure that PSB content is prominent on its service, and on fair commercial terms'.
Ofcom said the government should consider whether this needs to be underpinned by legislation to give statutory backing to PSB content on YouTube, especially news and children's programmes.
READ MORE
Britain's existing Media Act already guarantees PSBs prominence on connected TVs and other devices, which means being seen among the first viewing options on the home screen 'carousel'.
With more audiences watching online, the PSBs have developed on-demand services such as BBC's iPlayer. However, this has not fully offset declines in viewing to traditional linear channels, with younger audiences in particular more likely to watch YouTube, Netflix and TikTok.
David McWilliams on how 'big incentives' to build could save Dublin city
Listen |
36:51
PSBs are now increasingly placing their shows on third-party platforms to follow their audiences but are competing with vast libraries of rival content. Public service companies' video-on-demand players only account for 9 per cent of all viewing, according to Ofcom data.
Ofcom said that viewers now spend less than half of their in-home viewing on traditional linear TV channels, and that this was still declining. Last year, fewer than half of 16-24-year-olds tuned into broadcast TV in an average week, while younger children spent far more time watching YouTube.
'If no action is taken, the very existence of the PSBs will be threatened. Time is running out to save this pillar of UK culture and way of life,' the regulator said.
YouTube and the UK government did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
In a wide-ranging review designed to ensure the future of the UK's public broadcasters, Ofcom has launched an assessment of the regulation of broadcast TV and radio.
It recommended a bonfire of red tape to strip away outdated and unnecessary restrictions given much of the existing legislative and regulatory framework was designed for traditional linear TV.
Ofcom also urged broadcasters to be more ambitious in pursuing strategic and technological partnerships with each other. It said less commercially viable genres, such as news, local news and children's content, should be prioritised if the government was to decide to allocate additional public funding. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
16 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
EastEnders fans ‘work out' top secret Christmas plots with tragic death, second shock exit and surprise romance
EASTENDERS fans have 'worked out' top secret Christmas plots with a tragic death, second shock exit and surprise romance. The long-running BBC soap keeps viewers on their toes with twists and turns. Advertisement 4 Fans reckon the Slaters will play a central role at Christmas Credit: BBC 4 Nigel Bates returned to the show last year Credit: BBC 4 Viewers predict drama ahead for Linda Carter and daughter Annie Credit: BBC In particular, Christmas Writing on Reddit, fans reckon the Slater family will be a central focus. Namely, the fallout from Zoe's (Michelle Ryan) Alfie (Shane Richie) and Stacey (Lacey Slater) are currently aware of this - but Kat is in the dark. Advertisement Read more on EastEnders Viewers also predicted a heartbreaking death for soap legend Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley). The much-loved character However, Nigel A fan commented: "I'm imagining another Dot/Ethel scenario between him and Phil. Advertisement Most read in Soaps "I really wish Nigel could stick around though. He's been great to have back." Another added: "I think Nigel will sadly pass away, why my heart will break for Phil." EastEnders legend makes a shock return just days after quitting Walford Some think there'll be a fierce custody battle between Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) and her ex Max Branning (Jake Wood). Notorious womaniser Max Advertisement It follows son Oscar Max is currently unaware that his brief romance with Linda One fan predicted: "Max will battle Linda for Annie." Kat Moon's EastEnders Timeline Kat Slater burst onto the Square in 2000 as feisty Kat Slater, played by Jessie Wallace. She is the eldest sister of the Slater family. She soon makes a big name for herself. She is a loud and brash character who is renowned for her leopard print skimpy outfits and loads of red lipstick. She has played the 'tart with a heart' character but has also had an epic love story with Alfie. Here is a rundown of her greatest soap storylines. Kat arrives in Walford as part of the Slater clan, She soon begins a fling with Steve Owen (Martin Kemp) behind the back of his girlfriend Mel Healey. Kat's sister Zoe (played by Michelle Ryan) was revealed to be her sister after shocked viewers learned she was raped by her uncle Harry Slater as a child and Kat being only 13, was known as her sister. Kat and Zoe's relationship was turbulent. They both vied for the attentions of Anthony Trueman. Kat and Anthony were together but broke up and Zoe then seduced him. Kat later learns she was pregnant but then has to have an abortion. She is comforted by her boss Alfie Moon but then he realises he is in love with her. Kat, becomes briefly engaged to Andy Hunter a local crime boss (Michael Briggs) but she jilts him on her wedding day for the true love her life Alfie. Kat sparks a romance with Alfie Moon and it is the love story of the square. She finally marries Alfie Moon on Christmas day in the Vic. Alfie takes a loan from Andy which he is unable to repay and then threatens to kill him unless Kat sleeps with him. Their relationship becomes cold and distant. One of Kat's biggest storylines was helping her daughter cover up the murder of Dirty Den Watts. She left the soap in 2005 sailing into the sunset with Alfie for a new life in America. Kat returned to the soap in 2010 on the run from a man who she and Alfie conned for money. While Alfie was serving time, she had an affair with Michael Moon who happened to be Alfies cousin and she is now pregnant with his child. Another Kat storyline focused on the breakdown of her and Alfie's marriage and her separation from Tommy and their twin sons Bert and Ernie. Kat's union with Phil Mitchell began after months of feuding. She then sleeps with him marries him beginning a war with his ex Sharon Mitchell over the Mitchell empire. The latest storyline has focused on her son Tommy who idolised Phil and is trying to get back at Kat for breaking up the marriage. Kat meanwhile is back with the love of her life Alfie who is suffering from cancer. While another argued: "I can't see any court giving Max custody over Linda, now that she's recovered. Advertisement "He's had 4 kids and managed to mess it up every time, he's been with countless women so can't provide Annie with stability, family wise. "I can't see Jack supporting him in it, even if he did I'm pretty sure Denise would shut that down." Just how exactly Max's return will rock Albert Square remains to be seen. 4 Max and Linda's brief romance resulted in Annie's birth Credit: BBC/Jack Barnes Advertisement
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Dear Erin: Why do Irish people love to get annoyed about ‘Oirish' films?
The most popular defence when you have failed to recognise, say, a broad pastiche of Donald Trump on social media is that the reality is now so extreme no parody is possible. Almost exactly 20 years ago, one Nathan Poe made such an argument about people who deny evolution. 'Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humour, it is utterly impossible to parody a creationist in such a way that someone won't mistake for the genuine article,' he wrote. This is known as Poe's Law. Anyway, all this is by way of explaining how I – along with others who should know better – briefly fell for a recent jape that didn't quite include a 'winking smiley'. A few weeks ago, ads began appearing on buses for an upcoming feature called Dear Erin. 'She was the Irish goodbye he never forgot,' the tagline read. Peter Coonan , in cloth cap and collarless shirt, writes a letter at a table that also holds a pint of stout and a glass of whiskey. One hand is bloodied. Shamrock spills from a breast pocket. Somehow a rainbow makes it into the collage. A moment's digging unearthed a trailer for the ghastly thing. 'My greatest love? A simple Irish boy from a simple Irish town,' a female American voice trills over glissando strings. Maybe he has now forgotten her? Of course not. Coonan, sitting in his booze-stacked snug, begins a letter with 'Dear Erin' before continuing: 'I've played that night over more times than the Finnegans fought the O'Malleys.' After a bit more shameless blarney, a shadow falls over our hero and we hear, in that same American accent, an uncertain 'Paddy?' READ MORE You might reasonably conclude that only a fierce eejit – no cuter than a donkey's behind – would fall for such a load of aul' cow's muck. But context is all. What was the advertisement doing on the side of a bus? What would Peter Coonan, a Love/Hate alumnus of some distinction, be doing in something that didn't quite exist? This wasn't a post on XformerlyTwitter. There was real money behind it. Moreover, this is surely a case where Poe's Law applies. The deluge of Micksploitation never stops: Far and Away, PS I Love You, Leap Year, Laws of Attraction, Wild Mountain Thyme. No stereotype is too insulting for visiting Americans to exploit. So, for an hour or two, I, and a few other film boffins on the social, could be forgiven (give us a break) for falling into the trap. The parody was a fair one. The clues were right there. What trailer for an apparently imminent title – 'coming this summer' – fails to include a precise release date? Squint and you will see that Paddy's letter is addressed to 'ERIN, AMERICA' – too broad for even the dimmest begorrah aesthetic. I cannot claim to be the first to spot that 'Hugh Forbes', the film's alleged director, shares his name with the character played by Maureen O'Hara's brother in The Quiet Man. We soon all decided that it was a stealth advertisement for something or other. Would Erin soups do such a thing? Not on this occasion. It transpired that the campaign was financed by Epic The Irish Emigration Museum . A longer video, released later, has Coonan break character and snort: 'I'm sorry but who f**king writes this s**t? How are we letting people away with this?' The museum's website , going in big, offers essays on 'the impact of Hollywood stereotypes of Ireland' and 'how to de-stereotype … 'Oirish' films'. This follows (another clue) a campaign from the same organisation that, with predictably hideous results, asked AI to create images of a typical Irishman. Fair enough. The strategy worked. At least one column in at least one national newspaper has now mentioned the prank. The worthwhile question is less why Americans (sometimes still the British) keep doing this – lazy sentimentality? – than why the nation remains so eager to get annoyed about it. It is a little over a year since we all went ballistic over a harmless Netflix title called Irish Wish . Yes, as I then wrote in this place , the Lindsay Lohan vehicle was silly. But was there any need to publish all those 12,000-word treatises on its supposed crimes against the national psyche? [ Planning to hate-watch Lindsay Lohan's Irish Wish? Micksploitation addicts should prepare for disappointment Opens in new window ] There is no easier way of attracting Irish attention than releasing something that shamelessly ploughs the Micksploitation groove. The Epic campaign is correct to bemoan the more egregious tropes. But let us not pretend we wouldn't miss these things if they went away. Baloney such as Wild Mountain Thyme and Irish Wish make us feel noticed. They make us feel righteous. They allow our hearts to beat a little faster. If Americans didn't do this to us we would have to do it to ourselves. As we have just done.
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Watch moment Celebrity Catchphrase star fails to double her money on tricky riddle – did you know it?
OPERA singer Lesley Garrett was left stumped after a baffling Celebrity Catchphrase brainteaser. was left bewildered after struggling to complete a well-known saying in the final round of 4 The soprano singer was left bemused after the mind-boggling question Credit: ITV 4 Lesley spent too long on the egg-inspired teaser and crashed at the end Credit: ITV Frustrated viewers watched as the English soprano, 70, failed to work out the winning question and double her money. The former Celebrity MasterChef star appeared on the ITV gameshow hosted by in a bid to raise money for charity - and left with 5k. In the clue, Mr Chips can be seen on stage holding a microphone in front of an audience. He has an egg in his hand which reads 'Knock, knock, who's there?' as he smashes them against the mic. Read more Can you guess it? A disappointed Lesley ran out of time and infuriated viewers by stalling. On learning the answer, she admitted: "Of course it was." The answer is: Cracking a joke. Most read in News TV Lesley has released fourteen solo albums with her highest charting record being 2007's When I Fall In Love which landed in the Top 15. Her first autobiography, Notes From A Small Soprano, was published in 2000 and she received a CBE for services to music in 2002. BBC star left flummoxed by tricky Celebrity Catchphrase puzzle - but could you solve it?bbc star Lesley was also a contestant on the BBC's very first series of Strictly Come Dancing back in 2004. Partnered with show favourite Anton Du Beke, Lesley made it into third place but was beaten by BBC newsreader During her time on the show, Lesley discovered that her great-grandfather was a pianist that entertained troops during World War I. A natural in front of the camera, Lesley has also appeared on Loose Women, The Wright Stuff and was a judge on Comic Relief does Fame Academy in 2005 and 2007. Lesley has also hosted a radio show on Classic FM and fronted a BBC series When Royals Wed to celebrate the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in April 2011. She also won many admirers during her appearance on Celebrity MasterChef before being eliminated in the semi-finals of the competition. In 2022, she joined EastEnder Adam Woodyatt to star in My Fair Lady in a UK tour after a run in London's West End. She has since made a welcome return to 4 Lesley rejoined the Loose Women panel earlier this month Credit: Shutterstock Editorial 4 The opera star has released fourteen solo albums over her successful career Credit: Getty
