Ofcom Expand List of UK Internet TV Platforms Subject to Public Broadcasting Rules
The UK telecoms and media regulator, Ofcom, has today revealed which connected TV platforms will be subject to the Media Act’s (2024) new online availability and prominence regime, which requires them to ensure that BBC iPlayer and any other designated public service broadcaster (PSB) TV players (inc. public service content) are “available, prominent, and easily accessible“.
Ofcom remains of the view that a platform must have at least 700,000 active users if it is to be considered to have a significant number of users and thus become subject to the requirements. “We consider that setting a threshold at this level will ensure that public service content is widely available,” said the regulator’s statement.
The regulator said they did recognise that, for some platforms, multiple versions may be in use. In those cases, they’ve recommended that the designations should apply only to versions available on the market in July 2025, when their consultation was published, as well as any subsequent versions.
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The biggest change this time is that Ofcom has added the new broadband-based live TV streaming service Freely to the list, which is already supported by most of the major UK TV broadcasters (BBC, ITV etc.) and is an evolution – not (yet) a replacement – for the existing Freeview service (inc. Freeview Play and Freesat). No surprise there, then.
The following 15 connected TV platforms have been designated
(plus any subsequent versions of these platforms)➤ Amazon Fire TV OS 6, 7 and 8
➤ Android TV 9, 10, 11, 12 and 14
➤ Apple TV OS 18
➤ Freely
➤ Google TV 10, 11, 12 and 14
➤ LG WebOS 22, 23, 24 and 25
➤ Roku OS 14
➤ Samsung Smart Hub (Tizen) 7, 8 and 9
➤ Sky Entertainment OS (Sky Glass and Sky Stream)
➤ Sky Q
➤ VIDAA OS U6, 7, 8 and 9
➤ Virgin Media Horizon
➤ Virgin Media TiVo on V6 ITE
➤ YouView on EE TV (Sagemcom ITE) and YouView on Sony ITE
Prior to the introduction of the new Media Act, the old regulatory framework for PSBs focussed exclusively on linear television channels. The new regime seeks to build on that by bringing into scope the PSBs’ TV players (IPS), along with the internet connected TV platforms (Television Selection Services or ‘TSS’) on which those IPS are included.
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
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Alright but let’s see what they have to say about what devices will have to do to comply. I worry we’re going to be force-fed uninstallable, unmovable apps in prime position on the homepage. I’m sure that’s what the BBC will be lobbying for and I wouldn’t put it past this ever more authoritarian government to comply.Just in time for the TV licence review btw! Oh everyone has iPlayer installed now, pay up!
The Media Act (2024) was passed by the previous Conservative government so nothing to do with the current government.
As the blue box in the article states the current Secretary of State decides how to implement the Act. So it has absolutely everything to do with the current government as they are the ones who will decide exactly what “prominent and easily accessible” actually means.
More amusingly, the discussion as to the future funding of the BBC..
Change the the “TV licence” to a monthly model – like all other streaming services.
We’ll then see how “popular” they are…
Oh, and remove the amusing “live TV” restriction from other linear live TV services.
So basically the end of free to air.
The future is having to install proprietary apps to access “free” content whilst they harvest your viewing data, linked to your digital ID you’ll need to access the app, so they can sell on your viewing habits.
Verses transmitting it for anyone to view with an antenna and doing the whole privacy thing.
In other words, going backwards.
Back towards monitoring of what state appoeved channels you’re watching, comrade.
‘Free to air’?
I don’t suppose anyone remembers the little plate on the back of valve radios that government required a licence to listen and the tax that BREMA had to collect on sales. A licence to listen was required but that expanded to televisions when the BBC (only) started postwar transmissions. I don’t know when radio licences started but it must have been pre-war. Radio amateurs have always needed a licence even if it was just an ‘Artificial Aerial’ transmitter.
Cheap imported transistor radios made listening licences impossible but fixed TV sets in homes were (are) an easier target. With mobile devices doing the same thing for TV through streaming, I find it no surprise that HMG wants revenue raised from those ‘channels’.
I absolutely agree that there is an increasing control over what can be watched and I hope the RSGB can continue to lobby for freedom of the ether (in competition with mobile phone hungry spectrum).
There is no doubt in my mind that HMG wish to control what we watch:-
a) To ensure that only approved sources can be seen (OFcom limiting ISP’s)
b) Not being able to look at sources outside the UK if possible – good luck with that!
c) Gather as much income as possible from VAT on subscriptions as well as licence fees
Perhaps we should be issued with regulation TV sets (AKA the single channel radios in Nazi Germany) fitted with cameras so they can check that we are safe in our homes (telescreens as per Orwell’s 1984 distopia).
I’m glad I can still watch FTA channels from various satellites though other countries are also going towards streaming and cutting transponder transmissions. That said I have always paid the licence fee but I don’t want to subscribe to the awful ‘media’ out there. Here endeth the diatribe!
It must be exhausting keeping up the conspiratorial thinking all the time!
Your point about data collection / harvesting is very valid, but it’s not about the government doing said data harvesting but the broadcasters and (in turn) the big tech companies.
Not so much conspiriacies anymore they are doing it in open view.
If what has already been implemented of OSA isn’t bad enough we are going to see some more unpleasant things announced next year when Ofcom implement part 3. This will regulate the content of private messaging. I await with bated breath what they will announce but it’s pretty likely to be the end of privacy in digital communications – at least for normal people – they can’t delete encryption from the universe after all.
The Home Office has banned Apple’s encrypted file storage. Not through a transparent, democratic process but by a secret order which politicians will not even talk about. We know about it only beacause Apple is so big it’s impossible to keep anything about them secret. We should wonder how many smaller companies have been bullied by the government into secretly compromising their customer’s data security.
This week the Home Secretary has announced she will “encourage” device makers to do real time surveillance of our phone screens, and later desktop computers, to make sure we don’t display a human body without getting the government’s permission. Bad enough in itself but if this technology gets a foothold you can only imagine what else they will use it for.
On top of all of that several dystopian amendments have been tabled to the Childrens bill currently going through parliament by the House of Lords. Now to be fair these are not the government’s doing and probably won’t pass but they are sponsored by peers of multiple parties. This showcases the disturbing anti-privacy mindset amongst the political classes.
The previous poster mentioned cameras and microphones in our TVs, which you might think absurd. But if the government is already scanning all of our private and personal digital conversations, images and videos. Then in what way really are in person activities any different. It’s not such a big step. And you know, you might be abusing children in your own home! Nobody will look at the recordings unless the AI flags it – promise.
you think because it is through an aerial that your viewing is private
A smart tv can collect a lot of data about what you watch and sell this
info.
Googletv became so obnoxious I swapped back to a simple SBC running Linux a couple of years back. I’m not being told what I can show on my own hardware.
SBC?
Can you explain that TLA please?
Small Board Computer
I hope the psb apps are not stuck to the top on my fire tv. I don’t watch the psb programs like news, soaps, cooking, stupid quizzes or jungle island celebrity rubbish .
So, the BBC is struggling to retain licence holders, they managed to get the government to veto removing the license fee for TV and now we’re having forced apps installed on our TV.
Correlation may not be causation but:
1. BBC lose customers
2. BBC veto bill to remove mandatory tv licence fee
3. BBC move to have apps forcefully installed on all TVs
So the next steps would be:
4. BBC push government to force people with their app installed to pay TV licence
5. Any device with BBC app is now capable of playing BBC shows and therefore must pay fee
6. Everyone has to pay fee and this time you can’t opt out
Seems it’s going that way.
Before you say “oh it’s not the BBC doing this”, look at the MPs / people forcing this through and their connections to the BBC e.g. BBC James Purnell and Robbie Gib.
Pretty crazy but logically sound, whatever makes money right?
They can make it prominent, as long as it remains removable. I don’t have a licence, and iPlayer is the first thing I delete.