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The government is set to deal a major blow to Big Tech’s moves into sports rights after launching a consultation on the future of broadcasting.
A green paper – an exploratory consultation – was announced by the minister for creative industries, media and arts, Ian Murray, on Tuesday, proposing to prevent streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video buying the rights to show so-called “crown jewel” sports events.
“The broadcast of national moments, such as the Olympic Games or international sporting fixtures, bring the nation together for shared experiences,” Murray said.
The document states that “changes in technology have allowed providers to offer more services to their audiences, opening up spaces on existing, regulated services that are out of scope of current legislation”.
It adds: “Services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video are increasingly moving into the provision of live sport content. However, current legislation means that live content on these services cannot be regulated in the same way as on-demand programming.”
Green paper launched
The status quo would see major sporting events – such as the Wimbledon finals, FA Cup final and Fifa World Cup – remain accessible for free, both live and on-demand. But the consultation could lead to curbs on Big Tech platforms which are not currently regulated by the same set of rules as traditional broadcasters.
“We want to ensure that key sporting events remain available for people to watch for free for years to come,” the green paper read.
“We believe on-demand rights should be protected under the regime, so that providers are able to compete fairly with their larger global competitors for those rights. Therefore, we intend to legislate to extend the regime to include on-demand rights when Parliamentary time allows.”
Major changes to sport through legislation would come just months after the introduction of the Independent Football Regulator, a quango with statutory powers to help police football amid concerns over the sport’s governance and finances.