Public service content should be findable on YouTube, says Ofcom

Ofcom has set out a series of ‘urgent’ recommendations to secure the survival of public service media.

The regulator said the system is now “under serious threat,” with audience choice wider than it’s ever been, broadcasters experiencing fundamental financial challenges and structural change in the advertising market. As a result, public service broadcasters are finding it much harder to fund the production and distribution of high-quality UK content to all audiences.

It has called for public service broadcasters to work “urgently “with YouTube, to ensure that their content is prominent and easy to find on the platforms, and on fair commercial terms. Ofcom said this is particularly important for news and children’s content, and that there is a strong case for Government to legislate to enable the change.

YouTube is the world’s most popular video site, watched by 43% of children aged 4-17 on a weekly basis. TV screens are also rapidly becoming more popular for watching YouTube content.

Ofcom also said that additional public funding will be necessary to support socially valuable but commercially less viable genres, such as news, local news and children’s content.

It has also called for urgent clarity on how TV will be distributed in the future, calling for the government to decide in early 2026 on the future of digital terrestrial television, the network that supports Freeview. Ofcom noted that delivering content over terrestrial masts, as well as multiple digital platforms, comes at a significant cost. An early decision is necessary to allow sufficient time for the planning, investment and innovation needed to manage an inclusive transition.

The regulator also called on public broadcasters to forge ambitious strategic partnerships at scale to connect with audiences and compete with global streaming platforms. Competition and plurality need to be preserved, said Ofcom, but broadcasters must be more ambitious in pursuing strategic and technological partnerships.

Elsewhere, Ofcom recommended that broadcasters and online platforms invest in media literacy. It also called for streamlined regulation to strip away any outdated and unnecessary restrictions, arguing that much of the current legislative and regulatory framework was designed for a world of traditional, linear TV.

Cristina Nicolotti Squires, Broadcasting and Media Group Director, Ofcom, said: “Public service media is stitched into the cultural fabric of UK society. It starts conversations, educates and informs, and brings us together in moments of national importance.

“But in a world dominated by global streaming platforms, public service media risks becoming an endangered species, and time is running out to intervene to protect it.

“Our six-point plan would involve collective action from broadcasters, online platforms, the Government and Ofcom. It maps out a clear route that would help sustain public service media for the future.”