Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support UK-based broadcasters in adapting to changes in consumer behaviour associated with moving away from satellite television and towards streaming services.

We recognise the shift in audience habits to watching more television over internet-based platforms and the pressure this places on broadcasters. Through the Government’s Future of TV Distribution project, we’re exploring how people access television now and over the next decade, including assessing the future role of satellite in our distribution ecosystem. Ensuring that distribution costs are reasonable for broadcasters and that television continues to be universally available for audiences is key. As discussed in greater detail by Minister Peacock in the recent Future of Terrestrial Television debate, we are engaging a wide range of industry and audience voices through a ministerially chaired stakeholder forum to help understand these pressures.