Pact seeks to cut 'holdback' time for PSB indie content

Pact head John McVay

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Pact is calling for a reduction in the time UK broadcasters are granted exclusive control of content made by indies as part of it submission to Ofcom on the future of PSB.

Under existing rules, PSB broadcasters have a significant, exclusive "holdback" period after the primary transmission of a show, but before they are required to make the content available to the wider market. This period was agreed during terms of trade negotiations with each of the PSB broadcasters.

However, Pact said in its submission that it was now the right time to "liberalise the IP regime further" and that it saw "little public value in this holdback period granting exclusive control to the broadcaster".

It emphasised the importance of making the content available as quickly as possible after "the legitimate use on the primary platform", be it via TV or online, although it did not spell out a preferred time period.

"We've approached this review from the perspective of the audience," said Pact chief executive John McVay. "If the intention is for the public to benefit from PSB content, is it reasonable to be effectively withholding it from them?"

The current holdback periods vary according to content across the broadcasters, but can be up to two years from transmission for some returning series, Pact said.

Pact's submission said the public wanted choice in how it accesses content. "As the example of the music industry shows, people will use alternative, illegal means if denied prompt access to content at a reasonable price," it said.

The submission added: "The commissioning broadcaster will of course retain non-exclusive rights, and benefit from a share of the revenues generated by third-party exploitation - which may be generated in ways they would be unable to offer themselves."

Pact's submission to Ofcom also contains several other major recommendations.

Its preferred PSB model is an enhanced version of Ofcom's third model - retaining the BBC and C4 as the core, plus revised licences for ITV and Five and with contestable funding, subject to availability, for new media services.