BBC Trust

The BBC can only fulfil its public purposes if it has in place adequate arrangements for making its services widely available to audiences. The BBC Agreement requires the BBC to do all that is reasonably practicable to ensure that audiences are able to access the UK Public Services that are intended for them, or elements of their content, in a range of convenient and cost effective ways.

However, the specific requirements set out in the BBC Charter and Agreement concerning distribution do not set many rules or guiding principles for the BBC to follow to ensure that the best interests of licence fee payers are met.

When the Trust approved the BBC’s on-demand plans in 2007 it put in place a syndication policy to give guidance to the BBC on how and where it should make its on-demand content available. This policy was reviewed and updated in 2012 but, in recognition of the pace of developments, the Trust committed to reviewing this policy again in 2015.

We are now seeking views from interested parties on a draft distribution framework for BBC services and content, which brings together in one place the Trust’s requirements relating both to linear (broadcast) and on-demand content. This framework therefore supersedes the Trust’s syndication policy for on-demand content.

The draft framework sets out the principles and requirements that the Trust considers it necessary for the BBC to follow to maximise the value secured from its content and services and to fulfil its duty to ensure that audiences are able to access the UK public services in a range of convenient and cost effective ways and deliver the benefits of emerging communications technologies and services (the BBC’s sixth public purpose).  The framework also sets out the Trust’s expectations for how the BBC and industry should engage with each other in pursuit of these aims.

The public consultation will last eight weeks and we invite responses from stakeholder organisations, other broadcasters, industry bodies and other interested parties including members of the public.

Specifically we are seeking views on:

1. Whether the proposed framework clearly establishes the roles and responsibilities of the BBC when undertaking distribution activities, and the Trust’s expectations and requirements in this area.
2. Whether the principles and requirements set out in the proposed framework provide an appropriate, sufficient and proportionate approach to govern the BBC’s distribution activities.
3. Whether there are any principles for audiences, and their ease of access to BBC services and content both now and in the future, that you feel the proposed framework doesn’t include and should and/or better reflect?
4. Whether the draft provides a clear and fair framework for industry in its dealings with the BBC in this area.

How to respond

This consultation closed on Friday 26 June 2015.