Burnham announces Chair of free-to-air events review
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10 December 2008
David Davies, former Executive Director of the Football Association, will lead a review and possible overhaul of the events that must be broadcast free to the nation, Culture Secretary Andy Burnham announced today.
The Broadcasting Act 1996 allows the Secretary of State to draw up a list of sporting and other events of national importance, with the aim of giving them the widest possible broadcast coverage. The current list, which includes events like the Wimbledon Tennis Finals and the Olympic and Paralympic Games, was compiled in 1998.
Andy Burnham said:
"I am very pleased that David Davies has agreed to lead this review, given his depth of experience in both sport and broadcasting.
"The Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer, when the whole nation came together to watch our fantastic medal success, showed just how important the broadcast of big sports events is. In a multi-channel age, they allow us to share a moment as a country. They also get young people inspired by sport, driving sports participation and the creation of the next generation of sports stars.
"But the sale of TV rights helps fund grassroots sport, so we need to get the balance right. We also need to make sure that, in a changing world, the protected list is kept up to date."
The review will cover three main areas:
- the principle of having a list;
- the criteria against which events may be listed; and
- the content of any list itself.
David Davies said:
"My working life has been dominated by careers in broadcasting and sport, and I remain passionate about both.
“Twenty-two years in broadcasting gave me a diverse experience which enabled me to work ultimately at a senior level in news, current affairs and sports journalism. Then another 13 years inside sport itself confirmed to me how much the public cares about not just football but so many other sports too. I was proud to work closely with the British Olympic Association in the years leading up to the successful London Bid for the Olympics.
“I remain first and foremost a sports fan. It was against this background that, when I was offered this opportunity, I found it irresistible.
“I go into the review with an open mind, and well aware of a rapidly changing broadcasting landscape, with both free and pay channels competing. It will be essential to recruit a panel from as wide a spectrum as possible, and certainly to ensure that the views of all the nations that make up the UK are represented.
“We will want to hear from the wider public as well as the various governing bodies and broadcasters. I have been asked by the Secretary of State to act speedily and intend to do so."
The current list is divided into two groups – group A which protects live coverage, and group B which protects highlights. David Davies will now appoint an advisory group which will include sporting, broadcasting and wider business expertise. The group will also have a perspective from the devolved nations.
The review process will include consultation with broadcasters, rights holders and the public, and is expected to report by the second half of 2009.
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Notes to Editors
- The current list of sporting events protected under the Broadcasting Act 1996 is:
Group A (Full Live Coverage Protected)
• The Olympic Games
• The FIFA World Cup Finals Tournament
• The European Football Championship Finals Tournament
• The FA Cup Final
• The Scottish FA Cup Final (in Scotland)
• The Grand National
• The Derby
• The Wimbledon Tennis Finals
• The Rugby League Challenge Cup Final
• The Rugby World Cup Final
Group B (Secondary Coverage Protected)
• Cricket Test Matches played in England
• Non-Finals play in the Wimbledon Tournament
• All Other Matches in the Rugby World Cup Finals Tournament
• Six Nations Rugby Tournament Matches Involving Home Countries
• The Commonwealth Games
• The World Athletics Championship
• The Cricket World Cup - the Final, Semi-finals and Matches Involving Home
• Nations' Teams
• The Ryder Cup
• The Open Golf Championship
- EU Member states are entitled to draw up a list of events which are generally felt to have special national resonance to ensure, so far as possible, that they are broadcast on free-to-air television.
The Government aims to ensure that these key events are available to as much of the population as possible and has outlined criteria for ‘qualifying’ broadcasters that meet that objective. Those criteria are that the service is received by at least 95% of the UK population and at no additional cost to the viewer (excluding the television licence fee). The services currently meeting these criteria (qualifying broadcasters) are BBC1, BBC2, ITV1, Channel 4 and Five. Five was added to the list in March 2008.
- The list was last reviewed in 1998. The events on that list were considered to meet at least one of the following criteria:
• The event and its outcome has a special national resonance, not simply a significance to those who ordinarily follow of the sport concerned;
• It is a pre-eminent and popular event giving it particular potential for encouraging participation in the sport concerned;
• It is an event which serves to unite the nation; a shared point in the national calendar;
• It involves the national team in the sport concerned in a major international tournament.
At present the UK list contains only sporting events, however the list is not solely about sport and non sporting events could be included.
The review will take into account emerging broadcast policy, particularly Lord Carter’s Digital Britain Report and Ofcom’s review of Public Service Broadcasting.
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