Foxtel Group chief executive Patrick Delany has declared Australians should be entitled to choose what they want to watch without being undermined as he appeared before the Senate over the Albanese Government’s proposed reforms to smart TVs.
The Labor “prominence” legislation would force Australians to have free-to-air media pre-installed on smart devices, which would mean Nine, 7, 10 and even the ABC would appear ahead of Sky News Australia – which is broadcast by Foxtel Group.
The move, which has yet to be finalised by the government, has been slammed by industry groups and the opposition as essentially stymying Australians’ free choice.
Mr Delany told the Senate on Friday that while Foxtel supported free-to-air services being easily accessible, the proposed changes should not interfere with consumer choice and convenience.
“We support the government’s policy objective of ensuring Australian audiences can easily find and access free-to-air services on regulated devices,” he said.
“Our devices give prominence to what Australians choose to watch, not what someone else wants them to watch.
“Prominence should be about free-to-air options being easily available, without interfering with consumer choice and convenience.”
The Foxtel CEO has been a vocal critic of a push by free-to-air advocates to ensure their channels, apps and programs are given prime positioning on smart TVs and in search results for content.
Customers who spend “thousands of dollars” on devices should be in complete control of what they see on their screens, he argued on Friday, reiterating his claim that freedom of choice should be the critical factor in how the government decides to regulate content providers.
“We believe customers are entitled to control their own connected TVs in the way that they choose,” Mr Delany said.
“Any proposal to alter search results and app placement in favour of free-to-air services undermines a customer’s right to choose.
“Customers spend thousands of dollars on their TV devices, what we want to do is deliver the best experience for the customer and that’s been our business model for over three decades.”
Mr Delany’s comments came days after Foxtel launched a major and innovative new product Hubbl, which will allow Australians to aggregate free to air channels with subscription offerings.
He told the Senate the proposed legislation had not kept up with the pace of technology, with Hubble capable of conducting sophisticated algorithmic searches to ensure the consumer can access the content they want.
Hubbl launched this week at a glitzy harbourside event in Sydney to much industry fanfare with executives from both free-to-air networks and subscription television turning up for live demonstrations.
Seven Network CEO James Warburton, Network Ten boss Beverley McGarvey and SBS boss James Taylor watched live demonstrations which showed content from their networks sit alongside programming from the ABC and subscription offerings.
Later in the Senate hearing, Mr Delany also argued that relevance should be the determining factor in searches for content, saying that prioritising free-to-air content risked returning unrelated results which consumers would have to sift through in order to find what they were looking for.
Free-to-air heads who also fronted the Senate on Friday disagreed, with ABC managing director David Anderson claiming there was “public demand” for the changes and urging the government to implement them within the next six months.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland had previously indicated a timetable of 18 months for any legislation.
As part of his opening statement, Mr Delany also argued Foxtel deserved a “fair go” given the significant role the broadcaster plays in Australia’s media landscape.
“Foxtel Group is in equal measure an Australian device and content business. For three decades, our devices and content have been in millions of Australian homes,” he said.
“We are a major producer of Australian content, including lifestyle, and critically acclaimed drama. We are also the largest producer of sport.
“What we are asking for in our submission is a fair go for an Australian company that spends over $1 billion annually, reaches 10 million Australians on average every month, employs 1,500 people directly and 7,500 more indirectly.
“We give Australians more choice in what to watch and how they watch it and that is what 94 per cent of Australians want.”
Read the full article here
