ABC, SBS and Netflix air their concerns about the government's prominence review

The two public broadcasters have argued that television manufacturers have turned themselves into “gatekeepers” by demanding broadcasters pay for prominence on connected devices.

ABC said there was “urgent need for regulatory guarantees of prominence for broadcasters’ services on smart TVs and other connected-TV platforms”. (Photo by Chris DELMAS / AFP)

The nation’s taxpayer-funded public broadcasters, the ABC and SBS, claim television manufacturers have turned themselves into “gatekeepers” by demanding broadcasters pay for prominence on connected devices, and questioned their justification for doing so.

The federal government is working to legislate new prominence rules for Australian TV services on connected TVs to determine how apps and content are presented to audiences.

Stakeholder submissions on the issue were published on a government website on Friday.

The ABC and SBS both wrote lengthy submissions – the ABC said there was “urgent need for regulatory guarantees of prominence for broadcasters’ services on smart TVs and other connected-TV platforms”.

The ABC said it “cannot justify paying for what are essentially new, additional costs to perform its public broadcasting role, as doing so would require it to redirect funds away from content activities. As a result, the availability and visibility of its BVOD (broadcasting viewing on demand) service, ABC iview, is diminished on connected-TV platforms.

“The overall result is that a wide range of Australian content, including ABC programs for which Australians have already paid, is made more difficult for them to discover.

“Broadcasters should not bear the costs of implementing such prominence and discoverability requirements.”

The government is considering a new legislative framework that would determine the way TV apps and content are presented to audiences so they can be easily located.

In its 10-page submission, the SBS says it wants the code reviewed every two years, and it should require strict rules to be enforced on TV manufacturers.

“All obligations to provide availability and prominence of free-to-air services must be provided free of charge to broadcasters, and any form of payment (whether through revenue share or other means), must be explicitly prohibited,” the submission says.

“SBS submits that the prominence regulatory framework must address the gatekeeping role device manufacturers currently hold and must ensure that the manufacturers cannot impose monetary or other imposts on broadcasters for making their services available and prominent.”

Global streaming giant Netflix also made a submission, arguing that “the prominence of television services is no longer exclusive to those that hold a broadcast spectrum licence ... consumers are ultimately in control of what content they watch and how they want to watch it”.

It also said there were “no clear policy objectives to support more prescriptive regulation which could stifle competition and innovation”.

The final design of the framework is expected in mid-2023.