The Commercial Broadcasters Association (COBA) has called on the Government to commit to seeking an ambitious deal on broadcasting before companies are forced to activate contingency plans.
Speaking to the Committee for Exiting the EU, COBA’s executive director Adam Minns said international broadcasting contributed £1 billion to the British broadcasting industry. However, the “no deal” increasingly touted in recent days would put this growth at risk by forcing broadcasters to restructure their European operations in order to continue broadcasting to EU countries.
“The Government has told us what is off the table, but it has not set out the type of arrangements that it wants to secure,” said Minns. “We know the Government cannot promise a deal, but it can promise to fight for arrangements on broadcasting that are ambitious, and it can give industry confidence by explaining what that would look like.”
He added that companies could not wait until March to make decisions , but would be forced to activate contingency plans within months or even weeks.
According to Oliver & Ohlbaum Associates, international broadcasting has grown by 50% since 2011, more than double the rate of growth for the UK’s wider digital sector (23%) and faster than the overall rate of growth for the creative industries (44.8%).
