FTA TV Bosses To Descend On Canberra To Lobby Government On Key Issues

Free-To-Air TV executives including Seven’s James Waburton and Nine’s Mike Sneesby have landed in Canberra for a series of crucial meetings with Anthony Albanese and MPs on key issues facing the TV industry.

Executives from Network 10, SBS and the ABC are expected to join Waburton and Sneesby to discuss a number of key issues on Monday and Tuesday including the proposed banning of gambling ads.

Other topics expected to arise include defamation law reform, the news media bargaining code and the regulation around smart televisions and whether free-to-air networks should feature more-prominently on the default options.

Currently connected devices give more prominence to foreign providers such as YouTube and Apple, however the TV execs are likely to argue that local free-to-air networks should be given more prominence.

In a statement, Greg Hywood, Free TV Chair, said, “Free local TV services remain vital for millions of Australians. Our programming entertains, informs with trusted news and critical emergency updates, and excites with the unmatched theatre of live and free sport.“But Australians are finding it increasingly hard to find these free local services on modern TV sets. TV manufacturers are seeking to profit by selling exclusive access to the key positions on the home screens and on remote controls. This means global subscription services like Netflix and Amazon are given preference on home screens and remotes, while local TV services are forced to pay to even be available on TVs.“This might be a great deal for TV manufacturers, but it’s a terrible deal for Australians who just want to get their trusted local news services, watch the Matildas smash the opposition or sit back and enjoy the thousands of hours of great local entertainment and drama programming, all available for free to every Australian,” Mr Hywood said.

Publishers of news are likely to step up efforts for the news media bargaining code to be extended to newer platforms.

Most major Australian news companies including Nine, Seven, News Corp and the Guardian have existing commercial deals with Google and Meta after the tech companies agreed to pay for news back in 2021.

The news providers are now urging the government to include the likes of YouTube, Twitter and TikTok within the mandatory code.

This is expected to be a key discussion point in Canberra this week, the Herald Sun said.

The issue of betting advertising on free-to-air television is also expected to be a key discussion point.

The House of Representatives standing committee on standing committee on social policy and legal affairs in June handed down its report on online gambling including 31 recommendations that mostly focused on betting advertising.

The report proposed that all betting ads should be banned in phases over three years under a four-step model.

The ban on gambling ads would hit commercial TV the hardest. Of the $310 million spent on gambling ads in 2022, more than 50 per cent was spent on commercial television.

“While we appreciate that there are concerns in the community regarding the volume of gambling ads, kneejerk moves to implement outright bans will ultimately hurt viewers and the television services they love,” Free TV CEO Bridget Fair said in June.

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mike sneesby waburton