Australia’s free-to-air broadcasters have hit back at a campaign from the subscription media lobby that claims the federal “government wants to control your TV” through its new laws for smart TVs.
The government’s prominence framework for connected TV devices will likely mean smart TV free-to-air apps such as 10play, 7plus, 9Now, ABC iView and SBS On Demand are offered ahead of those from paid streaming services such as Netflix, Binge and Stan. It might also affect searches for content.
Astra, the subscription media industry’s lobby group, has been campaigning against the changes, including through a series of full-page newspaper advertisements that declare: “Now the government wants to control your TV.” Astra advocates on behalf of the likes of Foxtel, Binge, Disney and the Australian Christian Channel.
Bridget Fair, the chief executive officer of Free TV Australia, said Astra’s campaign was “highly misleading”.
“It suggests that what people have at the moment is choice, whereas what they have at the moment is a subset of services that is chosen for them by the TV manufacturer or by the service operator and that isn’t choice,” she told Guardian Australia.
“Manufacturers have taken over the screen and they are using it to their commercial advantage.”
Free TV Australia, which represents commercial broadcasters including Nine, Seven and Ten, states in its counter campaign: “Don’t let big tech take your free away. When big tech controls your TV, you’re the one who pays.”
Fair questioned how Astra could run a campaign against the framework before it is clear how the legislation might look. The government’s proposal is expected to be announced in coming weeks.
It is intended to address outdated ways of delivering on the 1992 Broadcast Services Act’s policy objectives, including the provision of Australian content.
Free TV Australia research, published in October, indicated that a majority of Australians were against commercial interests dictating which apps are prominent on their TVs. The survey also found 84% of respondents believed a smart TV should come with broadcasters’ on-demand apps already installed.
“It is up to the viewer to decide. We’re about viewer choice and not making people pay for stuff that they can get for free,” Fair said.
Astra claims that when given the choice 94% of Australians said they don’t want the government controlling the order and layout of the apps on their TV.
Foxtel Group’s chief executive, Patrick Delany, told the Australian newspaper that the change was akin to the government having control over how apps are displayed on smartphones – something that he said would “shock” Australians.
Prominence legislation is already in place in parts of Europe, including Germany, and there will be a second reading of the UK’s new prominence framework for smart TVs in the UK parliament on Tuesday.
