Netflix Threatens to Purge Shows in the UK Due to New Streaming Regulations!!

As the UK government’s new regulations for streaming services move forward in the new Media Bill, Netflix may begin to preemptively remove any titles that could be deemed to contain harmful content. Under the proposed bill, streaming services could be policed by media regulator Ofcom in a way similar to that of traditional broadcasters, facing fines of up to £250,000 ($310,000) for any content in breach of guidelines.

The bill will force streaming services such as Netflix to consider impartiality under “current public policy” and in the context of “political or industrial controversy”, leading the service to suggest that in order to avoid any breach of these guidelines, its titles would have to be placed in a state of continual review, with any content that is deemed to be harmful being removed. In a report by Deadline, the steaming giant expressed that “the range and variety of Netflix’s content, generally considered a strength of our offering in terms of maximizing choice for British viewers, could equally become a potential source of risk from a compliance perspective if it fell within Ofcom’s remit.” Netflix explained that, “without considerably greater clarity around the scope and application of these provisions, it would inevitably be easier to remove content preemptively from our UK catalog than risk an onerous compliance burden and potential liability.”

Netflix‘s head of policy in the UK, Benjamin King, previously expressed concern that such impartiality requirements would affect the streamer’s “appetite to make documentaries available” in the territory, stating that “Ofcom has highlighted in the past the potential threats to freedom of expression and we would strongly urge the government to consider this given the obvious potential harm to the status quo.” Furthermore, Netflix expressed concern regarding those outside of the UK being able to issue complaints to the media regulator, resulting in a risk of “complaint tourism”. The new bill is the latest of struggles faced by the streaming service: while Netflix still stands as the UK’s leading streaming service with a subscriber base of an estimated 17 million, it was reported last year that the service had witnessed a decline in subscribers globally for the first time in over a decade, resulting a recent crackdown on password sharing.

Disney Is Also Concerned

Netflix‘s statements come after Disney expressed similar complaints; speaking in a four-page document to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Disney argued that it had put measures in place, such as age ratings, on its streaming service Disney+ in order to protect audiences, believing that such blanket regulation would be disproportionate. Disney had, however, announced that it would be removing content from it’s streaming service on a global scale for another reason. It was reported earlier this month that Disney+ would be removing titles from its service such as Willow, Big Shot, Turner & Hooch, Just Beyond, Mysterious Benedict Society and The World According To Jeff Goldblum, in an effort to cut costs.