COBA warns of ‘$1.4bn Brexit threat’

Brexit could threaten up to £1bn (US$1.4bn) of annual investment in the UK by international broadcasters, a new report claims.

Adam Minns

International broadcasters invested a record £1.2bn in the UK last year, up by more than 50% on the £679m figure in 2011. However, there are fears that the spending is at risk unless the government secures access to EU markets as part of its Brexit negotiations.

The research was commissioned by the Commercial Broadcasters Association (COBA), the industry body for multi-channel broadcasters, from media analysis firm Oliver & Ohlbaum Associates.

It found that international broadcasters supported content, production facilities, wages, overheads and technology in the UK last year, making a major contribution to the global competitiveness of the country’s television business.

The research also highlighted the UK’s status as Europe’s leading international broadcasting hub and that this would be under threat if the country doesn’t secure access to the EU markets for international broadcasters based in Britain.

Under current EU rules, any member state must recognise a broadcast licence granted to a broadcaster by another member state. Once the UK leaves the EU, in the absence of alternative arrangements, international broadcasters will be forced to restructure their European operations to qualify for a broadcast licence from a country within the EU.

The COBA report looked at investment by channels based in the UK but broadcast overseas and excluded spending on their UK businesses.

“The UK is Europe’s number one broadcasting hub for good reason and no one wants to restructure their business,” said Adam Minns, executive director of COBA.

“We call on both the UK and the EU to provide clarity on transitional arrangements quickly to provide security for businesses and their employees in both the UK and the EU. Broadcasters cannot wait until the cliff edge in March 2019 before making these decisions, they need to plan any restructuring well in advance.”