Plans for regulation of video on demand services in the UK

The government has published plans to regulate video-on-demand services in the United Kingdom. The proposals are part of a consultation on the implementation of the European Audio Visual Media Services directive. This introduces common standards for the regulation of video-on-demand, including online and mobile services. The directive came into force in December 2007. European member states have until the end of 2009 to implement it in their domestic law. It replaces the existing Television Without Frontiers directive, adopted in 1989 and amended in 1997. Under the new directive there is an obligation to ensure that video-on-demand services meet new European standards. It aims to provide a ‘co-regulatory’ approach, operated by industry but backed by powers for the government of a national authority such as Ofcom to intervene... [read full story]