Category: Public Affairs

The news comes ahead of the Queen’s Speech on Tuesday 10th May, which will set out the Government’s legislative agenda for around the next 12 months. The PPA has long campaigned for the new regulator to be given the powers it needs to reign in big tech, including in a recent letter from an unprecedented media coalition which sparked a flurry of media coverage.

Also published on Friday was the CMA and Ofcom’s advice to Government on how the DMU’s Codes of Conduct could regulate relationships between large platforms and online content providers. The PPA is pleased that the advice makes clear that such a Code would apply to all content providers, including specialist media publishers. You can read a summary of the advice below:

What are the key concerns?

Four key publisher-specific concerns were identified by the report. These are:

– A lack of algorithmic transparency

– Unequal access to user data

– A lack of control over content presentation and branding

– Large platforms ‘free-riding’ on publisher content

The advice also recognised that platforms’ dominance in the digital advertising market is a key concern, and these will be addressed by other DMU Codes and pro-competitive interventions.

How could a Code apply to algorithms, data, and content presentation?

A Code would expect platforms’ algorithms to treat publishers equally, unless there is a justifiable reason to differentiate between them. Firm would also be expected to give publishers a fair warning of changes, and provide clear and accessible information to publishers on how content is surfaced.

Regarding data, and content presentation, a Code would aim to prevent data leakage and allow publishers to present content to mobile users in their preferred web format (unless there is an objectively justifiable reason to require the use of other formats). SMS firms would also have to avoid imposing format requirements (directly or indirectly) on publishers in order to restrict user movement away from platforms’ services. Where there is an objectively justifiable reason to require the use of a particular web format, SMS firms should still enable publishers to understand their users and build a customer relationship and provide fair access to data, as well as ensuring content is adequately attributed.

How would a Code apply to payment for content?

It is important to recognise that a wide range of factors, such as those discussed above including access to user data, might form part of a ‘fair and reasonable’ settlement for payment for content. The advice notes that whilst the principles set out have an application for all content, specific payment settlements could vary significantly between content genres.

It is stated that the DMU should provide guidance on how compensation should be calculated: the aim of the guidance would be to provide clarity for the parties involved to help them come to an agreement whilst allowing sufficient flexibility such that these solutions could be market-based and commercially beneficial.

Further, the advice states that the assessment of value should take a broad view of value created through the use of content by platforms, as has been argued for by content providers. This wider view would include the value of data acquired by platforms (‘Data benefits’) when users interact with their content as well as the contribution of their content to attracting users to the platform’s services and keeping them there (‘Market expansion/indirect benefits’).

Regarding the calculation of value, the advice states that the assessment should be carried out collectively for all UK publishers of a particular type of content. This, it is argued, is more efficient and will mitigate the risk that smaller publishers get a worse deal.

What happens next?

The PPA looks forward to engaging with the DMU and Government to ensure that the legislation to empower the DMU is brought forward as soon as possible. We have arranged meetings with the DMU and Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to discuss the plans in greater detail, and highlight the need for the DMU to tackle specialist media-specific issues. Following the Queen's Speech on Tuesday 10th May, we will engage with parliamentary stakeholders to emphasise the need for legislation to be brought forward as soon as possible.

The PPA’s submission emphasised the immense value that specialist media has in bringing together highly engaged communities of interest, just as local news outlets serve communities based on location. Our submission called for the Digital Markets Unit to be put on a statutory footing as soon as possible, and for the Online Safety Bill to protect specialist media titles which are already independently regulated.

The challenges our members are facing with print and paper costs were also set out by PPA: we called for the Government to introduce tax credits to support publishers. To ensure that the issues faced by specialist media and local news outlets are adequately analysed going forwards, PPA also argued that the Government should give Ofcom a duty to report annually on the health and state of the respective sectors.

Of note, Meta’s submission argued that the platform has provided ‘tools for news publishers to monetise their content and share data and insights with publishers to help support their businesses’. Discussing the the Cairncross Review, Meta said that future investment it makes in the sector ‘should continue to be grounded on genuine marketplace principles of free enterprise and freedom of contract’.

In contrast, Reach plc’s submission noted that as the publisher transitions towards a ‘digitally-driven future’, it is reliant on a small number of global technology platforms to reach audiences and that there is a lack of transparency on this relationship. Specifically, the company noted a lack of transparency surrounding the value of its content and the data that is generated by consumption of news as well as what drives the algorithms that can cause significant fluctuations in audience numbers for long periods of time.

PPA will continue to engage with the DCMS parliamentary committee as the inquiry progresses. If you would like to discuss the matters raised here, please email the PPA’s Public Affairs Executive Sebastian Cuttill – sebastian.cuttill@ppa.co.uk

PPA submitted a response to this consultation, based on feedback from our Customer Direct group, last year. PPA also met with the Department of Business to set out members’ concerns in greater detail.

The Government is making some changes to subscriptions rules and will legislate to:

• clarify and enhance existing pre-contract information requirements for subscription contracts;

• introduce a specific requirement on traders to send reminders to consumers before a contract rolls over (or auto-renews) onto a new term;

• create a specific obligation requiring traders to remind consumers that a free trial or low-cost introductory offer is coming to an end; and

• create a specific requirement for traders to ensure their consumers are able to exit a contract in a straightforward and timely way.

In response to feedback provided, especially around costs to business, Government will not be taking forward the proposals to explicitly:

• require traders offering consumers subscription contracts to offer those consumers a choice (at the pre-contract stage) to take the subscription without auto-renewal or rollover terms (i.e. for a fixed initial commitment period only);

• require traders, before the end of a free trial or low-cost introduction offer, to obtain the consumer’s explicit consent to continuing the subscription after the free trial or low cost introductory offer period ends; and

• require traders, after a reasonably long period of time where there is evidence of inactivity to give notice of suspension of service and to stop charging money for the consumption or use of goods, services, and digital content under a subscription contract.

PPA will continue to engage Department for Business as the detail of the proposals are developed, ensuring that the new rules are not unnecessarily burdensome. We are pleased that the Government acknowledged points made by PPA and other trade organisations regarding the rejected proposals, which had the potential to impact publishers which already operate a ‘gold standard’ of subscriptions best practice.

The Government also recognised points made by PPA and others in response to the Impact Assessment, stating: ‘Those who did respond noted that the expected implementation cost to business…was underestimated and needed to reflect the variation in costs across size of business’. It was also stated that the potential cost to business has informed the package of proposals to be taken forwards.

The Government will need to pass legislation, which has yet to be published, to introduce the new rules.

If you would like to discuss the matters raised here, please email the PPA’s Public Affairs Executive Sebastian Cuttill – sebastian.cuttill@ppa.co.uk

As part of a debate on Royal Mail services and the COVID-19 pandemic, the MP called on Government and Ofcom (the communications regulator) to make significant changes to ensure that both individuals and businesses can depend on Royal Mail’s services.

Hayes is MP for the Dulwich and West Norwood constituency, which is home to PPA member the Mark Allen Group (MAG). As well as pointing to the risk presented by Royal Mail delivery failures, she also emphasised MAG’s concerns that subscription cancellations correspond closely with unreliable postal delivery services.

Hayes noted that specialist media is worth £3.74 billion to the UK economy, with the industry supporting around 55,000 jobs. Publishers are absolutely reliant on Royal Mail for the sustainability of their subscription businesses, Hayes stated, adding that it was “no exaggeration to say that the Royal Mail failures are putting jobs at risk”.

In response to the points made in the debate, Paul Scully MP, the Minister responsible for postal services, acknowledged that Royal Mail’s Quality of Service reports indicated it had not met its universal service targets in the third quarter of the financial year.

Bringing the debate to a close, Hayes expressed dismay at the mismatch between the messages parliamentarians received from Royal Mail and the experiences of MPs constituents. Hayes asked Minister Scully to step back from briefings from Ofcom and Royal Mail, and instead focus on the role that Government can play in making sure that post is delivered with the reliability that such a vital service demands.

Speaking on Apil 19 in the first House of Commons debate on the Bill since its publication last month, the former Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport stated that he has spent a great deal of time speaking with press and media about the protections that journalism needs.

Whittingdale raised a concern from the PPA that specialist magazines appear at the moment to be outside definitions of content that will receive enhanced protections, and stated that he hoped this can be addressed because there are specialist titles that deserve the same level of protection as other media forms.

Also speaking in the debate, Damian Green MP stated that the UK’s reputation for journalism is a national asset that needs protecting. He asked Secretary of State Nadine Dorries if she intends to table amendments that will ensure platforms and search engines protect access to journalism and content from ‘recognised news publishers’ and also ensure it is not moderated, restricted or removed without notice or right of appeal.

Dorries replied that journalistic content is protected in the Bill, and added that there is a right of appeal in the works. In his closing remarks, Minister Chris Philp confirmed that the Government will table an amendment to ensure journalists are able to appeal before any content is removed.

Writing in The Times, Damian Collins MP observed that ‘the biggest companies are increasing their domination of different sectors of the economy’, including the digital advertising market.

Collins, who recently attended a dinner with senior representatives from PPA member businesses, added that digital competition is ‘a big problem for the future of journalism’. He also acknowledged the finding of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission that Google has given its own platform a better deal, withholding data from competitors, whilst the Texas state attorney general has revealed a secret pact between Meta and Google. The ‘Jedi Blue’ deal saw Meta agree not to challenge Google’s advertising business in return for special treatment in Google’s ad auctions.

The senior politician concludes: ‘If the Online Safety Bill is to protect us on the existing web, digital competition laws will help create a better, freer internet for the future.’ The PPA has previously written about the need for digital competition to accompany online safety policy, arguing that the Online Safety Bill, whilst welcome, ‘will only remedy a symptom, not the root causes, of large digital platforms’ market power’.

The PPA is continuing to call on Government to prioritise digital competition legislation, that will rebalance the relationship between platforms and publishers. By boosting the sustainability of specialist media, the Government can guarantee that UK citizens can access trusted information on a range of topics. This will be critical in ensuring platforms’ users can live safety online.

The research requires input from journalists with a wide range of experiences, including those who have not encountered abuse. We would encourage journalists from member businesses to complete the survey so that the harms encountered by specialist media journalists are accounted for by this important research.

The survey focuses on experiences from the past 12 months, so that the survey can be repeated regularly with any changes tracked over time. You can complete the survey here.

The letter told the PM: “By moving quickly and including the legislation in the Queen’s Speech in May, you will not only take the first step towards ensuring a healthy future for independent media, but you will position the UK as a world leader in tackling the imbalance of power between media providers and the tech platforms which threatens to deprive the public of the trusted news and information they require.”

Following the letter’s publication, a flurry of news coverage has followed. This is a whistle stop tour of the week that the DMU was catapulted onto the news agenda, and onto the agenda of the PM and his Cabinet:

The i newspaper and the Daily Mail were among those to cover the letter, with the Mail reporting on ‘fears that unless the Government moves swiftly this progress could be delayed by at least another year’. On Saturday, The Times followed up with information that the Government’s ‘intention to give the regulator statutory underpinning has been delayed after it was not included in the upcoming Queen’s Speech.’

This led to speculation in the Mail on Sunday that Cabinet Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg was responsible for blocking the legislation, although his allies claim Government figures are trying to ‘frame’ Rees-Mogg as they wish to prioritise the privatisation of Channel 4. The Sun also picked up on the story, with a Government source saying the legislation would still ‘get the nod’, but not become law until late 2023.

News of the possible delay prompted anger from senior parliamentarians. On Monday, Chair of the House of Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee Julian Knight MP told The Times: “I’m deeply concerned. The Digital Markets Unit is running in shadow form. If we’re seen as laggards when it comes to bringing forward legislation to bring competition to these enormous markets, it means we won’t have any place around the table. We do need to come to some form of longstanding arrangement for the benefit of established news media organisations who are having their content used without any form of recompense.”

The pressure was ratcheted up on Tuesday when the Chair of the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee, Baroness Stowell, made a statement which was picked up by the Daily Mail. The peer stated: ‘The establishment of the DMU on a statutory footing is an urgent necessity’, adding that the CMA should use powers already at its disposal whilst the Unit awaits legislation. A Times leading article also stated that ‘the Government should legislate without delay’, observing that publishers ‘have invested heavily in digital news but find it difficult to monetise their efforts’.

Ahead of the Queen’s Speech on May 10th, it is clear that calls from across the media sector for the Government to prioritise a Digital Competition Bill will only intensify. The Government must think again, and move quickly to ensure that publishers of trusted content can build sustainable businesses in the digital age.

The PPA, the News Media Association, the BBC, ITN, Publishers Association, Channel 4, Radiocentre and AOP have emphasised to the Prime Minister that legislation is necessary to rebalance the relationship between platforms and creators of trusted content, ultimately benefiting audiences.

The letter states: “The UK has also led on the solution to begin tackling these harms, with the creation of the DMU. We believe the DMU can tackle the root causes of large platforms’ market power, rebalancing the relationship between platforms and creators of trusted and much-loved content. This will be critical in ensuring the sustainability of the UK’s vibrant media sector, ensuring fair value and treatment for creators of content, and ultimately benefitting audiences.”

What will the Digital Markets Unit do?

The DMU will oversee a new regulatory regime for the most powerful digital firms, promoting greater competition and innovation in these markets and protecting consumers and businesses from unfair practices. A code of conduct will be established, setting out clear principles to protect consumers and businesses from exploitation and prevent competitors from practices that undermine fair competition. Further, the DMU will be able to make procompetitive interventions to drive competition and innovation.

What is the Code of Conduct?

The code of conduct will promote three key objectives – fair trading, open choices, and trust and transparency – guiding firms’ behaviour to prevent anticompetitive outcomes before they occur.

Practices that the code will aim to prevent include:

– Entrenching and protecting market power – where a firm uses contractual terms or its wider ecosystem of products to unreasonably restrict the ability of others to compete

– Extending market power – where a firm uses its position in a regulated activity to unfairly extend its market power into related activities

– Exploitative conduct – for example, where a firm uses unfair or unreasonable contract terms

What does the Code of Conduct mean for publishers?

Here are some key publisher-relevant remedies that the DMU’s Codes of Conduct could implement:

– Ensure platforms provide publishers with sufficient explanation of how their algorithms work, and give reasonable prior notification of changes

– Ensure that contractual terms concerning the ability of publishers to monetise content are ‘objectively justifiable’

– Allow publishers to exercise additional control over how their content is shown on platforms

– Facilitate the sharing of platforms’ data concerning user interactions with publishers’ content

How will this impact digital advertising?

A major impact of the DMU will be a rebalancing of the digital advertising market. The Code of Conduct could require platforms to not apply discriminatory terms, conditions, or policies to certain customers. It could also require platforms to not influence competitive processes or outcomes in a way that unduly self-preferences a platform’s own services.

What are the next steps?

The DMU needs legislation to get the powers necessary to rebalance the relationship between platforms and publishers, and the Government will soon respond to the most recent consultation on the new regime (which the PPA responded to on behalf of our members). Once the DMU is given its powers, we can concentrate on ensuring the Codes of Conduct will benefit publishers.

What is the PPA doing?

The PPA has a dedicated Public Affairs Executive, and we also work closely with a team of expert consultants whose role is to engage with Government on behalf of PPA members. We are continuing to speak with Government, senior Digital Markets Unit officials, and senior parliamentarians to ensure that digital competition legislation is treated as a priority.

If you would like to learn more PPA’s work on the Digital Markets Unit, please email our Public Affairs Executive sebastian.cuttill@ppa.co.uk