“You are not going to hear about the pandemic on Amazon Prime”
Free to Air networks point out that streaming platforms fall short when it comes to major news events such as floods, pandemic and war.
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under Coronavirus, News
Free to air broadcasters have drawn a line between the news and information they provide to Australians, and that of streaming platforms which are focussed on entertainment.
Speaking yesterday at public hearings on the adequacy of regional news, held by the a House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts.
But they also reiterated concerns around regulation including spectrum fees, anti-siphoning list and the need to be visible on crowded connected TVs. These impact on revenue which in turn affects their ability to produce regional journalism.
“We are firmly committed to Australian content, we spend $1.6 billion every year on Australian content, which is far and away more than any other contributor to the sector. We’re very proud of what we do. We want to keep doing it. We’re investing in new ways of delivering our content to our audiences through BVOD services and the like and we’re seeing growth in the use of those services,” said Free TV Australia CEO Bridget Fair.
“My members certainly don’t see that they have anything other than a strong future is certainly much more challenging in the regional sector…… But I don’t think anyone’s in business just to be running it out of town. We believe in the future.
“What we also want, though, from government, is to make sure that in a highly-regulated environment, which is the environment we operate in, that those regulations are set in the right way to set us up best for success.
“Because whilst we might all like to watch the old thing on Netflix or whatever, you are not going to find out about the New South Wales floods on Netflix,” she continued.
“You are not going to hear about the pandemic on Amazon Prime.
“In fact, if you don’t only watched those services for the last two years, you might be very entertained, but you wouldn’t have actually known that any of those things had occurred.
“You wouldn’t know that Ukraine had been invaded.”
While most streaming platforms have had several documentaries on issues such as the pandemic, news streaming platform Flash, owned by Foxtel Group also launched in October. CBS News is available in Australia on Paramount+.
9 Responses
FTA news is why I watch so much of the streamers. What really turned me off FTA news was the last major/deadly floods in SE Qld. We had 24 hour coverage of flooding in Brisbane for a week. Since then, if I need to be abreast of anything news, I may watch the headlines, but mainly use radio news.
I have to confess that I have been watching overseas You Tube live 24 hr news broadcasts recently, so I probably have not pleased Free To Air Networks either.
While I understand, and agree with, the networks’ commitment to local programming, hanging their argument on the presence of news is a negative not a positive.
During the past two years, I have been pushed toward BVOD because of the relentless and overdramatic news cycle. In the past two weeks Channel 9 has cut my gentle quiz show watching in the afternoon (Pointless) in order to rehash and rehash flood coverage. Several times this week we have been told that our area is on “high alert” and “preparing for life-threatening disaster”. It hasn’t happened (here) at all. I have deep sympathy for the areas where it has, but the news always catastrophises, instead of reporting simple facts, to the point where we have mostly become desensitised, or we protect our mental health (and our children) by seeking suitable programming elsewhere.
I will always love FTA, but I now watch about 90% on the so-called secondary channels. A quick glance at the headlines in the morning and then…
If people want news they know where to find it. Foxtel has Flash and there ABC News on FTA tv and Youtube. IMO its good that streamers in general don’t have news on because there is too much of it anyway. Most of it is negative and depressing. People want and need to switch off, besides its not like serious problems are being tackled from a fair and neutral position.
Thank god for the streamers then, sometimes after work we just want to be entertained, we’ve heard what the news is during the day on our phones/radio etc, sometimes good to have something fun to watch without the constant doom and gloom news we’ve already heard/read about during the day.
Why should streaming services have any news. Seems like a weird comment – people are watching streaming services because they don’t want to hear about the pandemic, the war, the floods more than they need to or chose to. Or have their show bumped for extended news or additional late night bulletins.
To be fair, the session was about regional news, but that’s in the story too.
What a useless argument. I don’t get news from FTA either, and I’m probably more informed because of it. Sure I may not be up to speed on the latest ‘scandal’ on DWTS or even know where the cheapest suburb to buy a house is in Sydney, but when it comes to news that matters I’m not getting the rubbish the commercial networks dish up. I don’t go to steaming to get news, I absolutely go there for entertainment, something the commercial networks know nothing about anymore!
What is often heard around times when there are major news events that consume a lot of air space on free-to-air and news channels is that many viewers are wanting alternative programming. News is important of course though some people or families are looking to avoid getting depressed, or want to switch over from extended coverages of news events, or parents/guardians are wanting to have the children watch channels like Nickelodeon, Disney etc. peacefully without concerning children with serious major news events.