The scope of the UK’s media merger laws could be ‘broadened’ under plans unveiled by the Government.
The proposals would allow ‘greater scrutiny’ of deals thatinvolve the sale of UK online news publications and news magazines, it has been announced.
This will see the ambit of the current powers extend beyond TV, radio and print newspapers.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said yesterday that the media merger laws had not ‘kept pace with technology’ or ‘evolving news consumption habits’. Under the current regime, the Culture Secretary can intervene in mergers and acquisitions involving broadcasters, UK daily and Sunday print newspapers and local newspapers.
The new plans would let ministers look into whether deals involving the purchase of UK online news publications and news magazines are in the public interest.
The deal would be scrutinised if it were felt it might ‘adversely impact accurate reporting, freedom of expression and media plurality’.
The new powers could be applied to mergers involving the online arms of print publications, online-only news providers such as HuffPost, or magazines including The Economist.
The Government is claiming the rules are being ‘modernised for the digital age’. It adds that the measures would ensure that the public interest can be ‘safeguarded across these popular sources of news content’. The Culture Secretary would be able to ‘intervene where necessary’ to protect the availability of ‘a wide range of accurate, high-quality news’, particularly for younger audiences.
The plans would also allow the Culture Secretary to intervene in mergers where a foreign power is able to control or influence the policy of an online news site, provided the entity being taken over has a UK turnover of at least £2 million.
Ms Nandy said: ‘Since the media mergers regime came into force more than 20 years ago, our laws haven’t kept pace with technology and evolving news consumption habits.
‘As people increasingly get their news online, we need a regime that is future-proof. That’s why I’m proposing further reforms, ensuring media freedom continues to be upheld.’
The Culture Secretary has launched a consultation on the proposal, due to close on December 18.