State Actor Policy and Regulation Across the Platform-SVOD Divide

Abstract

AbstractThere are rapidly growing concerns worldwide about the impact of content aggregation and distribution through digital platforms on traditional media industries and society in general. These have given rise to policy and regulation across the social pillar, including issues of privacy, moderation, and cyberbullying; the public interest/infosphere pillar, with issues such as fake news, the democratic deficit, and the crisis in journalism; and the competition pillar, involving issues based on platform dominance in advertising markets. The cultural pillar, involving the impact of SVODs on the ability of content regulation to support local production capacity, is often bracketed out of these debates. We argue this divide is increasingly untenable due to the convergent complexities of contemporary media and communications policy and regulation. We pursue this argument by offering three issues that bring policy and regulation together across the platform-SVOD divide: digital and global players have been beyond the reach of established broadcasting regulation; the nature of the Silicon Valley playbook for disrupting media markets; and platforms and SVODs now need not only to be aggregators but also contributors to local cultures. We draw on three examples: the European Union, Canada and Australia.