Netflix, Prime and Disney+ face UK broadcasting regulation

Pallade Veneta - Netflix, Prime and Disney+ face UK broadcasting regulation

CULTURE 24.02.2026

Netflix, Prime and Disney+ face UK broadcasting regulation / Photo: Olivier DOULIERY - AFP/File

The UK government on Tuesday announced that US streaming sites Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video will have to comply with broadcasting regulations aimed at protecting children and the vulnerable.

Change text size:

Along with British streaming sites, they will be required to follow content and accessibility rules applied to traditional broadcasters, a statement said.

Any "video-on-demand" platform with more than 500,000 users will need to comply with rules overseen by UK broadcasting regulator Ofcom regarding "protections from harmful material" and increased availability of subtitled, signed and audio-described programming.

Britain's government headed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the move was a consequence of changing viewing habits.

"We know that the way audiences watch TV has fundamentally changed," Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said in Tuesday's statement.

"Millions now choose to watch content on video-on-demand platforms alongside or, in the case of many young people, instead of traditional TV."

The government said Ofcom would shortly begin a public consultation on the new streaming standards and accessibility codes, "which will be an opportunity for the public and providers to set out their views".

R.Lagomarsino--PV

Jersey Boys Anniversary Tour Opens in Birmingham With Gritty Account of Crime and Fame

The 20th-anniversary tour of Jersey Boys has opened at Birmingham’s Alexandra Theatre, offering a gritty and unvarnished look at the Four Seasons’ journey. The production details the band's turbulent rise from New Jersey petty criminals to international rock stars, highlighting the complex personal costs behind their musical success.

UBC professor describes police call after Galloway remark as act of care

VANCOUVER — A University of British Columbia professor has testified about a colleague’s decision to call police to visit Steven Galloway after he was accused of sexual assault, describing it as an “act of care” toward the author, who had spoken of killing himself. Galloway, who is suing his accuser and others in a defamation trial centred on the unproven allegations, has described his subsequent committal to a hospital in the United States as “terrifying.

Pallade Veneta - Netflix, Prime and Disney+ face UK broadcasting regulation