‘Feeding frenzy’ of laws unfairly hit Foxtel, Delany says
The government’s suite of media reforms are a “feeding frenzy” that will hit Foxtel hard while protecting the interests of free-to-air networks says Patrick Delany, the boss of the News Corp-controlled pay television business.
In his most aggressive comments to date, Mr Delany said Australians would be angry at some of the proposed reforms. He has commissioned research to show a lack of support from Australians for the government’s push to legislate “prominence” for local network apps, for example.
Foxtel Group boss Patrick Delany says the Albanese government’s proposed media reforms are a “feeding frenzy”. Arsineh Houspian
“For 28 years, we’ve been the most regulated media company in Australia. No one’s regulated across sport, drama, and then all of the standard regulations in terms of what you can and can’t put to air,” he said.
On the agenda for the Albanese government are laws around anti-siphoning, content quotas, gambling advertising and prominence. Prominence refers to attempts to improve how Australian TV shows, movies and music compete with global content on internet-connected devices. Anti-siphoning laws include a list of sports that should be freely available for Australians.
Likewise, the government said it would introduce quotas on streaming companies to produce more Australian content. It is also considering how hard to crack down on gambling advertising, a significant source of revenue for major media companies, including Foxtel.
Mr Delany said Foxtel – which owned the pay television network, streaming platforms Kayo Sports and Binge, and holds broadcast rights for sports such as the AFL and the NRL – would be uniquely impacted by all of these proposals.
“It’s a feeding frenzy of regulation, and we are the
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