State regulator Ofcom has spent more than £1 million advertising the Online Safety Act since early last year. £1,137,752.58 to be precise…
Ofcom, which is funded by fees paid by regulated companies and from the retention of Wireless Telegraphy Act receipts, said the advertising is used to explain “to UK adults and children how our safety measures protect them.” £244,234.40 was spent in June alone, the month prior to the activation of internet regulation imposed by the Online Safety Act…
Ofcom describes its advertising activity:
£171,100 has been spent on influencer promotions since February last year. The regulator reports that this “campaign generated around seven million views on Instagram alone. For context, Ofcom’s own Instagram channel has fewer than 10,000 followers.” Can’t polish a…
US tech firms 4chan and Kiwi Farms are now suing Ofcom with a U.S. federal lawsuit. They dub the regulator “The UK’s Industry-Funded Global Censorship Bureau”, accusing it of targeting them for “overtly political reasons.” The online safety act getting quite the reception across the pond…
Ofcom fined 4chan £20,000 for breaching the act last month. Law firms Byrne & Storm and the Coleman Law Firm have been engaged to file suit. Tech lawyer Preston Byrne said:
“American citizens do not surrender our constitutional rights just because Ofcom sends us an e-mail. In the face of these unlawful foreign demands, our clients have bravely chosen to assert their constitutional rights. The Act is a brazen attempt by a foreign country to hobble American competitiveness and suffocate American freedom by exporting the UK’s censorship laws to our shores.”
Meanwhile, Trump is threatening “substantial” tariffs on countries that “discriminate” against US tech with taxes and regulation. Time to fire up those VPNs…
The LibDems are calling for the “stringent oversight” of YouTube adverts for the sake of “online safety“. Writing for LBC today, the party’s ‘spokesperson for Science, Innovation and Technology’ Victoria Collins has demanded the government hands even more powers to Ofcom, with greater fines and pre-vetting of content on the table. As if Ofcom isn’t already busy enough policing the rest of the internet…
“The Government needs to get hold of this problem by ensuring Ofcom treats YouTube advertising with the same stringent oversight as it does for TV and radio… Fines for platforms that fail to protect consumers should not just be a slap on the wrist; they need to act as a genuine deterrent. For those who break rules, the proceeds of fines should be used to support the victims of online harms.
Rogue advertisers are all too happy to exploit the loopholes of the current system. As YouTube’s influence continues to grow, so does the potential for harm…”
It’s no coincidence this sort of thinking is rearing its head, with YouTube now the second most-popular media service in the UK…
Ofcom’s annual state of the media report reveals that YouTube has overtaken ITV to become the country’s second most-consumed media service. Behind only the BBC…
YouTube is consumed for 39 minutes on average every day with 14% of total hours viewed. The BBC is on 19%, ITV 12%, and Netflix on 8%. YouTube consumption among over-55s has almost doubled in a year…
The video hosting platform is the most popular for the 4-34 age group while linear TV “continued its long-term decline in 2024.” The findings are written up variously as “YouTube most popular TV choice for younger Brits, Ofcom finds” and “BBC risks exodus as older viewers flock to YouTube.” Ofcom says YouTube’s variety of content including long-form video have increased its draw. The curtains are closing on legacy media output…
Guido has long chronicled Ofcom’s double standards, constantly pursuing GB News and even rejecting the Supreme Court’s ruling on biological sex. Which they tried to keep secret…
A new FOI from the TaxPayers’ Alliance lifts the lid on just how deep this left-wing ideology goes. Ofcom staff can spend 20% of their time – a full day a week – running internal staff ‘networks’ based on race, LGBTQ and religion. In just the last year, they’ve hosted no fewer than 12 “Raising Awareness of Culture and Ethnicity” events, four “Pride” events, and six “Faith” events. Some of these include:
Ofcom’s annual budget for these ‘networks’ is £9,000. This is not a neutral regulator…
As Guido revealed yesterday, Ofcom rejected the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on biological sex and ordered broadcasters to give airtime to the claim biological men are women when discussing trans. Now Guido has seen the correspondence showing Ofcom initially tried to do so in secret…
In letters between the regulator and GB News, Ofcom said it did not accept the judgement meant the debate is ‘settled’. Ofcom marked its letter ‘Confidential’, not once, but three times across the page…
GB News challenged the decision to make the letter private, stating it should be made public due to the importance of its content and Ofcom’s duty to make their views relating to their Code available to those they regulate. Ofcom backed down. The regulator claimed the inclusion of ‘confidential’ was ‘unintended’ and they don’t consider their position to be confidential after all. When the regulator becomes the regulated…
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”