Press release from SPAA
Spotlight on Public Broadcasting: Operating in the New Digital Age
The Screen Producers Association of Australia (SPAA) announced today that Lord David Puttnam, C.B.E will participate in a special discussion on The Future of Public Broadcasting in the Digital Landscape at its annual Conference on Wednesday, 17 November at The Hilton Hotel in Sydney.
Lord Puttnam is to be joined by Mark Scott, Managing Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), and Shaun Brown, Managing Director of the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS).
"Lord David Puttnam, who is credited with driving fundamental change in the UK media industries over the last 10 years, will join with the Managing Directors of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Mark Scott, and the Special Broadcasting Service, Shaun Brown, and myself in a discussion about the relevancy and performance of public broadcasters in the new digital landscape. What is the future, if any for public charter broadcasters?" said Geoff Brown, SPAA Executive Director.
The discussion is designed to examine the role of the public broadcaster in the digital age. In a world with democratic access to a diverse range of news, entertainment and information via the internet and digital television and radio do we need public broadcasters to complement these services?
Particular attention will be made to whether or not public broadcasters enjoy an unfair advantage over commercial services and should they be allowed to replicate them. The responsibility of a national public broadcaster in promoting local programming and production over imported material will also be examined.
SPAA is the industry association for the independent film and television industry, providing leadership and direction on all debates concerning the economics, creative and technological future of the screen production industries in Australia. It strives to create the business conditions for the industry to compete strongly in both local and overseas markets.