Ofcom calls to regulate Netflix amid Jimmy Carr controversy

During his stand-up special Jimmy Carr: His Dark Material, the comedian made an offensive remark about individuals from the traveller community dying in the Holocaust, which has prompted widespread outcry.

Following the release of the programme on streaming service Netflix, questions have been asked about regulating streaming services that are not based in the UK.

Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes commented on the Carr controversy on Channel 4 News: “I can really understand why a lot of people found that very offensive and, as you say, we don’t regulate Netflix at the moment, they’re underneath the Dutch regulator.

“And I think that is a concern because it means that for viewers, it’s really confusing that they’ve got different standards applied, for example, to Channel 4 News than they have to YouTube and other services, including Netflix, that come streamed onto our TVs.”

Dame Melanie noted that the government was thinking about this and how Ofcom’s priority was to “help the viewer”.

When asked if she would relish the chance to regulate Netflix, Dame Melanie concluded: “I can certainly see that there’ll be real value in that, yes, and so we would welcome any chance to work on that.”

Netflix is currently overseen by the Dutch Media Authority and the EU’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive, but the UK withdrawal from the EU has meant there is no legal regulatory redress for UK citizens on Netflix.

Dame Melanie also noted that platforms such as Spotify need to be clear about the rules on their services and they need to abide by those rules.

In the wake of the Carr controversy, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said to BBC Breakfast on Friday: “We are looking at legislation via the Media Bill which would bring into scope those comments from other video on-demand streaming outlets like Netflix.

“So it’s interesting that we’re already looking at future legislation to bring into scope those sort of comments.”

RadioTimes.com has reached out to Netflix and a representative of Jimmy Carr for comment on this story.

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