Ofcom has launched a consultation on the future of media ownership and plurality in the UK.
The announcement comes after a request from Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt following the collapse of Rupert Murdoch’s attempted takeover of BSkyB.
Last month Hunt wrote to the regulator asking it to assess how practical it would be to set limits on media ownership to protect plurality, and to recommend a framework for measuring plurality across different media.
Ofcom’s finding are due to be given as evidence to the Leveson Inquiry by June 2012.
The consultation asks:
- What are the options for measuring media plurality across platforms? What do you recommend is the best approach?
- Is it practical or advisable to set absolute limits on news market share?
- What could trigger a review of plurality in the absence of a merger, how might this be monitored and by whom?
- Could or should a framework for measuring levels of plurality include websites and if so which ones?
- Whether or how it should include the BBC?
The deadline for written submissions is 18 November.
Click here to visit the Ofcom website
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