There has been a lot of sabre rattling about digital media from the Conservatives over the last few months. Now it appears that the party has finally agreed a strategy which was outlined earlier this week by Shadow Secretary for Culture, Media and Sport Jeremy Hunt. In an interview with New Media Age, which you can read here, Hunt promised to deliver a light touch regulatory environment while at the same time keeping an eye on how the BBC’s online activities were impacting on the private media sector.
Hunt said “We’re one of the most advanced countries in the world for creating digital content,” he said. “Central to that is a government embracing it but knowing when to regulate and when to step back.”
As for the BBC Hunt said that “The BBC’s online presence should be within defined boundaries that relate closely to its broadcast output. We’ll have discussions with the BBC when it’s negotiating the next licence fee in 2012,” he said.
Other key areas for Hunt and his team include supporting a new structure for online copyright and IP, ensuring privacy concerns don’t throttle commercial models, and creating an environment attractive to the world’s most innovative digital media companies
