Ofcom’s Annual Report on the BBC

This is Ofcom’s second Annual Report on the BBC, covering April 2018 to March 2019.

The Royal Charter requires Ofcom to publish a report each year that sets out how we have carried out our functions as the BBC’s independent regulator, and assesses the BBC’s compliance with the requirements of our Operating Framework and associated documents.

Separately, we are required to report at least annually on the BBC’s performance against the measures we set alongside the Operating Licence. This forms the evidence base for our assessment of the BBC’s performance against its public purposes.

In this report, we assess the BBC’s performance in delivering its Mission and Public Purposes, protecting fair and effective competition within the areas in which it operates, and securing editorial standards in BBC programmes. 2018/19 is our first full year of reporting on how the BBC has met all of its requirements in it Operating Licence.

This report finds that the BBC is broadly delivering on its remit through its provision of a significant volume of news and current affairs, a wide range of learning and educational content, as well as high-quality, distinctive and creative content for all audiences across its mainstream and specialist services. However, we have identified many of the same issues as last year, and it has been difficult for us to assess progress in the absence of a clearly articulated plan from the BBC.

We have therefore written to the Director General (PDF, 85.8 KB) alongside this report, calling on him to make clear through the BBC’s next annual plan and budget setting process a plan for addressing these recurring themes: engagement with young people; representation and portrayal; commitment to transparency; and commitment to new original UK programmes, as well as how it will engage with the recommendations of the related review of news and current affairs.

Report

Ofcom’s second Annual Report on the BBC (PDF, 2.4 MB)

Adroddiad Blynyddol Ofcom ar y BBC (PDF, 2.4 MB)

Annex 1: Compliance with regulatory requirements (PDF, 832.4 KB)

Annex 2: BBC performance report (PDF, 3.7 MB)

Interactive data

View an interactive report providing visualisations of key data used in our second BBC Performance Report.

Ofcom's first Annual Report on the BBC – 25 October 2018

This is Ofcom’s first Annual Report on the BBC, covering April 2017 to March 2018. The Royal Charter requires Ofcom to publish a report each year that sets out how we have carried out our functions as the BBC’s independent regulator, and assesses the BBC’s compliance with the requirements of our Operating Framework, Operating Licence and associated documents.

In this report, we provide our assessment of how the BBC is performing against the backdrop of a rapidly changing media landscape. We also set out the steps we have taken to assess delivery of its mission and public purposes, its impact on competition and to secure its editorial standards.

We consider that the BBC is generally delivering on its remit for audiences through the breadth and quality of its output, but we have identified four areas where it needs to go further. We have written to the BBC (PDF, 186.8 KB) setting these issues out and will discuss with it how it plans to address them. Where the BBC does not make sufficient progress, we will take further action.

Report

Ofcom’s Annual Report on the BBC (PDF, 2.3 MB)

Adroddiad Blynyddol Ofcom ar y BBC (PDF, 3.8 MB)

Annex 1: Compliance with regulatory requirements (PDF, 231.7 KB)

Annex 2: BBC Performance Report (PDF, 1.1 MB)

Annex 3: Methodology overview (PDF, 267.4 KB)

Interactive data

View an interactive report providing visualisations of key data used in the BBC Performance Report.

You can download data used in the Performance Report below.

Infographic: Key findings

Data downloads

Title	Summary
BBC Performance Report: data download (XLSX, 27.9 MB)	Download of the data used in the charts from the BBC Performance Report. Note that due to a data error, data were amended on 9 January 2018 for the following three questions: B1TV, B2Radio and D1b.
BBC Performance Tracker data tables (PDF, 13.5 MB) and questionnaire (PDF, 405.9 KB)	The BBC performance tracker provides Ofcom with an evidence base to assess audience opinions on the BBC’s performance against its delivery of four public purposes. The data tables contain the results from fieldwork period October 2017 to April 2018. Note that due to a data error, data were amended on 9 January 2018 for the following three questions: B1TV, B2Radio and D1b.
PSB Tracker (PDF, 10.1 MB)	The PSB Tracker monitors the satisfaction and attitudes towards public service broadcasting channels.
News Consumption in the UK	This report provides the findings of Ofcom’s 2018 research into news consumption across television, radio, print and online. The aim is to inform an understanding of news consumption across the UK and within each UK nation.
Children’s Media Literacy	The Children’s Media Literacy Tracker is a face-to-face survey run once a year between April and June. The objective of the survey is to provide detailed evidence on media use and understanding among children and young people aged 5-15, as well as in-depth information about media access and use among children aged 3-4.

Ofcom’s Annual Report on the BBC

Report

Interactive data

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