Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that her Department’s Future of TV Distribution Stakeholder Forum takes account of the needs of rural communities.

DCMS is currently undertaking a project to evaluate the future distribution of television as the sector continues to evolve over the next decade. As part of this project, the Government published independent research led by Exeter University last year that included data on the use of different distribution methods by a range of different demographic groups, which included rural communities. The Government has also commissioned follow up qualitative research to understand in more detail the specific preferences, motivations and barriers regarding TV viewing among a variety of groups including rural households.

A wide range of views are being sought from across the TV sector, audience groups and infrastructure through the Stakeholder Forum. This includes a number of groups representing rural and UK-wide audiences, such as the Rural Services Network.