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New Labour, Creative Industries Policy and the Rise of the ‘Mega-Indies’

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Independent Television Production in the UK

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Abstract

This chapter explores how the independent sector has evolved since the late 1990s. It examines the key policy debates that have impacted on its growth and development, in particular under New Labour. There has been a rapid commercialisation of the sector during this period, in part because of regulatory change. In the last ten years, independent production companies have become ever more global in terms of structure, outlook and business relationships as they seek to gain larger revenues and commercialise in new areas (e.g. producing content for commercial clients for online and broadcast environments). However, while there have been a number of high-profile commercial success stories among the ‘super-indies’, in fact the vulnerability faced by the majority of producers has intensified under contemporary creative industries policy. Drawing on policy analysis and a wide range of literature, the chapter details the changes to the independent sector since 1997. In so doing, it provides a critical framework for assessing the rapid commercialisation of the television industry during the New Labour period and beyond.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Labour captured 43.2% of the vote, compared to the Conservatives’ 30.7%.

  2. 2.

    Charles Leadbeater—a former contributor to Marxism Today—is the author of a number of books on the new economy, and had very close links to the think tank Demos, where he worked in the mid-1990s. He has also acted as an adviser to government, most notably as the author of the DTI’s report on the knowledge economy (DTI 1999).

  3. 3.

    In the UK government Green Paper, ‘Culture and Creativity’, stress is laid on ‘the key role that culture and creativity play in the government’s educational and industrial policies’. ‘Culture and Creativity’ acknowledges the importance of the cultural sphere as a sector of the economy that continues to experience vigorous growth in Britain and throughout the globe. But it also recognises that cultural research and development constitutes an essential catalyst of future innovation: ‘creative talent will be crucial to our individual and national economic success in the economy of the future’ (DCMS 2001).

  4. 4.

    The employment figures for creative jobs apply to Great Britain only, i.e. they do not include Northern Ireland.

  5. 5.

    The IPPR (Institute for Public Policy Research) is an influential centre-left think tank close to New Labour.

  6. 6.

    James Purnell was central to the development of media policy under New Labour, involved in many of the key decisions including the creation of Ofcom and the 2003 Communications Act. He is now a cabinet minister.

  7. 7.

    Ofcom was established in the Office of Communications Act 2002, received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003, and began operating on 29 December 2003. Ofcom is widely seen as a new breed of ‘super-regulator’ and inherited the duties of five regulatory bodies:

    • Broadcasting Standards Commission

    • Independent Television Commission

    • Office of Telecommunications (Oftel)

    • Radio Authority

    • Radiocommunications Agency.

  8. 8.

    For example, Endemol, as the producer of Big Brother and other successful formats, extracts commercial value across different territories, giving the company a stability beyond the traditional commissioner basis. Mobile phone ringtones, online rights, merchandise and book spin-offs are all ways for the successful modern IPC to capitalise on its intellectual property.

  9. 9.

    See Manjoo (2008) for an account of the critique that has been levelled at the ‘long tail’ theory, developed by Chris Anderson (2006).

  10. 10.

    For example, the majority of ‘independent’ labels now are in fact subsidiary labels of the majors, such as EMI, BMG and Universal.

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  1. University of Leeds, Leeds, UK

    David Lee

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Lee, D. (2018). New Labour, Creative Industries Policy and the Rise of the ‘Mega-Indies’. In: Independent Television Production in the UK. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71670-1_3

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