Our new Minister For Communications, Technology And Broadcasting, former OfCom chief Stephen Carter, has announced he has commissioned a report on 'Digital Britain' which will inform government on what role it should play in the ongoing development of the digital and communications industries.
The report comes as one key digital media platform - digital audio broadcasting - faces an uncertain future following the decision by Channel 4 to bail out of its ambitious plans to launch a second national DAB network, and past decisions by some of the major radio firms who were instrumental in setting DAB up in the first place to sell off or close down their digital-only stations. The BBC remains committed to DAB, and with internet capacity issues already a concern as more people start to use rich media services like BBC iPlayer, the wider radio sector is probably advised to continue investing in a digital radio system that doesn't rely on the internet for delivery. Though with ad revenues from digital services still somewhat less than the cost of operating them, and with ad budgets set to be even further slashed in the coming year, it's not surprising commercial radio chiefs have lost their enthusiasm for DAB.
Carter will also have to consider what to do about internet piracy. Although the ISPs have this year reluctantly agreed to take a more proactive role in helping record companies distribute warnings to those who access illegal sources of music online, if the warnings campaign doesn't prove to be a success and the labels start to push the ISPs towards taking more extreme action against copyright infringers - maybe even the 'three strikes and then you're cut off' proposal being considered in France - then they may need the government to come good on their promises to legislate in this area, and Carter may have to oversee that.
Still, with the 'Digital Britain' report in its early stages at the moment, Carter didn't get bogged down with specifics when discussing it last week, telling reporters instead that: "Our ambition is to see Digital Britain as the leading major economy for innovation, investment and quality in the digital and communications industries. We will seek to bring forward a unified framework to help maximise the UK's competitive advantage and the benefits to society".
In his new role Carter reports to both the Culture and Business ministers in government, the latter of which is, of course, that Peter Mandelson fella. Here's what he has to say about the Digital Britain report, which is set to be published next Spring: "The government is determined that the UK will strengthen its place as a word leader in the communications and digital technology sectors. For the present financial and banking crisis, Britain must get through the worst and prepare for the upturn. The digital economy will be central to this. The Digital Britain report will lead the way".