Policy paper

Insights into the Video Sharing Platform sector

This report examines the Video Sharing Platform (VSP) industry’s current and future state, the implications for user safety, and users’ experiences of harmful video content online.

Documents

Details

DCMS has commissioned Oliver Wyman to assess the current and future state of the Video Sharing Platform (VSP) industry in the UK, with a particular focus on implications for user safety. The report analyses competition, innovation and growth in the VSP sector, methods used by VSPs to target and engage their users, as well as the current VSP approach to protecting users online. It also shares insights from a user survey conducted for the purposes of this report, illustrating users’ experiences of, and reactions to, encountering harmful video content online.

The report additionally investigates the possible high-level future scenarios for the VSP sector by considering how VSP business models and their revenue streams are likely to evolve going forward in response to different industry trends. Furthermore, it provides perspectives on best practices from other risk-based regimes that could be applied in this sector to facilitate better user safety outcomes.

VSPs in scope of this report cover (1) VSPs with the required connection to the UK who notified their status to Ofcom under the VSP regime at the time of writing this report, and (2) other VSPs.

Published 14 October 2022