Netflix blasts the looming threat of regulators as ‘a global policeman ruling on world events’

The prospect of streaming services being placed under the oversight of regulators in the United Kingdom is something Netflix has taken as a personal insult, with the company now battling back against the plans for Ofcom to take a vested interest in what the platform is putting out there.

To say it’s a can of worms perilously close to exploding all over everybody would be an understatement, because if it were to happen, it could change the entire landscape of scripted television well beyond the confines of just Great Britain, never mind the fact Netflix would no doubt drastically reduce or even abandon its locally-based content, putting jobs at risk as a result.

Speaking in front of the Culture, Media, and Sport Committee (per Deadline), Netflix’s policy chief Benjamin King outlined his concerns in no uncertain terms.

“One challenge here is that the scope and breadth in our libraries is much more global in nature than anything in a domestic broadcasters’ library. This calls into question whether Ofcom should become something of a global policeman ruling on world events and docs that address issues in Russia, China and South America, and pronouncing on the changing geopolitical context far beyond our own shores.”

He also noted how it would reverberate around the world, astutely pointing out that “creative execs and production councils around the world will need to be familiar with the Ofcom code,” which is fair enough when Netflix will be losing out should any international originals fail to meet the criteria.

It’s going to be fascinating seeing how things develop, because the streaming circuit could be in line for another massive shakeup if things don’t go the way Netflix wants them to.