Small indies call for solutions to market turbulence

Victoria Powell outlines a number of measures that producers believe could sustain the sector during the slowdown.

The indie sector is going through very challenging times. We’ve seen a commissioning slowdown at almost all the major broadcasters and streamers, leading to an unprecedented reduction in work.  This has been felt by so many, right across the sector, from indies to our freelance community. 

Published today, Indielab’s Indie Voice survey indicates the stark impact of the slowdown: if current market conditions continue and no further support measures are implemented to support the sector. Shockingly, 72% of those surveyed feel at risk of closure within a year if the current slowdown continues, with 37% at risk of closure within 6 months. 

We don’t want to gloss over this.  2023 was one of the toughest years on record and no-one should be laissez-faire about it.  Indies are the grassroots of the industry.  

The whole ecosystem relies on home-grown, small indies to create, generate and power the innovation, diversity and talent development that has built and sustained our globally successful sector. If we allow our small indie ecosystem to go into unmanaged decline and fail, the UK sector will be worse off in years to come: less diverse, less innovative, less agile, and potentially and importantly, less UK-owned. 

The indies surveyed felt that the government, Ofcom and broadcasters have an important role to play in supporting the sustainability of the indie sector, and they also issued a number of calls for action. A  small Indie Quota, for example, was supported by 91% of respondents. Additionally, indies unanimously called for more accessible tax credits for lower budget productions across genres and for co-pro guidelines to protect Small Indie IP and revenue streams when broadcasters wish to commission only through a co-pro with a larger indie.

Finally, there was a strong call for clarity, fairness, access and responsibility from public service broadcasters and streamers, in the way they communicate and deal with indies.  

Some 38% of all respondents felt that these issues had contributed significantly to market instability.  Almost a quarter (24%) felt that public service broadcaster remits and responsibilities needed to be addressed, and that licence fee uncertainty is causing market instability. 

But alongside the stark picture and calls for action, our survey also reflects the vibrant, dynamic sector we work in, shining a spotlight on the innovative ways in which companies are diversifying their funding base, and flexing their entrepreneurial muscle.   

Just under 80% of respondents introduced new revenue streams over the past year, and over half explored new financing strategies directly in response to the sector challenges. These include international partnerships, ad-funded programming, back catalogue exploitation, podcasts and YouTube subscription models. More than a third of respondents felt that future opportunities for production would lie in producing content outside the traditional TV model. 

We’re hugely grateful to all the 67 indies of all genres and all sizes, who took the time to participate in the survey. By commissioning and sharing this data across the industry, the voice and experience of indies can be heard, and we hope  it adds to dialogue at policy level to support our globally successful TV production sector, whilst there is still time to act. 

Victoria Powell is founder and chief executive of Indielab.

For more on the survey, visit https://www.weareindielab.co.uk/indievoice24survey