Struggling BBC has funds in rival American tech giants: Report
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) holds stakes in new media giants that have posed an existential threat to the organization over the past years by causing its viewership to decrease.
A report in the Guardian newspaper said BBC’s pension fund has invested more than £170 million pounds in five major American internet companies, including in Netflix, an online media provider which has outperformed the BBC in attracting viewers both in Britain and around the world.
Newly released figures show BBC holds £23 million of shares in Netflix while its investment in Facebook has amounted to £35m.
The report said BBC’s current staffs who have been dealing with challenges from the likes of Netflix and Facebook have been barred from joining the pension fund since 2010. It means that around 50,000 former employees are mainly benefitting from the financial success of these media rivals.
The figures come amid increasing calls for reforms in the way the British media, including the BBC, are run. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said Thursday that if he takes office, he would introduce a tax on the operations of tech giants like the Facebook in Britain to help subsidize the BBC’s continued operation.
Corbyn heavily criticized the US companies for extracting “huge wealth from our shared digital space" and branded them "digital monopolies that profit from every search, share and like we make".
The Labour leader also made proposals for allowing the UK public and BBC staff to elect members of the governing board, the organization that is responsible for setting strategy and ensuring the corporation fulfills its mission and public purpose.
Six months of rallies in London: Thousands call for Gaza ceasefire
Pro-Palestine activists paint UK Labour Party office red
20% of teachers in England physically assaulted by students in 2023: Study
China slams Biden over 'xenophobic' and 'cheating' claims
VIDEO | Erdogan breaks silence, backs Iran’s reprisal attack on Israel
IRGC warns of 'tit-for-tat' retaliation if Israel attacks Iran's nuclear facilities
Israel retreats, delays striking back at Iran after US call: Sources
Qatar says reassessing role as mediator in Gaza truce talks
EU to expand sanctions on Iran over retaliation against Israel
'US, West must abandon double standards towards Israel's acts of terror'
April 17: ‘Axis of Resistance’ operations against Israeli occupation
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
