The government is to begin recruiting a replacement for Ofcom chair Lord Grade who is preparing to leave the job in April next year, according to a Sky News report.
The veteran broadcast executive will leave as chair of the communications regulator after a single four-year term in charge.
Sky News said that the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) – which oversees Ofcom - is drawing up proposals to launch a recruitment process in the coming months.
Lord Grade, who has held senior posts at the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, has served as Ofcom chair since May 2022.
Sky said there was no suggestion that Grade would leave the role ahead of his official departure date next year. However, it quoted insiders as saying that there was little prospect of him seeking to be reappointed for a second term in the job.
Ofcom regulates the UK media, telecoms and digital industries, making it one of the largest economic regulators in Britain.
The search for a new Ofcom chair will come after a significant extension of its remit to encompass areas such as online harms.
Roku passes 100 million streaming households
Roku has passed 100 million streaming households worldwide, a key milestone for the streaming platform and devices company.
UK censor BBFC turns to AI to help classify HBO Max shows
For the first time ever, the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has used a bespoke AI tool to help classify a streaming service’s entire library.
.jpg)
RTS Ireland reveals 2026 award-winners
At the RTS Ireland Awards 2026, RTÉ won 11 awards – Scripted, Entertainment, Factual Series, Live Sport Coverage, News Broadcaster of The Year, Children’s Programming, Specialist Factual, Factual Entertainment, Current Affairs / Cúrsaí Reatha, Sports Documentary, and Short Film.
Blackmagic Design unleashes a wave of technologies
In the lead-up to NAB 2026, Blackmagic Design has revealed a slate of new production technologies.
Avid and Google Cloud partner to bring agentic AI for media production
Avid and Google Cloud have signed a multi-year strategic partnership to embed Google’s Gemini models and Vertex AI directly into Avid’s solutions.
