From Ofcom to Online: How Alex Honnold’s Skyscraper Live Highlights the Legal Questions Behind Regulating Livestreaming Platforms
Kate Washington - 10 February 2026
For anyone who watched Skyscraper Live on Netflix, in which Alex Honnold scaled up a 508-metre skyscraper with no ropes or back up, one question probably crossed your mind: what happens if something goes wrong?
The event, livestreamed on Netflix in January, was an extraordinary showcase, but it also shone a light on regulatory rules and whether independent streaming platforms such as Netflix are regulated as tightly as traditional broadcasters (like the BBC) when they show live content.
In the UK, radio and television programmes must comply with rules set and monitored by Ofcom. These require broadcasters to consider audience protection, manage potentially harmful material carefully, and implement additional safeguards for live programming. For particularly high-risk productions, broadcasters may need strong editorial justification, transmission delays, or additional warnings to remain compliant.
Streaming platforms, however, have historically faced lighter regulatory obligations. Netflix operates internationally and is not subject to Ofcom’s rules; its European headquarters are based in the Netherlands, where it is overseen by the Dutch regulator, the Commissariaat voor de Media. As many streaming services are not licensed in the same way as traditional television channels, content that might face significant scrutiny on broadcast television can often be streamed online with fewer formal restrictions.
This regulatory gap is beginning to narrow. The Media Act 2024, which was the most significant reform to the UK’s public service media framework in two decades, grants regulators expanded powers to introduce a new standards framework for major video-on-demand platforms. Over time, these measures are expected to bring large streaming services closer to the regulatory model applied to traditional broadcasters. Particularly in areas such as audience protection and harmful content.
Beyond regulatory compliance, live high-risk productions also raise duty of care issues. Production companies must take reasonable steps to assess foreseeable risks. This means that they must implement safety planning and ensure that adequate safeguards are in place for both participants and viewers.
Whilst participant consent and contractual waivers may reduce legal exposure, they do not remove the obligation to manage risks responsibly. Insurers, too, increasingly require detailed safety planning before agreeing to cover large-scale live events.
The importance of these issues is growing as viewing habits shift and independent streaming services become an increasingly prominent form of everyday household viewing. Ofcom’s annual media report found that, for the first time, less than half (48%) of Gen Z watch broadcast television, compared with 76% in 2018. Daily viewing of subscription streaming services has also risen to 38 minutes per day, with Netflix accounting for roughly half of all subscription video-on-demand viewing.
As live streaming expands and online platforms become a primary destination for audiences, regulators face a key policy question: should the same harm-prevention standards apply regardless of whether viewers are watching via a television channel or an online platform? The answer will help determine how far streaming services can push the boundaries of live entertainment, and how the law adapts to an era in which the most dramatic television moments may no longer appear on television at all.