Netflix chills trad TV as Kiwi viewers soar
the impacts of these technologies. The bottom line is that those who advocate their use don’t actually know what those impacts might be or their magnitude.’’
EPA new organisms manager Dr Stephen Cobb said Crown research institute Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research applied in March 2018 for a ruling on whether the use of dsRNA in the laboratory or outdoors using penetration technologies was permitted under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (HSNO) Act.
A committee had decided the use of dsRNA in any application did not produce GMOs.
However, Landcare
Research portfolio leader Dr Gary Houliston said the agency would not be working on, or using, the technique ‘‘in the near future’’.
‘‘This technique is more associated with the productive sector (crops), which is not the usual focus of our work.’’
Plant and Food Research chief scientist Dr Richard Newcomb said the CRI was ‘‘investigating the potential of using double-stranded RNA in a number of possible applications, including plant
pest and disease control such as fungal disease of fruit’’.
‘‘This research is at an early stage and we have not determined its potential outside the laboratory. There will be a number of technical, regulatory and societal barriers to traverse before consideration of use in the real world.’’
Plant and Food routinely evaluated new technologies for suitability as research tools or for their potential in
‘‘producing the world’s most sustainable food crops’’, he said.
‘‘We have no specific concerns about the technology. We believe that any technological advance requires assessment under a broad range of applications to determine suitability.’’
AgResearch science group leader, forage science, Dr Tony Conner said the agency had no ‘‘current intentions’’ of using the technology, which had actually ‘‘been around for about a decade’’.
‘‘I have no issues with the technology, provided it is regulated like other pesticides.’’
Heinemann called it ‘‘misleading’’ to say that the capacity to use dsRNA out of doors as a spray-on formulation was not new, when dsRNAs had been confined to the laboratory until now.
It was ‘‘head in the sand’’ for any CRIs and ministries to say this was all about agriculture.
‘‘The commercial applications are mainly agricultural at this stage, but the full range of uses includes conservation, such as in creating types of gene drives, flea treatments for pets, and in grocery store ripening control agents,’’ Heinemann said.
The Prime Minister’s chief science adviser, Professor
Juliet Gerrard, said when new genetic tools appeared, it was ‘‘very difficult to navigate the complexities between scientific and legal definitions’’ in the HSNO Act.
‘‘There are potential benefits and potential hazards, and we need clear regulations to enable a focus on the balance of benefits and hazards for each individual application, in the context where it will be applied. Our current framework leads to a lot of academic debate at the interface of the science and the law.’’
Double-stranded RNA molecules offered ‘‘great potential’’ for a wide variety of applications, she said.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and the Department of Conservation (DOC) said they were aware of the technology.
An MPI spokeswoman said it had ‘‘not evaluated the technology sufficiently’’ to form a view on benefits or ‘‘potential drawbacks’’.
NETFLIX is New Zealand’s streaming platform of choice, and almost three-quarters of Kiwis are subscribed to the service.
A survey commissioned by the Office of Film and Literature Classification found 77 per cent of New Zealanders have used a paid online service to watch movies or television shows.
Netflix dominates the market, with 72 per cent of respondents saying they are subscribers. The next most popular online video service was Spark-owned Lightbox (30 per cent), followed by YouTube Premium (13 per cent), Amazon Prime Video (12 per cent), and Sky Television’s Neon (10 per cent).
Younger respondents were more likely to have used online video services than older ones – 93 per cent of those aged 18 to 29 reported using them, compared with just 55 per cent of those aged 60 and older.
Those with higher household incomes were also more likely to have used them.
The survey of 1000 people was carried out by UMR Research.
Chief censor David Shanks said the first of its kind survey, released exclusively to Sunday News showed ‘‘a transformation of the media consumption landscape’’. It also highlighted significant generational variances.
The figures reinforced current assumptions that the best way to regulate streaming services was to focus on a few key players, he said.
‘‘We feel confident we’ve got a handle on the breadth of the industry and we’re engaging with the right players.
‘‘There has to be pragmatism in that you’ll never pick up every specialist provider, providing niche content.’’
When Shanks started in the role in 2017, one of his first challenges was classifying the controversial Netflix series 13 Reasons Why. The programme, which is targeted at teenagers, addresses or depicts rape, suicide, drug use, and bullying. It was easily accessible for young people to watch unsupervised. The American drama was eventually given a new rating: RP18, meaning teen viewers require the supervision of a parent or guardian.
New Zealand and the US have different priorities when it comes to content warnings, Shanks said. Shows and movies coming out of the US will often contain warnings about bad language and nudity, but won’t specifically warn for rape or suicide content.
‘‘So we’re thinking about how we can adopt and adapt sensible consumer information and age recommendations into an online environment.’’
As a result, the office is developing a tool of its own to automatically filter content for New Zealand-specific sensitivities.