The director general of the BBC, Tony Hall, is warning that the threat of firms such as Netflix, Amazon and Apple could lead to £500m a year less being spent on UK television productions.

He’s giving a speech in Liverpool today, where he’s responding to a report into the future of the television industry, that the BBC commissioned the company Mediatique to produce.

“We have to face the reality that the British content we value and rely upon is under serious threat”, Hall has said. Inevitably, the focus is on shows such as Broadchurch and Sherlock, British dramas with a very British feel to them. However, the argument runs that firms such as Netflix are focusing on a global audience, rather than tailoring material to the likes of the UK.

Specifically citing Netflix’s spent of £100m or so on The Crown, Hall has warned that “the reality is that their investment decisions are likely to focus increasingly on a narrow range of very expensive, very high-end content – big bankers that they can rely on to have international appeal and attract large, global audiences”.

He’ll be arguing that the BBC has to respond to these threats, but warns of a £500m shortfall in UK TV investment.

The Guardian has more on the speech, here.