» SubscribeMain section
-
Top story
Switch to digital threatens Public Service
13/7/05: Barry Cox, chairman of SwitchCo, the government body supervising digital switchover, has warned that public service broadcasters risk entering into serious decline when the switch to digital takes place.
Speaking at the European Media Forum/ITN Annual Lecture on the evening of 12 July, Cox said: “In one sense, the support of the traditional broadcaster for the switch to digital is indeed like turkeys voting for Christmas. Both the licence fee and their advertising income will be significantly threatened.
“If the public service broadcasters fail to respond adequately they will enter into serious decline.
“To me this means they must begin to advocate a radical break and get the public to pay to watch their premium offerings on first transmission - on high definition television but also on the other emerging platforms.”
Cox said that the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 needed “to maximise the leverage their present dominant status as broadcasters gives them”, noting that their best chance would be to start to wean viewers off the “drug of free television”, before other rival platforms do it for them.
“There is a limit to the services that can be properly be funded by a compulsory licence fee. The chances of the BBC charging for at least part of the new digital TV services - and restricting free use substantially - are, to my mind, much greater than they used to be.
“The BBC’s aspiration to expand into new media markets - particularly mobile phones, and the exploitation of the creative archive, both backed by the formidable cross-promotional power of the BBC - will bring it into serious conflict with commercial rivals if it is providing the content to consumers for free.
“This is probably the last 10 year licence fee the BBC will get in its traditional form; the next one is likely to be both smaller and spread around others. ITV, Channel 4 and Five will, one way or another, have changed radically in the same period. If we are lucky they will have taken their great programme making traditions with them into whatever new world emerges; but if they do achieve this, we will be paying for them to do so. If they fail, we will either be paying someone else, or we will be contemplating the loss of major programme traditions but one way or the other, we will pay”.
- ends -
For further information please contact:
Graham Mather, President of the European Media Forum
Tel: 020 7839 7896 mobile: 07836 325133
Editor’s note - Background to ITN
ITN is one of the world's leading news producers. From its main production studios in London, where most of its 800 plus employees are based, ITN provides news programming for ITV1, the ITV News Channel, Channel 4 and Independent Radio News (IRN). ITN’s combined news broadcasts reach over two-thirds of the UK population, making it one of the leading news providers in the country. The company has a strong reputation for the innovative use of modern technology (winning the Royal Television Society's 2004 Innovation Award) and optimises the use of its IP through ITN Archive - which is both the biggest commercial news archive and TV-based video archive in the world with a library of over 650,000 hours of footage - and through producing factual documentaries and programming, and streaming news and entertainment content to 3G phones.
Last modified: Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Previous public service broadcasting stories
NUJ calls on BBC bosses to give back bonuses
The BBC After The Strike
Robin Aitkin and the biased BBC
NEWS FROM THE USA: Inspiring Conference
CPBF Response to Green Paper
MAKE THE MEDIA AN ELECTION ISSUE
BBC Cuts
PLATFORM - Replacing the BBC Licence Fee
EU Commission gets tough
Latest from BBC Charter Review team
What the CPBF told the Lords and the DCMS
NUJ to oppose job cut plans at divisional level negotiations
BBC proposes framework for detailed negotiations
Ofcom publishes Charter Renewal response
Staff unions invited to talks with BBC at ACAS
BBC strike a huge success
84% vote yes for strike over BBC job cuts
NUJ announces date for BBC strike
May's BBC Charter Review report is out
BBC - How it must change
Model answers for BBC charter consulation
Europe’s media unions back BBC workers in jobs fight
Charter Review Monthly Update - April 2005
Leading broadcasters to speak on Future of the BBC and ITV
Unions to strike over BBC job cuts
BBC cuts will be devastating, says IFJ
Thompson cuts rip heart out of BBC
Protecting public service broadcasting
Replacing the BBC licence fee...
Final line up for Peacock conference
-
Notices
Events & Announcements
World Press Freedom Day
More reporters are currently imprisoned in Turkey than in any other country in the world. Only a matter of weeks ago lawyers failed to persuade a Turkish court to release a 76-year-old journalist from a Turkish internet news station.
World Press Freedom Day on Friday May 3, 2013 is being marked in Britain by a rally to highlight the dangers facing journalists in Turkey and in this podcast, Nicholas Jones speaks to Barry White, Organiser at the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, and Sam Bamford, the TUC's policy officer for Eastern Europe and Africa about the importance of a campaign to highlight international press freedom.
The World Press Freedom Day rally is being staged by the National Union of Journalists at the NUJ head office, Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1 on Thursday May 2, 6pm-8pm.
DATELINE: 27/4/13
UK launch of EU media campaign
DATELINE: 13/3/13
The UK launch of a 'European Citizens' Initiative' calling for EU rules against concentration of media power will take place on Thursday March 21 from 11:00am – 12:30pm in Committee Room 4A at the House of Lords, London. Guest speakers will include actor and activist Hugh Grant (pictured), media consultant Claire Enders, Professor Steven Barnett, Barry McCall (President of the NUJ) and Marc Gruber (Director of the European Federation of Journalists).
A European Citizens' Initiative is an official petition, like a Downing Street petition. If it succeeds in gathering a million signatures across the EU, the Commission is obliged to respond.
This petition calls for the EU to act to protect media pluralism and press freedom.
CPBF Annual General Meeting
DATELINE: 1/3/13
Make a note in your diary
Saturday 13 July 2013 from 10.00am
NUJ HQ, 308/312 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1.
Leveson, media ownership, CPBF future work.
DOWNLOAD FREEPRESS NOW
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Download Freepress in PDF, ePub or mobi format. Issue 194 now available.
MEDIA FOR ALL CONFERENCE
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Papers from the Media for All Conference
MEDIA MANIFESTO
DATELINE: 26/3/10
The media’s job is to inform and entertain us but we rely on them too to tell us what our rulers and representatives are up to. In the run-up to the Iraq war the government used spin and disinformation in the media to create panic and mislead people. The truth is coming out now, but we need stronger, more independent media to be able to scrutinise governments and make informed choices.
-
Previous stories
Public Service Broadcasting
NUJ calls on BBC bosses to give back bonuses
The BBC After The Strike
Robin Aitkin and the biased BBC
NEWS FROM THE USA: Inspiring Conference
CPBF Response to Green Paper
MAKE THE MEDIA AN ELECTION ISSUE
BBC Cuts
PLATFORM - Replacing the BBC Licence Fee
EU Commission gets tough
Latest from BBC Charter Review team
What the CPBF told the Lords and the DCMS
NUJ to oppose job cut plans at divisional level negotiations
BBC proposes framework for detailed negotiations
Ofcom publishes Charter Renewal response
Staff unions invited to talks with BBC at ACAS
BBC strike a huge success
84% vote yes for strike over BBC job cuts
NUJ announces date for BBC strike
May's BBC Charter Review report is out
BBC - How it must change
Model answers for BBC charter consulation
Europe’s media unions back BBC workers in jobs fight
Charter Review Monthly Update - April 2005
Leading broadcasters to speak on Future of the BBC and ITV
Unions to strike over BBC job cuts
BBC cuts will be devastating, says IFJ
Thompson cuts rip heart out of BBC
Protecting public service broadcasting
Replacing the BBC licence fee...
Final line up for Peacock conference
