TV Industry Round-Up 1997
Just about the biggest TV Industry event of the year was of course the launch of Channel 5. It was always going to be controversial and the media certainly piled on the pressure in the build up to the fifth button on our remote controls coming alive. Even the Spice Girls were called in as the ‘big guns’ of the launch – at least there were five of them.
The opening night captured 5.8% of the prime time audience, with 2.6 million viewers watching the opening show. The papers were fairly generous about the first night’s programming: the Times even gave the opening night schedule a mark of seven out of ten while the wiser minds at the Independent chose to stay sitting on the fence and commented that the opening night “couldn’t be taken as representative” and were expecting to wait for the “real thing”. Well, lets hope you didn’t all hold your breath.
The industry then spent much of the year trying to decide whether C5 was any good or not. By October a research study conducted by Ammariti Puris Lintas revealed that 5% of the sample would not be disappointed if they could no longer receive the channel. It would seem that the biggest complaint from the viewing masses did not involve quality of programming, but rather quality of picture. The APL study showed that around 30% of viewers complained the poor picture quality they experienced spoilt their enjoyment of Channel 5. Perhaps when more folk can actually see what they’re watching they may well have a few more comments as to the standards of what they are seeing!
The year began with the BBC taking its first step towards privatisation with the announcement that it intended to sell off its transmitter business. Back in January, Bob Phillis the BBC’s Deputy Director General commented “this will be a good deal for the BBC and all concerned”. By June the Beeb revealed that the corporation had amassed £500 million in the bank, the largest cash pile they’ve ever owned, with £244 million of this coming from the sale of the transmitter system.
There was also some major consolidation in the TV industry when the mergers which had been rumoured for so long actually took place in June: Granada bought Yorkshire Tyne-Tees for £711 million and STV took Grampian over for £105 million. Carlton also made a move on Rank Film Distributors for £65m.
British Digital Broadcasting, a consortium made up of Carlton, Granada and the BBC, celebrated winning the three digital terrestrial TV licences that it bid for. BDB intends to offer at least 15 channels, as well as looking into the field of interactive television services like home-shopping and banking. S4C Digital Networks was then awarded the terrestrial Multiplex A licence, though the ITC stressed that this was conditional on the broadcaster finding another stakeholder in order to strengthen its financial position.
The TV database can be accessed by selecting “Television” from the drop-down box at the top of this page.
A full TV data round-up for 1997 will be appearing on Newsline later today.