MGEITF 2009: “Top-slicing would be a catastrophe”

Top-slicing the BBC’s licence fee would not only destroy the corporation in the long term, but would also be a “catastrophe for British democracy”, according to the BBC’s chief operating officer Caroline Thomson.

Thomson wasted no time in defending the BBC’s public service broadcasting purpose at the recent MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television festival following James Murdoch’s scathing attack on the corporation, in which he said it should be “starved of funds”.

“Top-slicing risks destroying the BBC in the long term,” she said. “Once it starts it will not stop.”

Thomson admitted that the television industry is in trouble and is facing its biggest challenge in over 30 years. However, she remained adamant that the answer shouldn’t necessarily be top-slicing the BBC’s licence fee and dishing it out to other broadcasters.

Lord Carter’s Digital Britain report followed a different view and, for the first time in broadcasting history, the BBC will be made to share a proportion of its licence fee.

Some of the money will go towards funding ITV regional news, though Carter proposed very little for Channel 4, which has been shouting about its £150 million funding shortfall for quite some time.

However, Channel 4’s chief executive Andy Duncan claimed that the ailing broadcaster “has never argued for the licence fee”.

“The imbalance in funding in the current UK TV market is unhealthy,” Duncan said. “But we wouldn’t be independent if we had a share of the licence fee.”

However, Duncan – who attributes Channel 4’s funding gap to both structural and economic problems – does believe that broadcasters will have to start sharing resources over the next five years.

He wasn’t the only one to admit that change is necessary if broadcasters are going to continue to invest in content and fulfil their PSB obligations in this market, which has been massively affected by the advertising downturn.

“Something has to change – we can’t carry on investing in content without the revenue,” said John Cresswell, ITV’s chief operating officer.

On that issue, the panellists were in agreement – the industry is having to make tough choices and faces huge challenges if it’s going to survive the recession and the digital switchover, while continuing to deliver PSB content (something that is hugely valued by consumers).