GEITF Report: BBC’s Digital Future
The unveiling of a government decision regarding the BBC’s digital television plans (see Greg Dyke Lays Out Future Of The BBC) was delayed when Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell had to withdraw from her appearance at the GEITF (see Jowell Cancels Edinburgh Speech).
The announcement, which is likely to have profound effect on the landscape of UK digital television, is now expected to come in three weeks time at the Royal Television Society convention, but not even Mark Thompson, director of television at the BBC and on the panel for Edinburgh’s Digital TV: Asset or Albatross debate, would say its content is a foregone conclusion.
The consensus of opinion certainly seems to point to a favourable decision for the BBC, despite the long delay in its announcement- the original letter of intent was submitted by the broadcasters in January- but the provisos attached may yet take into account the misgivings of other broadcasters.
The commercial terrestrial channels have so far come round to supporting the BBC’s plans. In the case of the main ITV shareholders, all improvements to the digital landscape are likely to benefit ITV digital, in which both Carlton and Granada have stakes.
It is the non-terrestrial channels who are kicking up the commercial fuss. At a Edinburgh debate, BSkyB’s commercial director Martin Goswami challenged whether the BBC had proved itself capable of running successful digital channels and therefore worthy of permission to use public money to fund more. He admitted that Sky’s objection to the way the BBC gets its money was “fundamental”. Nicky Parkinson, managing director of Nickelodeon, for whom the BBC children’s channels could prove a threat, expressed the concern of her company over what she perceived as a lack of transparency as to exact plans for the new offerings.
A question the BBC is finding hard to dodge in the light of ongoing research into digital take-up is the issue of using licence fee money that 100% of the country pays to fund TV that can only be seen by 30% of the country at present. Mark Thompson countered this by saying: “This is a transition stage, which raises complications. Digital is a long term bet for the BBC. That’s why we think its right now to start making proper investment.”
If detractors are to be pleased, approval for the BBC would probably have to come with conditions on how the £200m a year spend will be distributed. Michael Jackson’s otherwise supportive article in the Independent last week (see Jackson Defends BBC’s Digital Plans) nevertheless hoped for a strong public service element and an effort to introduce something truly new into the digital TV mix. It may be that the children’s channels will have to make a commitment to original programming and avoid back to back imported cartoons. What does seem certain is that the commercial sector’s close scrutiny of the BBC’s digital progress will continue even after the Culture Secretary’s decision is announced.
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