GRADE PREDICTS BBC FIGHTBACK

Speaking at the MRG Conference in Amsterdam on Friday, Michael Grade, Chief Executive of Channel 4 predicted early moves by the BBC in 1994 to regain lost ground, hitting ITV in the vital 7.00pm – 8.30pm peak.

“The BBC has good programmes in the wrong places, it can’t allow ratings to slip any further”, said Grade, who anticipated Casualty twice weekly; Eastenders three times a week; and This is Your Life all attacking ITV.

He felt any changes to News At Ten would be made”later rather than sooner” “I would move it head-to-head with the BBC at 9.00pm – if at all.” For Channel 4, Grade anticipated that the momentum of the last two years would continue, but it was less likely that the same rate of growth could be maintained. “Channel 4’s huge advantage is that lines of communication are so short. Scheduling decisions can be taken in a few minutes.”

Looking ahead, Grade said that C4 would resist strongly any move for a single London ITV contractor;and he is against any changes to the 25% ownership rule.

“Over the next ten years I am very confident about terrestrial TV – as long as we promote British programmes relating to British people.” “We will all lose share of course, but there is no replacement for TV which talks to us about things we care about and understand. Satellite TV is Pan-European or Hollywood TV – global, re-cycled pap.”

Later in the question session, Grade argued vigorously against any move to put advertising on the BBC – “if the BBC takes advertising it ceases to be the BBC, and puts the break on the growth of commercial radio and satellite TV. It’s a most God-awful idea…the BBC is hopeless at business. It just gets a £1.5bn cheque annually from the Government and spends it.”