[cma-l] Local TV in trouble

[Ian Hickling]

How the heck can you operate a business - even as part of a larger Group - with such scathing losses?
Isn't that Trading in Deficit?
Isn't that illegal?

Ian Hickling
Partner

Office: 01635 578435  (7am-11pm UK time)Carphone: 07530 980115 (only responds when driving)6 Horn Street, Compton, NEWBURY, RG20 6QS

From: marilyn at northernvisions.org
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2015 16:49:14 +0100
To: bill.best at commedia.org.uk
CC: comtv-l at commedia.org.uk; cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk
Subject: Re: [cma-l] [comtv-l]  Local TV in trouble

The Guardian reported losses of £19.1million last year… and £30 million the year before.
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/jul/08/guardian-observer-narrow-losses

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/jul/30/guardian-observer-publisher-guardian-news-media

On 15 Oct 2015, at 16:05, Bill Best <bill.best at commedia.org.uk> wrote:There's a rather scathing follow-up opinion piece here:

http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2015/oct/14/dont-make-the-bbc-bail-out-the-busted-flush-that-is-local-tv

Bill
-- Operations Manager
Community Media Association
http://www.commedia.org.uk
https://twitter.com/community_media
https://facebook.com/CommunityMediaAssociation

Canstream Internet Radio
http://www.canstream.co.uk
https://twitter.com/canstream

On 14 October 2015 at 12:23, Two Lochs Radio <tlr at gairloch.co.uk> wrote:



    
 I see Jeff Henry of Archant is quoted as saying "...in order for local TV to be commercially viable, it needs more financial support from the BBC and for Ofcom to allow the relaxation of programming regulations."



Presumably since the company is reported to have lost £657k last year, that is the sort of level of financial support it would need to be viable - that's approaching double the entire Community Radio Fund, just for a single local TV service.



Maybe the real answer is that effective small-scale local TV is simply not viable in the way that community radio can be, which is certainly how it looked to me at the start of this scheme, and to a consultation report published by Ofcom, which said:



"Only London and Manchester can support a profitable standalone commercial local TV channel, given the levels of investment required to sustain local programming and low audience share and reach achievable by such a TV channel. The commercial prospects for local community TV channels in regions with under 200k homes are poor. Community channels are likely to have little appeal to advertisers and will have to rely on government funding and private donations"
and
"...audience share levels required for community TV channels to break even on minimal costs of £300k are highly unlikely to be achievable."

Alex



Also see http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2015/oct/14/dont-make-the-bbc-bail-out-the-busted-flush-that-is-local-tv

On 14 October 2015 at 09:45 Alan Coote <alan.coote at 5digital.co.uk> wrote:


Surely the lack of money in community radio, in fact local media in general, should have told them life was going to be tough. 

http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/2015/news/regional-publishers-local-tv-channel-lost-657000-last-year/

Alan
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