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<P>I have to say that I don't have a great deal of confidence in the concept of local TV - having been unvolved in exactly such a project in Reading 10 years ago.<BR>
But I am in agreement with Steve on the transmission aspects.<BR>
Hooking up with or into existing station equipment and service areas would be far too costly and coverage would not be relevant.<BR>
Transmission planning for suitable coverage is identical in process to what we do now with FM - for CRs, ILRs and RSLs.<BR>
The structures and antenna systems required for Band IV/V TV are a totally parallel technology.<BR>
The transmission and linking electronics are again relatively cheap and readily available.<BR>
Only the digital encoding aspect is currently complex and pricey - but that will inevitably reduce with development and demand.<BR>
So the infrastructure hardware wouldn't be a problem.<BR>
Only the provision of suitable quality and quantity of broadcast material as I see it.<BR>
That and selling airtime!<BR>
<BR>
Does this all sound a bit too familiar?<BR><BR>
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<P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 12pt" class=ecxMsoNormal><B><SPAN style="COLOR: rgb(38,38,38)">Ian Hickling<BR></SPAN></B><B><SPAN>Partner<BR>transplan UK<BR></SPAN></B></P><BR>
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Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2011 22:52:45 +0100<BR>To: cma-l@commedia.org.uk<BR>From: sbuckley@gn.apc.org<BR>Subject: [cma-l] Local TV - consultation deadline 23 Sept<BR><BR><PRE>Dear all<BR> <BR>Earlier this month CMA and Sheffield City Council <BR>hosted a national consultation event on DCMS <BR>proposals for local television. Over 50 <BR>participants converged on Sheffield from as far <BR>afield as Scotland, London and the South West. <BR>The event was supported by CM Solutions, Cultural <BR>Industries Quarter Agency and <BR>Showroom/Workstation who are also working, as <BR>part of a wider consortium, to develop a <BR>Sheffield local television channel. There was a <BR>strong consensus among those present that, <BR>although the general commitment to develop local <BR>TV should be warmly welcomed, the proposal to <BR>require local TV channels to use a single <BR>monopoly provider (MuxCo) for transmission should <BR>be rejected. Instead the local TV channels should <BR>be free to own and operate their own transmission <BR>systems, in the same way that community radio currently does.<BR> <BR>The deadline for comments to DCMS is Friday 23 <BR>September. Please join us and others in calling <BR>on Jeremy Hunt to say No to the MuxCo monopoly.<BR> <BR>Responses should be sent to: local.tv@culture.gsi.gov.uk<BR> <BR>For those of you that missed the event or are <BR>beavering away on a more detailed response to the <BR>DCMS consultation, below is a summary of the <BR>conclusions and recommendations and attached is a <BR>copy of my presentation to the event.<BR> <BR>Best wishes<BR> <BR>Steve<BR> <BR>//<BR>Local Television Forum, Sheffield 6 September 2011<BR> <BR>A national workshop for local television <BR>stakeholders, hosted by the Community Media <BR>Association and Sheffield City Council, with the <BR>support of Showroom/Workstation, Cultural <BR>Industries Quarter Agency and CM Solutions.<BR> <BR>Summary of conclusions and recommendations<BR> <BR>a. Content and market<BR> <BR>- Similar to the community radio model we want <BR>the licences to be framed by ‘key commitments’ – <BR>they should be local licences, for local <BR>communities, meeting local needs, supporting the <BR>local economy, promoting citizen participation in <BR>media, linking with other providers ,eg <BR>hyperlocal websites, and encourage networking with other stations<BR> <BR>- However training is done, it is this which <BR>gives people the capability to participate and transferrable skills for life<BR> <BR>- Concern about what kind of restrictions there <BR>might be on how news is delivered in terms of requirements on balance<BR> <BR>- Consideration should be given to some kind of <BR>limit on profit to cap return on investment, for example CIC models<BR> <BR>b. Distribution models<BR> <BR>- A monopoly supplied or transmission services is <BR>not to the advantage of local TV, there are a <BR>range of potential services providers, costs are relatively affordable.<BR> <BR>- Stations should have the right to establish <BR>their own transmission system rather than be <BR>dependent on a single multiplex operator<BR> <BR>- Some local channels might want to resell the <BR>spare multiplex capacity, e.g. to a shopping <BR>channels to contribute to their sustainability. This should be permitted.<BR> <BR>- Transmission sites don’t need to be located on <BR>existing transmission masts. There should be <BR>flexibility to allow the local services to <BR>identify alternative transmission sites<BR> <BR>- Some local TV stations would not want <BR>responsibility for transmission. They should be free to buy in services<BR> <BR>- Cable is an important alternative transmission <BR>medium. The government should assure that <BR>negotiations with the cable operator are fair and <BR>linked to a must carry obligation<BR> <BR>- The capital investment should be available to <BR>the local TV providers for investment that can <BR>demonstrate contribution to sustainability (not <BR>only the transmission infrastructure)<BR> <BR>c. Costs and funding<BR> <BR>- Local TV might not be commercially viable <BR>without the back up of government in terms of loan or grant funding<BR> <BR>- Advertising is considered a crucial revenue source to survive<BR> <BR>- Government could also act as a guarantor for initial costs<BR> <BR>- BBC could assist with audience measurement for local TV<BR> <BR>- Costs could be reduced by federation and <BR>cooperation between local TV providers – bulk buying, bulk sales etc<BR> <BR></PRE><BR><BR>_______________________________________________ Reply - cma-l@commedia.org.uk The cma-l mailing list is a members' service provided by the Community Media Association - http://www.commedia.org.uk Twitter: http://twitter.com/community_media http://www.facebook.com/CommunityMediaAssociation Canstream Internet Radio & Video: http://www.canstream.co.uk/ _______________________________________________ Mailing list guidelines: http://www.commedia.org.uk/about/cma-email-lists/email-list-guidelines/ _______________________________________________ To unsubscribe or manage your CMA-L mailing list subscription please visit: http://mailman.commedia.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/cma-l</DIV> </div></body>
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