[comtv-l] Pioneers: on your marks!

[CMA-L]

Source: http://advicetoofcom.org.uk/blog/2011/08/pioneers-your-marks

Crowds of wannabe local TV moguls are already jostling for places on
the starting lines, as the Seb Coe of local media calls for entrants
to 2012's other great race.

At least that's the impression created by the large turnouts to the
first three Local TV Summit roadshows in a UK-wide tour by Culture
Minister Jeremy Hunt.

The starter gun is fired; those fastest out of the blocks will secure
the first 20 of 65 new licences, probably at around the same time as
the Olympic torch arrives in London.

"I am a localist," declared the Minister, describing local media as
"the best way to transform society through harnessing the enthusiasm
of local people". An "initial pioneer group" of licences will be
awarded by Ofcom. Quality of services and strength of local
connections will be vital factors. It's not an auction, but the
winning bid must also impress with its business plan.

It would be fascinating to swap impressions from the other roadshows
around the UK. Ofcom advisers will welcome your feedback on all
aspects of this important policy development.

The main headlines from the Tyneside event were:

* This area, with one of the UK's lowest mobility rates and proven
appetite for local news and sport, is likely to exceed the already
high audience demand reported by Ofcom research

* Moreover, the IFNC pilot demonstrated an appetite for partnerships:
three consortia bid for the North East contract withdrawn by the new
Coalition Government

* But however much the Summit audience wished to scale the heights of
optimism expressed - with sincere enthusiasm - by the Minister, their
thoughts rolled down doggedly to the bottom line

* Many questioners raised the issue of whether market forces could
fully fund a quality of service which audiences would find credible
and worth watching

The Minister estimates £500K will do it - and raising this will be
helped by unrestricted advertising slots, sponsorship for such strands
as weather and traffic, and other revenue streams.

For the audience, a vital issue was how advertisers can be convinced
to take part: how will local services produce audience data?

The representatives of Your TV turned out in force to argue for
licences to be awarded in batches that will allow region-wide
estimates in parallel with the "other" category in BARB figures. But a
community radio organiser expressed doubts based on the bruising
experience of seeking local advertising for services which were
clearly popular but not backed up by ratings stats.

It was also pointed out that an interactive online presence must be a
central element of distribution - so shouldn't DCMS ensure THOSE costs
are met, as well as TV transmission?

For those concerned about audience services in the round, the Minister
gave two clear commitments:

    * Subsidy for Local TV poses no risks to BBC local services

Questioners were worried that the £40m for the BBC to subsidise Local
TV will be paid for by cutbacks. Jeremy Hunt was adamant that there
would be no adverse consequences for local and regional BBC services.
"We trust that the Minister will be keeping a close eye out when the
BBC announces how it will achieve its efficiencies in mid September,"
said one member of the audience.

Another said that the licence fee was being transferred to "a nakedly
commercial service", away from public service broadcasting.

    * Non-BBC regional news services will continue in the future

But not necessarily on ITV - references to channels were studiously
omitted. "Regional TV is here to stay. These local TV stations won't
have universal coverage. As a policy objective, we will want to
continue to have non-BBC regional news," said the Minister.

So - that's Jeremy Hunt's vision: Local TV as a new tier of content,
in addition to current services, funded by new sources of income for
the sector rather than robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Source: http://advicetoofcom.org.uk/blog/2011/08/pioneers-your-marks


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