Forum for former BBC staff

Forum for former BBC staff
http://www.ex-bbc.net/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl >> News and Comment >> BBC: 'Worth double the licence fee" http://www.ex-bbc.net/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1264090136 Message started by Administrator on Jan 21^st, 2010, 4:09pm

Title: BBC: 'Worth double the licence fee"
Post by Administrator on Jan 21^st, 2010, 4:09pm

'It is important to nail the myth the BBC only has a negative market impact,' says chief operating officer

The BBC will claim today that every £1 of the £3.7bn-a-year licence fee generates £2 for the economy, as it gives more details about an independent report into its economic impact.
The BBC's chief operating officer, Caroline Thomson, the third most senior executive at the corporation, will use an appearance at the MediaGuardian Oxford Media Convention to outline some of the findings of a report into the economic benefits of the BBC, carried out by Deloitte, which will be published in the next few weeks.
The Deloitte report will show that BBC TV contributes at least £4.5bn of that £7.6bn figure, she will reveal. The BBC's network of radio stations, which account for around half of all radio listening, generates a further £1bn and its controversial online operation contributes £300m.
BBC Worldwide, its commercial arm, and other commercial operations contribute £866m to the UK economy, according to Deloitte.
Thomson will say: "It is important to nail the myth the BBC only has a negative market impact – in fact, it is very often an important force for good in the economy."
She will also indicate that the Deloitte report will play a crucial role in the all-encompassing BBC strategic review ordered by the director general, Mark Thompson, which is looking and the size and shape of the future BBC and is widely expected to recommend the closing of some BBC services.
"In a tough economic climate, we need to be more conscious of our market 'footprint'. Our strategy review will consider issues of the BBC's size and scope carefully. It will define the boundaries," Thomson wrote on a BBC blog this morning.
MediaGuardian.co.uk understands that the current BBC structure of digital TV channels will survive the review.
In the blogpost Thomson appeared to suggest that the era of big salaries at the BBC is over. "We are driving down spend on both senior and manager pay and talent pay as the market changes. Whilst we operate in a competitive market and the public tell us they do expect artists on the BBC, we are already getting the best for less."
The Deloitte report signals an intention on behalf of BBC executive to regain some of the ground ceded to its rivals, who have successfully argued that it pays its talent and executives too much, by reminding policy makers and the public that licence fee money supports key industries.
The BBC's commercial competitors have repeatedly accused it of distorting the markets in which it operates, a charge that has been levelled with increasingly regularity at a time when private-sector revenues are under pressure.
The Guardian revealed this year that the Deloitte survey, commissioned by the BBC in 2009, will find that the corporation and its subsidiaries, including BBC Worldwide, generate at least £3.7bn for the UK economy, largely by supporting independent production companies.
They make 40% of its television programmes, including hit shows such as Spooks, Waterloo Road and Who do You Think You Are?
Deloitte estimates that the BBC's spending on the independent sector directly generates £867m of economic value, rising to as much as £1.4bn once the wider benefits are included.
In the blog, Thomson wrote: "The BBC's raison d'etre is providing programmes and content of real values and quality to licence fee payers and we must never forget this. But in delivering this broader benefits stretch into the digital and creative industries – which in turn spills over into the wider economy."
Channel 4 used a similar argument several years ago when its management was asking for a government subsidy to cushion it from the worst effects of the economic downturn and slowly declining audiences.
Deloitte's findings are likely to be quoted repeatedly by BBC executives in the coming months as they prepare for a possible change of government in May.
David Cameron's Conservatives have indicated that the BBC should do more to control costs and last year called for the licence fee to be frozen.
Other statistics in the Deloitte report include a claim that BBC training, which is offered to other media organisations, benefits the creative industries by £59m each year through improved productivity.
It also found that the BBC's leading role in promoting the switch from analogue to digital TV, including the launch of Freeview, means the process will be completed earlier than expected.
"This new evidence shows the licence fee is a force for good," Thomson wrote today. "It provides us with more than just quality programmes – it also boosts UK plc supporting thousands of jobs and businesses, many of which are in the private sector."

By:- James Robinson

Source:-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jan/21/bbc-licence-fee-uk-economy