"Think beyond the Beeb:
Gov consultation is crucial for free telly.

Channelling some answers for Auntie"


Nigel Whitfield writes in "The Register" here, discussing the future of Free To Air TV in the UK, spectrum allocation and the problems associated with subscriptions and conditional access.

In the article there is no mention of Radio of any sort, nor of the Web-site.

BBC technical research is referred to:-

"Question 6 wonders about the BBC's role in the “future technological landscape,” and it's worth bearing in mind that without it, huge chunks of the current landscape wouldn't exist – from Teletext and RDS to DVB-T2 and object audio, the BBC continues to be hugely influential.

A fraction of the BBC's budget – just £83m last year – goes on this work, which has massive benefits. Of course, new technology can have an impact on the competition, but surely far less than if it were owned and exploited by a commercial competitor, rather than shared as easily as the BBC?"

It is worth pointing out that Teletext (Ceefax / Oracle) in its final form was a joint development between the BBC and the IBA, at the time.