By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter
@Siwri88
There was
shock and complete surprise earlier this week (starting 3rd March)
when rumours spread of one of BBC’s channels was about to face the chop. In
order to meet agreed spending figures by the end of 2016, the Beeb have decided
to axe BBC Three – one of the most popular channels for a young target
audience.
BBC Three has
been the home to plenty of new talents, with successes such as Being Human, Little
Britain and Gavin & Stacey being eventually picked up by mainstream
channels after its first success on the platform. Other shows including The
Fades, Torchwood, Don’t Tell the Bride, Lip Service and Free Speech have won
rave reviews for its content shown. Alongside its quality programming, BBC
Three has opened new doors to upcoming comedians, musicians and actors who want
to make the big time but need to make their name first.
So despite
the announcement that its content will move online in future, why is this
cutback move by British Broadcasting Corporation a wrong move, especially where
other expensive avenues could have saved itself from the backlash it has
received.
Cutbacks are required
First of all,
the BBC has had to make savings in a number of areas to meet agreed cutbacks
put in by the BBC Trust. This has already involved movement of programmes to cheaper
locations such as MediaCity in Salford and Cardiff, job losses and the decision
not to renew some of its popular dramas and sport rights to meet the required
targets.
Outlined
three years ago, 2000 jobs were set to go by 2017 with a further 1000 people
set to be relocated to newer parts of the UK. Television Centre was closed down
last year as Broadcasting House became the new home for the corporation in
London which is where the majority of the BBC’s news content, both national and
local is now outputted from.
£47m a year
was planned to be saved from 2011 until 2016 with the BBC Asian Network and BBC
HD facing the biggest reduction in content programming. BBC HD has since become
BBC Two HD last year.
Shows and
events that have been the victim of such vicious but crucial cuts have included
crime drama Ripper Street, sci-fi series Survivors, store drama The Paradise,
comedy My Family, Alan Sugar’s The Young Apprentice and live rights to horse
racing and MotoGP.
Officially
becoming BBC Three in 2003 after being initially launched as recently as 1998
as BBC Choice, BBC Three attracts 13m viewers per week of its content. However
despite its fairly short lifespan, the percentage of 16-34 age range who watches
the programmes and the total viewers per week, the Director General of the BBC
Tony Hall has made a difficult but wrong call in giving BBC Three the boot.
What will happen to BBC Three?
The news to
axe BBC Three has been met with much disapproval, not just from fans of the
channel and casual viewers like me but comedians like Russell Kane and even BBC
Radio One DJ Greg James. However, unless the BBC Trust decides to block the
plans announced last week, this is what will happen to the channel. That doesn’t
mean to say they won’t do that. Three years ago, the Trust blocked plans to
shut BBC Radio 6 Music and the Asian Network.
The plan is
for BBC Three to close as a TV channel in autumn 2015 and Freeview viewers will
see it replaced by BBC One+1. While a +1 is needed for its mainstream channel
to rival ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, a home for this would have been more
appropriate rather than to replace a popular channel like BBC Three.
 |
| The BBC's decision to move BBC Three onto an online platform has received criticism |
It will be re-innovated
as an online channel only on the iPlayer catch-up service, although it is more
likely that only programming will be found on here rather than the remains of
the channel. It is reported that the BBC (building pictured above) will make £50m in savings with this
controversial move, although to chuck £30m into more drama programming on BBC
One makes the decision more of a mockery. If cutbacks had to be made, make them
and keep them rather than spend more on what is likely to be more episodes of
dreary Walford soap opera EastEnders.
Director General
Hall said on Thursday when the plans were made public that it was “strategically
right” and “financially necessary.” You can’t really argue with his latter
statement but the first comment doesn’t feel right.
86.9% on the
media website Digital Spy last week believed axing BBC Three is the wrong
decision and a #SaveBBC3 petition hit 85,000 in less than 48 hours after being
launched last week on Change.org by fan of the channel Jono Read. It has been
signed by many including this writer, but also by the likes of Rick Edwards,
David Walliams and Matt Lucas.
What could have gone instead?
£100m of
savings are required by 2016, so for anyone to suggest that the BBC should do
nothing doesn’t quite understand the world of finances. There are other areas though
which might have brought the corporation closer to its target without annoying
a huge core section of its young target audience.
BBC Three’s
channel budget in 2013/14 is reported to be £85m but the £49m to give BBC Four
the boot would have been a more logical solution if a channel had to close.
BBC Four’s
impact on the UK TV audience has been mundane. In fact, I can’t ever remember
watching a programme on it to be honest. It might provide a good home for
historical programmes looking back at the past, as well as a mixture of arts
shows but this content could easily slot onto BBC Two without a huge fuss.
Hall believes
the BBC Three audience are ready for the move to watching TV online and while
it is true that television can be watched in a number of different areas and
devices, it will be interesting to see if the target audience follow the move.
I somehow highly doubt it.
With the new
competition of BT Sport now firmly in the sporting spectrum, the BBC’s sporting
deals should come up for review. Whilst areas like the Six Nations, Premier
League football highlights and Wimbledon deserve to be saved from any cutbacks,
other sports could go.
The BBC could
have decided to axe its deal to show Formula One. Sadly the sport has entered a
generation of insipid racing, complicated technological changes and the same
driver keeps winning, just like the ITV Schumacher days of the last decade.
In 2011, they
saved £16.5m a year by deciding to share the live race rights with Sky Sports,
who have since launched their own dedicated channel to great success and
critical acclaim. The BBC has been left behind and by moving more of its
coverage onto BBC Two since the new agreement; it suggests a lack of motivation
in making the deal a success. While a new season begins next week in Australia –
the significant drop in audience figures and the estimated £40m cost for a
typical championship would have brought the BBC even closer to its target.
With £11m to
find, cuts in regional programming, highlight packages for Rugby League and the
Football League and ending the National Lottery programmes might have taken
them to within that £100m savings mark.
Is there hope for the BBC Three
audience?
I think it is
fair to say that the decision to drop BBC Three as a TV channel has been met
with a lot of disapproval from fans and even celebrities.
By turning it
into an online channel – the BBC has giving its rivals in the television market
a huge advantage as a growing number might feel the corporation takes their
feedback and dedication to their services for granted.
Cutbacks need
to be made, no-one should argue about that but this feels like a move that didn’t
need to be made. Give Tony Hall a thought; he is in a difficult position to
meet the final spending cut targets and this is a gamble but it is fair to say
that thousands disagree with his thinking.
There is hope
for the BBC Three audience in that the BBC Trust could block the move and it
seems like there is greater support than there was to save 6 Music and the
Asian Network in 2011 when they were in a similar position. To save those radio
stations was cheaper though, so while it is important to keep hope, don’t
expect the Trust to prohibit the move. As long as they hear both sides of the
argument next month, then you have to accept whatever is their final decision.
If it does
disappear as a TV channel, it is a great shame but it did provide some great
British talent to come through onto our screens over the past decade.
0 comments:
Post a Comment