Written evidence submitted by Belle Media
Ltd
Belle Media is a London based media consultancy
that draws on a wide range of creative sector experience, from
production, studio operations, post-production and new media.
Belle Media's Directors: Kay Hutchison and Richard Dikstra, have
between them over 60 years experience of the industry working
at senior levels in a range of sectors; including broadcast, cable
and satellite, feature film and video games. The company has extensive
contacts across the UK creative sector, particularly in London.
We have been interested in the potential legacy use
of the International Broadcast Centre and Main Press Centre that
is being built for the 2012 Games for well over two years. From
this involvement we would make the following observations which
we hope will be helpful to the Committee in its deliberations
on the Olympic Legacy.
SUMMARY
— Interest in using the MPC/IBC does exist,
but is awaiting a firm offering. — It is only now, with
the establishment of the OPLC, that prospective tenants have had
anyone to properly engage with in discussing the site.
— London is a major creative centre, employing
many tens of thousands of people and generating billions of pounds
for the UK economy.
— The creative sector is also a highly
competitive international market and maintaining London's position
and its competitive advantage should be an important national
priority.
— The MPC/IBC offers an opportunity to
create a new creative commercial centre that would help London
retain its position as a leading international creative player.
— Changing models of production in a digital
era open up interesting possibilities for shared physical infrastructure.
— The Games could be a useful catalyst
to foster cooperation between the higher education sector in East
London and London's creative industries.
— There is a window of opportunity to properly
consider the options for the MPC/IBC site, but action needs to
be taken over the next six months.
— All players need to be encouraged to
cooperate if the country is to maximise the benefit of the substantial
public investment that has been made at the site.
From our discussions with a wide range of industry
players Belle Media believes:
(a) Whilst no firm tenants have yet emerged,
there is genuine interest in the possible use of the IBC and MPC
facilities from within the creative and media sectors in London.
As yet however we are still some three years
away from the time when the site might be commercially available.
Details of what exactly could be provided, at what cost, or indeed
by whom they would be run, are only just emerging. It is therefore
not surprising few companies have actively engaged in any detailed
assessment of the opportunity. They await firm proposals about
the site. All this however is completely understandable given
the priority until recently has been focussed on delivering the
Games. We are confident that with the establishment of the OPLC
and its active engagement in the issues firm proposals will start
to be discussed.
(b) We believe the IBC building(s) presents a
particular challenge but also potentially a unique opportunity
to provide low cost studio accommodation and workspace serving
both established linear broadcasters and new digital companies
and entrepreneurs. The significant amount of space available will
allow for a radical rethinking of how such studio accommodation
can be used to better fit the needs of modern production and a
more atomised production sector. We also believe some of the space
can be designed to have wider use as multi-purpose performance
space. We believe the options for the IBC space need to be fully
examined to ensure the opportunity is not lost.
(c) London is a major, indeed world class, centre
for the creative industries. The city has built upon a strong
historical tradition, across a range of creative industries, and
has also benefited from long-term public support of the arts,
theatre, broadcasting and film production, all of course centred
on a world-class city. These interrelationships are a vital element
in determining success.
However it is also important to recognise that
London's leading position is by no means guaranteed in a highly
competitive global market and many other centres across the world
are also interested in establishing media clusters and trying
to foster creative industries and digital media. Availability
of skilled labour, tax treatments on investment in production
and suitable physical infrastructure vary across locations, but
are also important factors in determining success. High speed
broadband also makes it much easier to move even the most complex
technical operations to other locations, or indeed share out work
across centres. Wherever and whenever producers believe they can
gain commercial advantage they will do so and work will thus be
subject to increasingly fierce competition. London's position
is therefore always under some considerable degree of threat.
(d) London still of course has many advantages:
a highly diverse creative sector (advertising, design, production,
fashion, graphics, web, games, etc), one used to working internationally,
with strong established players, high quality creative and technical
staff and access to funding, but it also needs to ensure it has
the right facilities, training, and support structures if it is
to retain its position.
The IBC/MPC offers London an important opportunity
to use some of the investment made for the Games to help develop
a new centre for creative industries. A media focussed development
on the site would build on the success of a sector already making
a considerable contribution to the UK economy and in an area already
boasting a strong creative community. The site is well connected—both
with the rest of London and indeed, via Eurostar, and City Airport
to Europe—and is close to existing centres of the creativity-
Soho, Hoxton, etc. It is also well served by a range of higher
educational institutes offering a range of appropriate expertise
and courses. It could quickly expect to become a major employer
in the area. We are also aware of strong local political support
for such an initiative.
(e) We believe that there are a number of opportunities
to create new working relationships more suited to the high-speed
broadband environment foreseen in Digital Britain. The Olympic
Media Complex offers the space to create an entrepreneurially
focused media cluster fostering closer relationships between producers,
creatives and higher education. Conversations have begun with
a number of interested parties. Kay Hutchison has been actively
involved for some time with Skillset's Legacy Board (Skillset
is the Sector's Skill Council for the Creative Media) which has
been looking at these issues and the opportunities in linking
companies, colleges and universities and schools. These conversations
now need to be built upon.
(f) As we see it a key advantage of the IBC/MPC
site now is the uniqueness of the timeframe. It is already a rapidly
emerging as a physical reality but actually will not be available
for commercial occupation until 2013. This actually gives the
OPLC time to optimise plans of what now is a given physical space.
The opportunity is thus very much there to create a vibrant commercial
creative hub that genuinely brings a new approach to the way the
creative sector operates as the country embraces a fully digital
age.
(g) In terms of timescale we believe nonetheless
that it is also essential as part of the marketing of the facility
to maintain the momentum that will be generated from the excitement
of the Olympics. This excitement is an important asset. Planning
should be directed at having an offering that anticipates moving
tenants in as soon as possible after the Games—ie early
2013. Prospective tenants therefore need to know exactly what
is being offered and under what terms as soon as possible—but
certainly towards the end of this year.
(h) The Olympics, and the infrastructure that
is being built to support the Games, offers a unique opportunity
to create a dynamic new media workspace that would significantly
add to the facilities available in London. There is rightly continuing
pressures on costs but we also need to ensure that long-term value
for money is also part of the decision process. We would submit
that the Committee should urge all involved—DCMS, DCLG,
BIS, LOCOG, ODA and the OPLC (and other development organisations)
to ensure that this opportunity is fully exploited to the benefit
of the UK's creative industry and to the country's economy.
January 2010
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