Written evidence from Ofcom Advisory Committee
for Northern Ireland (ACNI)
PREAMBLE
1. The Ofcom Advisory Committee for Northern
Ireland (ACNI) welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to
the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on its inquiry into Television
Broadcasting in Northern Ireland. This is a timely inquiry in
light of the momentous changes occurring in TV broadcasting with
digital switchover fast approaching in 2012.
2. Ofcom's recent second review of Public
Service Broadcasting has highlighted many salient issues which
will be referred to in this submission. While ACNI wishes to reassert
the important role which Ofcom plays in terms of regulating the
broadcasting landscape in the UK, it is equally important to emphasise
the crucial role which government plays in terms of funding public
service broadcasting. ACNI believes that the time is ripe for
a competitive funding model with the following objectives: to
maintain plurality of public service broadcasting in Northern
Ireland (including, as appropriate, that provided by Republic
of Ireland broadcasters); to obtain acceptable levels of portrayal
of Northern Ireland on UK wide PSB networks, and greater production
from Northern Ireland; and to have a sustainable model for the
production of news and non-news content and indigenous language
programming for Northern Ireland.
3. ACNI supports a model for the provision
of Public Service Broadcasting in the nations which is not tied
to a one size fits all paradigm. There may, of course, be similarities
with the other devolved nations but the specific characteristics
of Northern Ireland as far as PSB is concerned must be addressed.
4. Such a model should be robust and sustainable—it
needs to be neutral towards the short-term fortunes of UTV and
the ITV sector; it needs to be relevant to the opportunities provided
by digital media and must therefore enjoy a source (or sources)
of sustainable funding similar to that enjoyed by the BBC.
5. This model, to complement the BBC, must
be similarly sustainable in terms of funding source(s) but with
greater flexibility to more easily accommodate new directions
and genres and it must be attuned to the political and social
realities of Northern Ireland.
PUBLIC SERVICE
PROVISION AND
FUNDING BEYOND
THE BBC
6. ACNI considers that the BBC should remain
the cornerstone of public service content but that it is essential
to ensure additional options for audiences. Otherwise, the market
beyond the BBC may succumb to the lowest common denominator in
terms of programming depending on audience figures, advertising
revenues and/or economic exigencies.
7. It is absolutely essential, therefore,
that public service provision and funding beyond the BBC continues
to form part of any future system. This will ensure the best outcome
for audiences in terms of plurality of, choice between, and accessibility
to a range of quality and diverse programming. This is also the
best way to ensure that the audio-visual creative industries are
fostered. Without public service provision and funding beyond
the BBC, there is no certainty that the market would deliver plurality
for audiences particularly in the genres of news, current affairs,
factual and children's programming and news and non-news for the
nations.
8. It is important that public service provision
and funding beyond the BBC is not confined solely to delivery
via the traditional linear TV platform given the increasingly
fragmented broadcasting ecology. Alternative methods of delivery
of content to audiences should also be encouraged particularly
in the light of the possibilities emanating from the Digital Britain
interim report and the digital dividend review (DDR).
9. Since Northern Ireland is unique in the
UK in sharing a land border with another country, unique circumstances
prevail in Northern Ireland whereby additional plurality is generated
for local audiences through access to Republic of Ireland PSB
broadcasters. With digital switchover (DSO) fast approaching in
2012, it is essential that there is joined-up thinking between
the governments and the respective regulators in both jurisdictions
to ensure a seamless transition to DSO so that audiences on both
sides of the border can continue to access the various channels.
This has implications for public service provision and funding
in Northern Ireland since it is not inconceivable that UTV could
form an alliance with a broadcaster in the Republic of Ireland.
It is also possible that the refined competitive funding model
could help maintain plurality in Northern Ireland by enabling
Republic of Ireland broadcasters to access such funding where
they could demonstrate sufficient audience reach within Northern
Ireland. There is a precedent for this with a legacy of broadcasters
on both sides of the border accessing the Broadcasting Commission
of Ireland's Sound and Vision fund and Northern Ireland Screen's
funds.
FUNDING MODEL
10. ACNI considers the refined competitive
funding model to be the most appropriate model. Such a model could
be best placed to deal with the challenges of digital media and
the increasingly competitive market. This model would ensure that
a mix of public service content is delivered in a transparent
manner across a range of providers.
11. The competitive funding model could
be administered by a UK-wide independent body which would enable
both content delivery providers and the production sector to bid
for funding to deliver public service content including TV, radio
and digital media content. This national body might be replicated
in the nations and regions with localised independent bodies administering
the funding. Part of the overall funding should be ring-fenced
to ensure delivery of public service content which the market
would not otherwise deliver, for example in the areas of news,
non-news and indigenous languages content.
12. Both the national and the localised
structures could also be established in such a way as to ensure
that the production sector throughout the UK is fostered and that
portrayal of the nations and regions on the networks becomes the
norm rather than the exception.
13. ACNI believes that Channel 4 should have
an extended remit to innovate and provide distinctive UK content
across platforms. It could compete for funding beyond its existing
regulatory assets. ACNI does not consider that a special case
for direct funding needs to be made for Channel 4 compared with
the other commercial public service broadcasters (PSBs) since
it does not have any stronger track record, particularly in Northern
Ireland, of delivering public service content. But what is clearly
needed is to ensure there is a financially robust alternative
provider of public service content alongside the BBC, with possibly
Channel 4 at its heart, supported through joint ventures or mergers,
with the scale necessary to sustain effective delivery of public
purposes across digital media.
14. ACNI believes that it might be possible
for ITV1, Five and Teletext to continue to have public service
obligations after 2014 were they able to access a competitive
fund. The advantage of continuing to impose public service obligations
on these broadcasters would ensure that audiences could continue
to easily access this content given the established nature of
these broadcast outlets and their track record in terms of delivering
high quality output.
15. Were ITV1 to have an ongoing role in terms
of delivering public service content after 2014, the Channel 3
licensing structure should be simplified to 5 licences for England,
Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands. Ofcom's
audience research indicates that "Channel 3 has a symbolic
value in the devolved nations and is seen to represent national
identity in ways which other TV channels do not."
16. The competitive funding model would probably
work best if it consisted of a small number of long term contracts
to deliver public service content particularly in terms of news.
ACNI welcomes Ofcom's proposals—both those in its PSB review
and those outlined more recently—for independently funded
news consortia. Flexibility could be built into the system so
that small short term contracts might also be awarded to encourage
new entrants and new voices, where deemed appropriate. Experience
of competitive funding models in both Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland shows that it works best when an independent
body administers the funding through competitive tenders with
part-funding from the broadcaster/content delivery provider and
when editorial control remains with the broadcaster/content delivery
provider. Some ring-fencing may be required to ensure that particular
genres of public service broadcasting would be protected.
17. It should be noted that Northern Ireland
has the lowest national programming spend in the UK at £3.85
per capita compared to a UK average of £32 (Ofcom Communications
Market Report 2007 Nations & Regions (NI)). It is imperative
that due cognisance is taken of this spending deficit in the implementation
of a competitive funding model.
NATIONS AND
REGIONS NEWS
18. ACNI, while understanding the circumstances
which led to the reduction in the news quota on UTV to four hours
per week hopes that UTV will continue to view the quota as a minimum
requirement rather than as a ceiling. ACNI believes that nations
and regions news from a variety of sources is essential and that
additional funding should be provided to sustain it. The BBC cannot
become the sole preserve of nations and regions news. News coverage
is particularly critical in the nations considering the paucity
of news from the nations on the networks and the varying arrangements
in place in the nations under devolution. News for Northern Ireland
could be delivered via the kind of independently funded news consortium
proposed by Ofcom in the PSB review.
19. While broadcasting is currently a reserved
matter for Westminster, the arrangements created under the competitive
funding model in the nations should ensure local accountability
while also guaranteeing no political interference.
LOCAL CONTENT
SERVICES
20. ACNI believes that local content services
have an important role to play in ensuring plurality whereby local
communities are given a voice in terms of portraying themselves
and/or are involved in production of content. ACNI agrees with
Ofcom's approach in the digital dividend review, which will enable
local content service providers to bid for interleaved spectrum
and also potentially through the `band manager' arrangements,
as being a good use of the spectrum. ACNI considers that broadband
offers huge potential for delivery of local content services.
Appropriate funding for local content could be secured via the
competitive funding model with proper cognisance being given to
uptake, availability and reach of local service providers. The
Digital Britain proposals for a 2mb universal service make the
possibilities for this delivery platform very real.
SOURCES OF
FUNDING
21. ACNI suggests a combination of sources
to ensure the future provision of public service content beyond
the BBC. This mix of funding could include top slicing of the
licence fee, ring-fencing the digital switchover surplus during
the post digital switchover era, industry levies, direct government
funding from the national and devolved administrations and tax
breaks. All options should be considered at this stage.
22. ACNI wishes to highlight the following
funding sources which could be considered to fund the future of
television broadcasting.
23. Regulatory assets: ACNI suggests that
privileged access to the digital terrestrial television (DTT)
spectrum will retain some value for commercial public service
broadcasters although in the long term, the value of spectrum
benefits is uncertain. Where there is residual value in access
to the DTT spectrum, ACNI considers this could be used to support
the commercial public service broadcasters during the post digital
switchover.
24. Licence fee: ACNI suggests that the
digital switchover surplus could be used to part-fund the competitive
funding model. Apart from the surplus, ACNI suggests that there
may merit in examining the approach used in the Republic of Ireland
with the Irish government setting aside 5% of the licence fee
per annum to create a competitive funding model. While ACNI understands
that top slicing the BBC licence fee may not be an option in the
medium term since the current BBC licence fee settlement runs
to 2016, ACNI would suggest that this issue might be revisited
at that stage.
25. Industry levies: ACNI suggests that
industry levies could be used to part fund the competitive funding
model which it advocates.
26. Direct government funding: ACNI believes
that this is very much a viable option for part-funding the competitive
funding model. Funding could emanate from Westminster for the
national funding structure and from the devolved administrations
for the devolved funding structures. However, ACNI also believes
other approaches might be considered, for example tax breaks could
provide an additional viable option. Tax breaks are commonplace
in the film industry and this approach should be replicated for
production of public service content for delivery on TV, radio
and digital media platforms.
27. Specifically in relation to funding
for Channel 4, ACNI believes that it should retain its existing
regulatory assets and be allowed to compete for funding in the
competitive funding model; it is essential that the long term
funding structure for Channel 4 and its role as an alternative
provider of public service content, is secured no later than 2010;
otherwise funding uncertainties could have a detrimental impact
on its capacity to deliver its existing remit.
QUOTAS
28. ACNI agrees with Ofcom's approach of
prioritising prime time regional news on ITV plc by reducing the
volume of news during the day. ACNI welcomes Ofcom's decision
as a result of the second review of PSB to revise its original
proposal for non-news output on UTV from a minimum of one and
a half hours per week to a minimum of two hours per week since
it believes it is within the capacity of the devolved licensee
to retain its commitment at this level. ACNI wishes to emphasise
that this quota should be viewed by the licensees as a floor rather
than a ceiling in terms of delivery of output. ACNI would suggest
that given the relative strength and current viability of UTV,
they should be able to fulfil their current commitments to news
and other PSB programmes throughout the licence period.
29. ACNI is concerned at the low levels
of production from Northern Ireland identified in Ofcom's Communications
Market Reports and welcomes moves by the BBC and now Channel 4
to increase production from the nations and looks forward to production
from Northern Ireland—and as a result portrayal of Northern
Ireland on the UK networks—increasing significantly.
1 May 2009
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