Jeremy Hunt outlines local TV plans

In a speech at the Royal Television Society this morning, culture secretary Jeremy Hunt said the media landscape is “deeply, desperately centralised” and that local content will be a key tenant of a changed PSB remit.

Acting on initial findings from an independent review of local TV by Nicholas Shott, the government will “begin the process of redefining public service broadcasting for the digital age”.

In consultation with Ofcom, it will put more emphasis on the delivery of local content and table legislation “to clarify which PSB channels should get guaranteed positioning on page one of the Electronic Programme Guide and its future online equivalents”.

By intervening with EPG criteria, the government aims to “repay” broadcasters that invest in programming with a “social or cultural benefit”.

It was initially thought the move could have serious implications for ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 - which produce limited local content of the type Hunt is pushing. But under questioning this morning, Hunt confirmed that the broadcasters will not be moved down the EPG if they do not air local content. 

Instead, other broadcasters and new entrants with a strong local focus, will be offered the opportunity to gain a premium channel slot.

“If we remain centralised, top-down and London-centric in our media provision we will fail to reflect the real demand for stronger local identity that has always existed and that new technologies are now allowing us to meet,” Hunt said.

The government will also abolish all of the remaining local cross-media rules, enabling local newspaper and commercial radio groups to move freely between different platforms.

Shott’s interim findings

Shott’s early findings show that audiences’ demand for local content is primarily driven by news and current affairs programming. This would be best delivered as a standalone local TV service in a prominent EPG slot, he said. 

There “may need to be some form of support” from existing networks for the service, he added, including national channels acting as a “host” for regional content – directing audiences to their local TV service.

In the long-run, Shott said that internet enabled television would be central to delivering local content, not digital terrestrial television. “The transmission network architecture is some 50 years old and will require engineering solutions to produce even a reasonable patchwork of local TV coverage,” he said.

The head of UK investment banking at Lazard also confirmed that his steering group had started negotiations with the BBC over how the broadcaster could assist in delivering local content.

“I’ve been strongly encouraged by the serious thought that the BBC has been giving to how it might partner with new local media providers,” Hunt told RTS delegates.