CHANNEL 4 FAVOUR RADICAL APPRAISAL

CHANNEL 4 have announced that they are strongly in favour of a radical re-appraisal of the communications regulation.
The broadcaster argues that in order to recognise that convergence is a reality, Channel 4 see the White Paper and any subsequent legislation as an opportunity to create a more open and equitable regime for all content and service providers.
Channel 4 hope it will be used to deal with issues such as the removal of largely redundant technical criteria imposed on broadcasters, the need to maintain high standards of training across the country, and the need to resolve growing anomalies in the way in which some public service broadcaster functions, notably education, are commissioned and funded.
Executives at Channel 4 are strongly in favour of Channel 4 remaining a public service broadcaster with a remit to provide both complementarity and competition to the BBC, the ITV companies and Channel 5.
Believing that the current five terrestrial broadcasters should continue to have a range of public service responsibilities, and firing a broadside at ITV who continue to hold out against satellite carriage, Channel 4 say viewers should have the right to access these public service channels at no extra cost on the main platforms.
However, Channel 4 remains opposed to any significant relaxation of media ownership rules, claiming that a relaxation of these regulations would distort the advertising markets to the “great disadvantage of some broadcasters, including Channel 4, with no discernible benefit to viewers or the industry”.
(CD)