Why is the BBC just so bad at TV news?

Over on the BBC's dedicated news channel - formerly known as BBC News 24 - the lead item at 9pm was pensioner bonds, followed at a quick trot by reports on Prince Charles's fogeyish thoughts about Islamist militancy on the Ukraine on hospital trust finances on Labour promises and Tory rejoinders and on Tony Abbott's shaky majority in the Australian parliament. To spend any length of time with the BBC's rolling news is to be assailed, despite skilled presenters like Simon McCoy, by a terrible creeping blandness, because BBC News has its comfort zones where it dwells whenever possible. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

Trust gets petition to save BBC Three

17 February 2015 Last updated at 1705 Campaigners have delivered a petition signed by about 271,000 people asking the BBC to reconsider the decision to axe BBC Three as a digital television channel. A BBC spokesperson said 'With the licence fee frozen we've had to make some difficult choices in order to save pound800m a year, including moving BBC Three online. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Listeners complain about lost streams

The problem stems from the BBC switching off certain old systems used to deliver audio streams to particular devices. 5 live listeners who now get their station stream as an international Shoutcast are finding it's missing the sport as the BBC does not hold the international rights. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Independent review into TV Licence Enforcement seeks views

The Review is looking at options for changing the current enforcement measures, including the decriminalisation of TV licence evasion offences, and whether these options would represent an improvement to the existing system. Reform of current system leave the current offence as it stands but reform the current criminal enforcement system. - www.gov.uk

www.gov.uk

'Save BBC3' campaigners deliver petition to BBC Trust

Campaigners have delivered a petition signed by more than a quarter of a million people calling on the BBC not to axe digital station BBC3. The petition, signed by 271,222 people, was delivered to the BBC Trust, which has yet to rule on the plan to take the youth-oriented station online-only. quotJono Read, who set up the petition, saidquotOnly last month the BBC Trust claimed that they want to give power to the people rather than leaving important decisions within the hands of a 'small elite' management at the BBC. quotIf they genuinely mean this they will listen to the 270,000 people who have signed the Change.org petition against the closure of BBC3, and the views of key BBC3 talent who are dead set against the proposals. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

World Have Your Say TV faces axe

Only a year ago, this same team - currently led by acting editor David Mazower - faced the prospect of losing their jobs as part of cuts announced to the News division the World Service radio programme would go to save money. WHYS presenter Tilley takes up the argument, explaining that if the team had been told it was about the editorial direction of the programme, they'd hold their hands up and respect the decision of the people in charge of the channel. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

DTG :: News :: Ofcom approves use of innovative 'TV white space' wireless technology

White space spectrum in the TV frequency band appeals to industry because it can travel longer distances and more easily through walls than the bands used by other wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. This announcement follows a series of successful industry trials, where TV white space was used to serve innovative purposes, from internet access for ships in the Orkney Islands to video streaming of animals at ZSL London Zoo. DTG Testing played a key role in this development, carrying out comprehensive tests on 50 TVs, the results of which were used to verify Ofcom's framework for the power levels at which TV white space devices can operate without causing interference to TV. Ofcom is also exploring how the white space from other frequency bands can be used in the future. - dtg.org.uk

dtg.org.uk

Disused Stations: Palace Gates Station

In an attempt to capitalise on the popularity of the Palace as a tourist attraction the Great Eastern resurrected their line from Seven Sisters but this time it was a more modest scheme, terminating at a station called Palace Gates adjacent to the GNR's Wood Green station and avoiding the steep climb up to the Palace. The Palace Gates branch was at its height in the early 20th century with a 30-minute interval off-peak service to Liverpool Street with 41 up and 38 down trains between Palace Gates and Liverpool Street and an hourly weekday service to North Woolwich. - www.disused-stations.org.uk

www.disused-stations.org.uk

Anger over BBC radio streaming changes

The BBC is also working with the radio industry and manufacturers towards using just one standard, known as Mpeg Dash, which will be industry-wide and open source, said Andrew Scott, the BBC's head of radio music product. Changes to the Shoutcast stream have left the owners of devices receiving it unable to hear BBC Sport content, wrote Henry Webster, the BBC's head of media services, on the BBC Internet Blog. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

BBC and community reporters hook up

16 February 2015 Last updated at 1556 BBC local radio journalists will work with community reporters next week to tell new stories and bring new voices to each patch. The mentoring project is the first fruit of a new national agreement between the BBC and the Community Media Association, the UK representative body for the community broadcasting sector, that builds on earlier cooperation between the two groups at local level. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Virgin Media to expand cable footprint

Virgin Media, with the support of parent company Liberty Global, plans to expand its cable footprint to a further four million homes and businesses in the United Kingdom, taking its addressable market to 17 million premises. Liberty Global has a total of 14.80 million digital video customers in Europe, and a further 7.49 million analogue customers, giving a total of 23.10 million video customers and 16.13 million internet subscribers across the region. - informitv.com

informitv.com

SES BRINGS TOGETHER EXPERTS OF THE ULTRA HD ECOSYSTEM

While on the one hand, sales of UHD screens are expected to increase to two million by 2017, and the range of UHD devices is already widening - 75 models will be offered in 2015, on the other hand price erosion is also foreseen. Thomas Wrede, VP Reception Systems at SES, closed the event by stating that SES was very aware that the pace of innovation in UHD was challenging. - www.ses.com

www.ses.com

A time capsule of the BBC at Alexandra Palace?

In due course, most television production moved to Lime Grove studios in Shepherds Bush and then the BBC's new Television Centre. quotYou're brought through to Studio A, where it happened,quot he says, quotAnd Studio A is gradually revealed to you through a series of curtains, using sound and light and images and audio-visual presentation, dramatically using real characters to tell the story of the competing technologies, and the amazingly cobbled-together but dramatic moment when they began to broadcast, and beyond into colour television and all the things that happened here. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

://A time capsule of the BBC at Alexandra Palace

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Feedback: Do we need more good news? 13 Feb 15

downloads.bbc.co.uk

Audio Factory: update

We have retained a single SHOUTcast stream of each service using the mp3 codec to support devices that cannot support these protocols. We have been communicating our plans to manufacturers and aggregators for the last 12 months but we are aware that some devices will not be able to receive these new formats, or there may be gaps in service as manufacturers work to deliver upgrades to devices to make them compatible with our new streams. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

#23 - Premier League rights, ITV ratings, radio listening figures - The Media Podcast with Olly Mann

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DTG :: News :: DTG Testing hits 100 product milestone for Digital Radio Tick Mark

DTG Testing, the UK's only accredited house testing against the Digital Radio Tick Mark specification, has successfully tested more than 100 different DAB products. Ed Vaizey, Minister of Culture and the Digital Economy, recently announced the single biggest expansion of local digital radio coverage-182 new digital transmitters-which will provide eight million more people with access to their local radio stations by 2016. - dtg.org.uk

dtg.org.uk

NBC s opportunity BuzzMachine

NBC has a chance to reinvent television news without the plastic personality, the manufactured celebrity, the staged reality, the smarmy transitions, the bullshit BREAKING NEWS, the weather panic, the repetition, the predictability, the sensationalism, the insulting simplicity, the false balance, the lying anchor, and the single point of failure that has been its business model. The entire structure of NBC news is still built around Brian Williams The news is who reads it. - buzzmachine.com

buzzmachine.com

DTG :: News :: DTG welcomes Freeview Play connected TV brand update

The D-Book8 DTT Interoperability specification will lay the technical bedrock for a robust hybrid service as it evolves beyond traditional broadcast TV. Digital UK and DTG Testing have already signed an agreement to develop a test suite for Freeview Play, which DTG Testing is now building with leading CE manufacturers. The ongoing cooperation between Freeview, the DTG and Digital UK builds on the success and experience of Freeview HD, developing the technical framework and managing conformance of products entering the retail market, which has seen it become the UK's most-watched high definition TV platform. - dtg.org.uk

dtg.org.uk

SES BRINGS ULTRA HD DEMO CHANNEL TO THE UK AND IRELAND

Luxembourg, 12 February 2015 - SES S.A. announced today that its Ultra High Definition demonstration channel is now available in the UK and Ireland. SES is the world-leading satellite operator with a fleet of more than 50 geostationary satellites. - www.ses.com

www.ses.com

Freeview Play takes on YouView, adds catch-up directly in EPG

Freeview has announced its newly rebranded service, Freeview Play. Guy North, Freeview managing director said quotFreeview has been built on a vision to make television available to all free from subscription. In the same way that we took the UK from analogue to digital, Freeview Play is the next step in that vision and it will put the viewer in control, without complexity, commitment or unnecessary cost - we want to keep television fair and open for everyone. That means giving consumers the freedom to choose the TV they want, the way they want it. - www.pocket-lint.com

www.pocket-lint.com

Asia Radio Today

The overall figures 89 of the UK listens to radio once a week, and we listen to a total of 21.3 hours a week. Listening via DAB radio - the UK's kind-of equivalent of HD - is at an all-time high, at 25. And streaming of live radio via the internet actually dropped last quarter, though the trend continues to grow. - asiaradiotoday.com

asiaradiotoday.com

BBC fights back after Sun splash

The Sun slammed the BBC on Wednesday for paying 65 MPs around pound200,000 over five years to take part in its radio and television programmes. The Sun called the fees a 'scandal', but the BBC said it was glad the paper 'enjoys holding the BBC to account and challenging us - it keeps us on our toes and makes sure the licence fee is well spent'. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Media: Protecting journalists' sources; American news anchors; football rights; Sports Radio

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PMQs: Cameron announces free train wi-fi from 2017

He was asked about improving communications for business people, commuters and students by former Tory cabinet minister Maria Miller, who claimed quotOur trains are stuck in the analogue agequot. BBC Politics Live - text and video updates through the day. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Broadchurch fails to halt ITV's record January ratings slump

ITV's woes have been compounded by a run of poorly rating factual shows, including The Wonder of Britain, the first ITV series fronted by former Countryfile presenter Julia Bradbury, which was pulled last month after two episodes. Its share including ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4 and its recently launched sister networks, entertainment and lifestyle channel ITVBe and premium drama channel, ITV Encore, had a combined 20.5 share of viewing in January, according to figures seen by MediaGuardian. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

DTG :: News :: New HbbTV specification enhances consumer TV services

quotKlaus Illgner, chairman of the HbbTV Association, saidquotThe HbbTV Association is pleased to announce the HbbTV 2.0 specification which sets the stage to introduce exciting new services in 2016. quotWith HbbTV 2.0, consumers will be able to explore a richer, more immersive experience with new applications, exciting user interfaces and support for companion devices. This is an important milestone for the industry and represents the efforts of HbbTV Association members who have worked to define the specifications for the next wave of TV based on HbbTV. - dtg.org.uk

dtg.org.uk

Dishs Sling TV to Add AMC to $20 Monthly Internet Package, Launches Nationwide

Dish Network soon will add AMC - home of shows like quotThe Walking Dead,quot quotBetter Call Saulquot and quotMad Menquot - to the core 20-per-month Sling TV service, which it is launching nationwide in the U.S Monday with 14 cable channels including ESPN. quotWe flipped the switch this morning opening up Sling TV to all consumers, and we're giving them something they've been asking for AMC,quot Roger Lynch, CEO of Dish's Sling TV division. - variety.com

variety.com

Multichannel television remains relevant

The survey of over 2,000 multiplatform viewers found that 20 of those who have multichannel services said they were likely to cut their traditional pay-television services, while 25 of multiplatform viewers who do not have or have never had a multichannel service said they were likely to start subscribing to one. The overwhelming majority of those with both an online subscription video service and multichannel television are not ready to give up easy access to television channels, even when presented with the option of adding standalone services like HBO, Showtime or CBS. Three quarters of those with multichannel television rated access to broadcast networks as the main advantage and two thirds said that broadcast primetime dramas or comedies are essential. - informitv.com

informitv.com

Not in front of the telly: Warning over 'listening' TV

In response to the widespread sharing of its policy statement, Samsung has issued a statement to clarify how voice activation works. Samsung said quotIf a consumer consents and uses the voice recognition feature, voice data is provided to a third party during a requested voice command search. At that time, the voice data is sent to a server, which searches for the requested content then returns the desired content to the TV.quot. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

UKTV Play launches on Android

UK media company UKTV has launched its TV application UKTV Play on Android. Dan Fahy, UKTV's Director, Commercial and Business Development, said the broadcaster had created UKTV Play so that viewers could watch UKTV's great shows anytime, anywhere. - advanced-television.com

advanced-television.com

BBC Radio 6 Music leads the way as radios digital revolution gathers momentum

I went into a model railway shop and in the workshop in the back they had a radio tuned to 6 Music. It took us a long time to get there but to me it indicated that digital radio has really broken through said Lamacq. The proportion of in-home radio listening via digital platforms such as digital audio broadcasting radios grew to 46.2 per cent in the final three months of last year, overtaking analogue. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

BBC Trust must take a hard look at itself

Last week saw Rona Fairhead, the new chair of the BBC Trust, give her first major public speech. I remember watching Sir Christopher Bland, newly arrived as BBC chairman with a reputation for being his own man, make one of his first speeches in the mid-90s. Senior executives became visibly more relaxed as he complimented the BBC and its then strategy. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Our unique television culture needs friends in high places

Except if you are a Conservative activist, commentator or backbench MP. They stare glumly at British television in the hands of an allegedly liberal, well-paid mafia undermining the moral fibre of the country, abusing the quotPoll taxquot of the licence fee unashamedly to advance a liberal worldview and consistently airing the grievances and stories of enemies of the Conservative party. The Conservative aim is to cut licence fee revenue back even more, perhaps recycling it to other broadcasters. - gu.com

gu.com

Why it is better for golf if BBC makes itself scarce on the fairways

The facts suggest that years of free-to-air Open Championships have done nothing to affect the decline of golf as a participation sport. The truth is that the BBC is well out of golf, or at least out of a massive commitment to one of the sport's two domestic showpieces. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Ed Vaizey announces major digital radio expansion

The Minister highlighted progress made on the transition to digital radio over the last four years - more than 61 per cent of new cars now come with digital radio as standard, up from 43.5 per cent in Q4 2013 and only 4.4 per cent in Q1 2010 at the beginning of the Government's Digital Radio Action Plan. Dee Ford, CEO of Bauer Media, says quotBauer is the leading commercial digital radio broadcaster with over 51 per cent of our listening already digital. Our distinctive station formats are showing significant growth, and we have further invested in local DAB with the launch of 12 new stations. In addition, we have a strong commitment to National DAB radio with our Sound Digital bid for the second National digital multiplex. - media.info

media.info

#22B - Matt Price on the Future of the Press - The Media Podcast With Olly Mann

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Ed Vaizey updates industry with DAB plan

Dee Ford, CEO of Bauer Media, says quotBauer is the leading commercial digital radio broadcaster with over 51 per cent of our listening already digital. Our distinctive station formats are showing significant growth, and we have further invested in local DAB with the launch of 12 new stations. In addition, we have a strong commitment to National DAB radio with our Sound Digital bid for the second National digital multiplex. Jon Oliver, Category Manager - Tech, Halfords, says quotHalfords is committed to offer our customers the widest range of in-car digital radio in the market with the richly superior listening experience that it offers, and we welcome the significant coverage improvements and the expansion of choice of stations. From early April, all of our digital radio car stereos will be digital tick approved, and with our in-store expertise and nationwide fitting service across 467 shops, will drive further awareness with consumers. - radiotoday.co.uk

radiotoday.co.uk

Manchester local TV station in doubt

The future of the Sir Michael Lyons-backed local television station YourTV Manchester has been thrown into doubt after it has failed to get on air two years after receiving a licence. Industry sources have indicated that it is very unlikely that YourTV Manchester, which is chaired by former BBC Trust boss Lyons, will meet its transmission deadline. Ofcom has confirmed it is in talks with the service.. - www.broadcastnow.co.uk

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

BBC licence fee: decriminalisation of non-payment pushed back until 2017

quotA BBC spokesman saidquotWe're working with the government's review into licence fee enforcement, and have always maintained that any changes to the licence fee system need to take into account the full effects on the BBC's income, and should only be made in tandem with the next licence fee settlement. The debate about the BBC's charter renewal and future of the licence fee will not begin in earnest until after the general election in May. Rona Fairhead, chair of the BBC Trust, used a speech on Tuesday to warn the government there was no public appetite for political interference in the BBC in a bid to avoid a repeat of the quotShotgunquot licence fee deal of 2010 that ushered in a new era of cuts at the corporation. - gu.com

gu.com

Birminghams local TV channel set to launch on February 28

The fledgling station, co-owned by former ATV presenter Mike Prince and ex-teacher Chris Perry, is due to launch at 6pm on Saturday February 28, and will broadcast from Walsall Studio School. quotPeter Stack, creative director and head of sixth form at the Studio School, which is based in the town's Goldmine Centre, saidquotOur philosophy is to bring the place of work to the school. - www.birminghammail.co.uk

www.birminghammail.co.uk

BBC: 6 Music and Radio 4 Extra lead digital charge

Radio 6 Music and Radio 4 Extra have both gained their biggest-ever audiences - with 6 Music becoming the first digital-only radio station to reach two million weekly listeners - according to data published by RAJAR. All BBC Radio's weekly reach over the period was 34.80 million and a share of 52.8. Radio 1 attracted 10.43 million listeners during the period with a share of 6.6, continuing to reach around 40 of the country's 15-24-year-olds. - media.info

media.info

Crack appears in BBC basement at ?1bn New Broadcasting House | Media | The Guardian

After the BBC spent pound1bn on redeveloping and building New Broadcasting House the corporation could be forgiven for thinking there would be few problems with its high-tech new central London headquarters. He went on to say it was, quotActually quicker to pop out to the Yorkshire Greyquot a nearby pub to quotBuy a pint and use their toilet than to find a working one in BHquot. Andy Baker, in charge of the building's management, said any building housing so many staff would encounter problems. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

25 per cent of all radio listening is now DAB

KISSTORY has over a million digital listeners, the Smooth network is up 41 and has nearly 2 million weekly listeners on digital, and LBC's digital listening was up 20 year on year thanks to its national coverage. Ford Ennals, CEO of Digital Radio UK, says quotThe shift to digital listening continues, with digital listening in home now overtaking analogue listening, and DAB is leading the way. The fact that over 25 of radio listening is now on DAB and the success of the national commercial stations on the Digital One DAB network strongly makes the case for the benefits of the launch of D2 - the second national DAB network. - radiotoday.co.uk

radiotoday.co.uk

When Netflix and other on-demand services killed the TV ad golden goose

Despite mounting evidence that viewers have been abandoning live viewing, Nielsen has not produced a viable system for counting all those non-linear views. Given viewers' strong preference for watching TV on their own schedules, PVR viewing numbers are only going to rise. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Sky vows to ramp-up spending on original British content

Speaking after Sky announced a 16 rise in adjusted operating profit in its first results since its pound5bn acquisition of Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland last November, Darroch said the focus on content and a push into drama was paying dividends in terms of improving people's perception of Sky. quotWe've seen recently a sea change now in terms of perception of Sky's content over the last few years. If you ask customers today who's the leader in terms of entertainment, slightly more than half will say Sky - well above even the likes of the BBC, Virgin and others. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Media: Head of BBC Trusts first major speech; the battle for sports rights; Skys Fortitude.

downloads.bbc.co.uk

World Service cuts back on medium wave broadcasts

Fran Unsworth, the director of the World Service, says 'Our English language service will still be available via satellite and on the internet - which is increasingly how our audiences tune in. The BBC took over the cost of the World Service from the Foreign Office in April 2014. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk