TV
The government has finally given the BBC the go-ahead to launch youth station BBC Three, but has insisted strict conditions on its output.
Culture secretary Tessa Jowell announced the decision this morning, saying that the corporation had "now made the case" for the channel, which will replace BBC Choice.
"The BBC has now made the case for BBC3," she said. "It has been a long, sometimes arduous process, but the negotiations have led to the toughest set of conditions ever issued in giving the green light to a TV channel."
The conditions state that 80% of programming must be specially commissioned for the channel, and 90% of all output should be produced in Europe. Jowell added that a review would be undertaken two years after launch to ensure the conditions were effective.
"I am determined BBC3 should be a distinctive public service channel that is not competing with what is already out there in a vigorous market place. The channel will be reviewed after two years to ensure this is the case. I believe the revised format will see BBC Three emerge as a real powerhouse for new talent, within which the independent sector will have a strong voice. It will be a first for British broadcasting.
"This is a something for something deal. The BBC gets the go ahead for BBC Three and in return viewers get a new channel which is genuinely distinctive, genuinely public service and genuinely innovative."
Naturally, the BBC welcomed the decision.
"We would like to thank the Secretary of State for the approval she has given today," said BBC chairman Gavyn Davies. "She has laid out some demanding conditions in the approval but the Governors agree that BBC Three must be a high quality and distinctive public service channel and we shall ensure that those conditions are met. BBC Three completes the BBC's portfolio of TV channels for the digital age and will help promote digital take up."
Director-General Greg Dyke said that the channel would launch in the new year. "BBC Three is central in our drive to connect with young audiences. This has been a tough decision for the Secretary of State and, looking back, I think she was right to push us to define the channel more clearly. The new channel will be launched in the New Year, and I'm confident that it will bring a new public service concept to this currently underserved audience."
Culture secretary Tessa Jowell announced the decision this morning, saying that the corporation had "now made the case" for the channel, which will replace BBC Choice.
"The BBC has now made the case for BBC3," she said. "It has been a long, sometimes arduous process, but the negotiations have led to the toughest set of conditions ever issued in giving the green light to a TV channel."
The conditions state that 80% of programming must be specially commissioned for the channel, and 90% of all output should be produced in Europe. Jowell added that a review would be undertaken two years after launch to ensure the conditions were effective.
"I am determined BBC3 should be a distinctive public service channel that is not competing with what is already out there in a vigorous market place. The channel will be reviewed after two years to ensure this is the case. I believe the revised format will see BBC Three emerge as a real powerhouse for new talent, within which the independent sector will have a strong voice. It will be a first for British broadcasting.
"This is a something for something deal. The BBC gets the go ahead for BBC Three and in return viewers get a new channel which is genuinely distinctive, genuinely public service and genuinely innovative."
Naturally, the BBC welcomed the decision.
"We would like to thank the Secretary of State for the approval she has given today," said BBC chairman Gavyn Davies. "She has laid out some demanding conditions in the approval but the Governors agree that BBC Three must be a high quality and distinctive public service channel and we shall ensure that those conditions are met. BBC Three completes the BBC's portfolio of TV channels for the digital age and will help promote digital take up."
Director-General Greg Dyke said that the channel would launch in the new year. "BBC Three is central in our drive to connect with young audiences. This has been a tough decision for the Secretary of State and, looking back, I think she was right to push us to define the channel more clearly. The new channel will be launched in the New Year, and I'm confident that it will bring a new public service concept to this currently underserved audience."
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