The BBC wastes vast amounts of the licence fee on “big-name” presenters, imported US television shows and sports rights at the expense of quality programming, according to an independent review by the Policy Exchange think tank.
The corporation spends a disproportionately high amount of its £3.5 billion a year licence fee income on chasing the 16-35 age group through digital channels such as BBC Three, it said. "Star" salaries also came in for criticism.
It proposed a radical overhaul of the corporation, including the abolition of the BBC Trust governing body and the establishment of an external regulator which would monitor the BBC's spending of the licence fee. Other proposals included the sell-off of BBC Worldwide. It suggested that the public service broadcasting system, which aims to provide programmes of value to society, is not working. Both ITV and Channel 4 have PSB obligations but the report said ITV should be allowed to opt out, spelling the end of its regional news bulletins.
The report's author, Mark Oliver, an ex-government adviser and former head of strategy at the BBC, said the corporation's desire to chase audiences across all age groups was illustrated by its sports coverage, outbidding rivals for the FA Cup and Formula One coverage because they appeal to working class and lower middle class men under 40, a group which the BBC finds difficult to attract.
Channel 4 and Sky have complained that the BBC drives up the price of sport and US imports. It paid £400,000 per episode for Heroes, broadcast on BBC Two, which in turn forced up the cost of shows such as Channel 4's Desperate Housewives.
The report also criticised the BBC for spending millions on the iPlayer catch-up service, Freesat and Project Canvas, a plan to deliver television via the internet.
Amongst its recommendations, the Policy Exchange called for the BBC Trust to be scrapped. It said the Trust had not been able to hold the corporation to account in the face of scandals such as 'Sachsgate', the scandal involving Ross and the comedian Russell Brand, the report said. The calls come after Ben Bradshaw, the culture secretary, suggested last September that the Trust be abolished and said the corporation had probably reached the limits of "reasonable expansion".
Responding to the proposals, a BBC Trust spokeswoman said that the Trust had been focused on protecting the public value and independence of the BBC against inappropriate political or commercial influence. Anyone proposing change to the current governance arrangements must demonstrate that they won't put either that value or that independence at risk.
It’s high time that the BBC was slimmed down and returned to its core business of supplying a proper public broadcasting service. The overblown size and totally disproportionate salaries and fees paid to executives and “stars” are not only insulting to the licence fee payers, but also seem to be increasing costs for other media.
Can an incoming government please act quickly to restore some sanity to this tax black hole?
Source:
The corporation spends a disproportionately high amount of its £3.5 billion a year licence fee income on chasing the 16-35 age group through digital channels such as BBC Three, it said. "Star" salaries also came in for criticism.
It proposed a radical overhaul of the corporation, including the abolition of the BBC Trust governing body and the establishment of an external regulator which would monitor the BBC's spending of the licence fee. Other proposals included the sell-off of BBC Worldwide. It suggested that the public service broadcasting system, which aims to provide programmes of value to society, is not working. Both ITV and Channel 4 have PSB obligations but the report said ITV should be allowed to opt out, spelling the end of its regional news bulletins.
The report's author, Mark Oliver, an ex-government adviser and former head of strategy at the BBC, said the corporation's desire to chase audiences across all age groups was illustrated by its sports coverage, outbidding rivals for the FA Cup and Formula One coverage because they appeal to working class and lower middle class men under 40, a group which the BBC finds difficult to attract.
Channel 4 and Sky have complained that the BBC drives up the price of sport and US imports. It paid £400,000 per episode for Heroes, broadcast on BBC Two, which in turn forced up the cost of shows such as Channel 4's Desperate Housewives.
The report also criticised the BBC for spending millions on the iPlayer catch-up service, Freesat and Project Canvas, a plan to deliver television via the internet.
Amongst its recommendations, the Policy Exchange called for the BBC Trust to be scrapped. It said the Trust had not been able to hold the corporation to account in the face of scandals such as 'Sachsgate', the scandal involving Ross and the comedian Russell Brand, the report said. The calls come after Ben Bradshaw, the culture secretary, suggested last September that the Trust be abolished and said the corporation had probably reached the limits of "reasonable expansion".
Responding to the proposals, a BBC Trust spokeswoman said that the Trust had been focused on protecting the public value and independence of the BBC against inappropriate political or commercial influence. Anyone proposing change to the current governance arrangements must demonstrate that they won't put either that value or that independence at risk.
It’s high time that the BBC was slimmed down and returned to its core business of supplying a proper public broadcasting service. The overblown size and totally disproportionate salaries and fees paid to executives and “stars” are not only insulting to the licence fee payers, but also seem to be increasing costs for other media.
Can an incoming government please act quickly to restore some sanity to this tax black hole?
Source:
