ITV Wales to outsource local news

Indeed in fact LWT sub-contracted their news service out before LNN came along too, from when they launched it in about 1988

The initial pilot scheme starting next year is Scotland, Wales and one English region

http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/news/091119tmconsortium.shtml

Newspaper publisher Trinity Mirror and news agency Press Association have joined forces to bid for the new regional TV pilot scheme.

The duo has formed a consortium with TV production company Ten Alps in the hope of being granted the licence to make news programmes for the North East region of England.

Proposals to launch three pilot TV news projects – covering Wales, Scotland and one English region – were outlined in the Digital Britain report in the summer and given further backing in the Queen's Speech yesterday.

The proposed news consortia will take over the provision of regional news on Channel 3 from 2013 with licences for the pilot schemes due to be awarded in March.

The consortium combines PA's experience in covering and commissioning content, Trinity Mirror's news operations in the region, including daily newspapers in Newcastle and Middlesbrough, and Ten Alps' programme-making skills.

The group has been in discussion with a number of organisations within the North East and plans to announce additional partners soon.

TM chief executive Sly Bailey said: "The North East region is home to 2.4m adults meaning it is large enough to host a fully robust pilot of scale, while also being compact enough to launch quickly and cost effectively.

"The area is highly representative of Britain with its mix of urban centres and rural communities.

"We are convinced that our plans for the North East are the ideal blueprint and will offer crucial learning experiences to the industry ahead of the full national roll-out of local news consortia."

PA managing director Tony Watson said: "One of the essential criteria being stipulated by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is that the pilot must go live quickly and deliver an enhanced offering across not just TV but also digital platforms – and all within a very tight timeframe.

"The advantage the North East has over other regions is that it is the right size to allow for swift development of the multi-layered service the DCMS is seeking.

"With the consortium partners we have in place, we believe we can launch an innovative new service in the North East fast, and to a high standard."

Chief executive of Ten Alps Alex Connock said: "The consortium partners have a clear view of our respective roles and how we would dovetail together.

"We are all very excited about the potential for creating something original and fresh that isn't just about a TV show but spans a range of online channels as well."

The story on Hold the Front Page isn't quite accurate.

*If the Conservatives win the election (obviously a high chance given the opinion polls) the scheme won't happen. They've said clearly that there'll be no tv licence money or other public money for the independent news providers. To be blunt It just won't be happening. If the Tories win, you can forget about regional news on ITV (at least in England) from 2012 unless ITV should have a change of heart. The party's policy is to look at whether local stations can be developed along the Channel M line with no public subsidy.

*We still don't know which English region the pilot will be in.

*We only have vague info about the bidding process and how much money will be available. More info will of course be available before the process finally gets underway. Frankly they'd better hurry up and get the process underway if it's to be complete before the election.

The current situation is that the 3 contracts will be given out at the beginning of next year, with programmes starting possibly as early as April: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/nov/16/itv-regional-news-pilots so by the time the election happens it'll be too late, not that it would be a top priority for an incoming Tory government

Topslicing the license fee has been put off until 2012: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/nov/17/bbc-fears-licence-fee-itv so that certainly isn't a show-stopper to the pilots

But then who knows what will happen, the 3 pilots plus the current ITV programmes could continue through to 2012 and then whichever government is in might have another idea, just because the Tories have said something now certainly doesn't mean that they'll stick with it. You can be sure that if the 3 pilots are a roaring success they won't be ditching them

My own view is that, from the public's point of view, the programmes in Wales and the designated English region won't be that different from any of the current programmes - just provided by different people. It's a bit different in Scotland where STV has some radical proposals and may well win the contract itself.

In that sense in England and Wales it'll be a bit like an old fashioned franchise change. Things may alter superficially, there may be different presenters and reporters, some new ideas will be introduced which may or may not work - and for a few weeks some viewers will go on about how things just aren't the same.

After a few weeks people will get used to the new look. The ratings probably won't vary widely from the current programmes if everything goes well. To all intents and purposes, it'll be the ITV regional news but paid for in a different way. If the Conservatives aren't prepared to fund them after 2012, the row will really be about the disappearance of regional news on ITV - not the three pilots.

From the public's point of view, the disappearance of some of the regions and sub regions was more significant.

By the way, the idea of public funding for programmes shown on ITV isn't completely new - in Scotland we've had it for Gaelic programmes since 1993. (Although, of course, it's certain that virtually all Gaelic will be moved to BBC Alba within a couple of years.)

But surely the first time that staff have actually been told to look for new jobs in 2013?

Have they actually been told that? Wales' new ITV news provider will start in the next 6 months.

Besides I'd have thought that the ITV staff will transfer over where possible under TUPE

Having been involved in TUPE arrangements myself this does throw up some issues,

The TUPE regulations will be interesting, it all depends as to how this is handled. If the new provider is licensed (or microfranchised) by Ofcom then ITV could reasonably say that they are no longer providing a service and end the contracts without TUPE applying. If the new providers are appointed by ITV then TUPE will obviously apply. If as is widely expected some former regions will reappear it would seem reasonable to expect the licensing/microfranchising route to apply throughout.