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Where should the BBC cut costs?

(August 2007)

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CR
crais
623058 posted:
five used to fill the nightime with US sport

C4; used it to show films and repeat of Daytime show like countdown at 5am.

BBC2: used it for Education.

there are good uses of the night slots.


agreed & repeats can be useful or reruns of shows that would never be shown in more desirable time slots
PA
Paul02
crais posted:
I definitely don't think the BBC should waste money on new idents, in fact they think they should stop wasting as much as they do on them. I can only comment for myself but when I tune into the BBC I'm tuning in for a programme not some 30 Second ident that cost £100,000 or something stupid like that. If they must insist on commissioning new ones why not have a competition informing art colleges, film schools and such like that the winning entries will be used. The winners themselves win say five grand and further opportunities at the BBC.


I find the current practice of multi-idents and a repetitive style of promotions to be utterly moronic.

One ident, refreshed every two or three years, with promotions style refreshed each season is a far more intelligent approach to channel presentation.
TV
tvarksouthwest
Try telling that to the marketing men! It's half the problem with modern TV branding - none of it is designed to be "futureproof".

We are forever told that in this world where there are scores of channels, it is important that channels have branding which makes them stand out yet unfortunately most end up copying each other. BBC1 does "people idents" - ITV1 says "me too!" C4 incorporates its logo into landscapes etc - five does something similar!

I'm not sure a single ident for each channel is the right approach now but certainly in the days of the COW, mirror globe etc. you knew right away which channel you were watching.
IS
Inspector Sands
tvarksouthwest posted:

A channel with stuff worth showing round-the-clock is an oxymoron, unless it's a rolling news channel. Any others that broadcast 24 hours have to rely on repeats or trashy phone-ins to fill the overnight hours..


Nonsense. It's perfectly possible. It might not be full of what you or I want to watch but there's no reason why a channel can't put decent programems on 24 hours a day.

And just because something is a repeat doesn't mean that it's not worth showing!
GI
gilsta
Inspector Sands posted:
r2ro posted:
gilsta posted:

I don't understand how the Beeb can moan about budget cuts when you consider the salaries of the likes of Jonathan Ross, Terry Wogan, Chris Moyles or, even worse, the spineless board members.


Admittedly that would be the easiest solution to cost cutting by simply reducing their salaries to something more realistic (similar to what should be done with footballers etc.)


Then it would be 'Goodbye BBC.... Hello Virgin Radio/ITV'

If they want the best presenters (and Ross/Moyles are the best in their respective fields) then they have to pay the going rate. The BBC aren't immune from whatever the commercial sectro will pay


I would suggest Ross and Moyles are paid well above the "going rate". And its arguable whether the BBC's job is to pay existing talent vast retainers or promote emerging talent.
AS
Aston
tvarksouthwest posted:
Inspector Sands posted:
There are some areas where they can quite easily cut costs without effecting programming.... becaus ethose departments don't make any programming!

Of course. The closing down of the entire marketing department for one, or at least scaling them back and limiting their activities only to off-air promotion of BBC services and programmes. And the sack for Clare Wildey.

Failing that, less lavish trails/promotions and those that remain voiced by the usual CAs instead of actors with trendy voices. More input from the CAs such as programme menus and slides.

That should at least mean a few less wage packets having to be paid...while earlier "bedtimes" for BBC2, and startup put back to 7am, would cut both repeats and transmission expenses.


Oh seriously Simon, you really can't let go of the past can you?

Having the CA's voice programme trails is hardly going to save the Corporation enough money to stop 5% cuts everywhere else...
MA
markstewart
Aston posted:
tvarksouthwest posted:
Inspector Sands posted:
There are some areas where they can quite easily cut costs without effecting programming.... becaus ethose departments don't make any programming!

Of course. The closing down of the entire marketing department for one, or at least scaling them back and limiting their activities only to off-air promotion of BBC services and programmes. And the sack for Clare Wildey.

Failing that, less lavish trails/promotions and those that remain voiced by the usual CAs instead of actors with trendy voices. More input from the CAs such as programme menus and slides.

That should at least mean a few less wage packets having to be paid...while earlier "bedtimes" for BBC2, and startup put back to 7am, would cut both repeats and transmission expenses.


Oh seriously Simon, you really can't let go of the past can you?

Having the CA's voice programme trails is hardly going to save the Corporation enough money to stop 5% cuts everywhere else...


He does have a point though. This lavish digital age isn't really worth anything without the good content in the first place. What's the point in 'moving forward' into an apparently such great new era if they can't even afford the programming that made them popular in the first place?
TT
Tumble Tower
Nick Harvey posted:
They could close the Bristol Centre completely, sack the entire Points West team and merge the West and South-West regions.

That would save a shilling or three.

Why should the BBC merge the West and South West regions? The south west is too big an area for one TV region. Think about it, does someone living in Gloucestershire, Bristol or Wiltshire really want to know what's going on in Devon and Cornwall, or vice versa?
:-(
A former member
that depends if there alot of news in that part of the country, so if....

Top story:
Local farmer loses Sheep, local know to the police is prime suspect Laughing SORRY

if that the main news, then maybe a bigger news area is required.

but you could have sub regions within the main bulletin, that could work

back on topic how about BBC parliament?
PA
Paul02
tvarksouthwest posted:
Try telling that to the marketing men! It's half the problem with modern TV branding - none of it is designed to be "futureproof".

We are forever told that in this world where there are scores of channels, it is important that channels have branding which makes them stand out yet unfortunately most end up copying each other. BBC1 does "people idents" - ITV1 says "me too!" C4 incorporates its logo into landscapes etc - five does something similar!

I'm not sure a single ident for each channel is the right approach now but certainly in the days of the COW, mirror globe etc. you knew right away which channel you were watching.


But what about the repetitive nature of the promotions ?

I mean, it's just so incredibly tedious- the message the viewer gets is that whatever is being advertised is just like the programmes that were being advertised last week/last month/last year/the year before/... or are the channel controllers just being honest [sarcasm] ?
TV
tvarksouthwest
Aston posted:
Oh seriously Simon, you really can't let go of the past can you?

So why force the issue if you know what you say won't change my opinion?

Quote:
But what about the repetitive nature of the promotions ?

I mean, it's just so incredibly tedious- the message the viewer gets is that whatever is being advertised is just like the programmes that were being advertised last week/last month/last year/the year before/... or are the channel controllers just being honest [sarcasm] ?

It IS incredibly tedious and is turning people off certain programmes. The Restaurant and Maxwell, for example. Even Panorama got the saturation promo in every other junction last week. What about all the programmes that don't get mentioned at all because all the energy goes into pushing specific titles? Bring back slides, slot them in between the trails and a greater range of programmes will get plugged.
PA
Paul02
tvarksouthwest posted:

Quote:
But what about the repetitive nature of the promotions ?

I mean, it's just so incredibly tedious- the message the viewer gets is that whatever is being advertised is just like the programmes that were being advertised last week/last month/last year/the year before/... or are the channel controllers just being honest [sarcasm] ?

It IS incredibly tedious and is turning people off certain programmes. The Restaurant and Maxwell, for example. Even Panorama got the saturation promo in every other junction last week. What about all the programmes that don't get mentioned at all because all the energy goes into pushing specific titles? Bring back slides, slot them in between the trails and a greater range of programmes will get plugged.


I agree with all of that.

I wonder what the rationale is for not having a run down of the menu of programmes for peak-time ? (I suppose The ONE Show gets in the way now on BBC1, but I think that programme shouldn't be in peak-time- if at all- and, otherwise, news programmes should be more focussed and last 5 minutes less each anyway.)

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