Is the BBC sharing its video content with newspapers really something that is being done in the public interest?
29th July, 2009 by Alick
I’m not at all sure it is. I’d say, from the BBC’s point of view it’s a great distribution deal. But if I were trying to provide a competitive service, I’d really wonder how I was able to compete. What are ITN supposed to do in the face of this? Give their content away? Maybe they won’t even be able to give it away. For example, if I was head of content at one of the newspapers which is now aggregating BBC video, why would I need ITN’s content? And, if to compete, ITN needs the distribution, then surely it pays newspapers for it.
I would have also have thought that the BBC’s intention to make its content available to other UK based websites isn’t something it’s chosen to do. I’d say it’s something in which it has no choice. What it gives away free to the big four groups it has done today, surely it has to do for everyone – nationals, regionals, TV, radio and mobile. If I start up miggle news tomorrow, surely I’d be entitled to it too?
Don’t get me wrong. I think the BBC is magic. Its content is fantastic and it does some brilliant things online. It’s got a fantastic, well known and trusted brand. We all own it, we all know where to find it. That to me is all there should be to it.
In terms of content there is only really, in the UK, one credible competitor to the BBC. The newspapers that are associated with that group, who’ve recently suggested that their content online is something they might charge for, were not included in today’s announcement. Why is that I wonder?
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