1. Local TV in the UK
Oli Bird
Head of Licensing Policy, Ofcom, UK
Lokalrundfunktage, Nürnberg, 8 July 2014

2. Recent local TV developments in the UK
Up to 2010 Restricted Service Licences
2010-2011 New Government initiative
2011 Final policy and new legislation
2012 Ofcom given new powers
2012 onwards Ofcom awards the local TV licences
Current status 28 local licences awarded plus mux
licence; five services launched so far
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3. Up to 2010… ‘The old Local TV’
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• Local TV in the analogue era
• Restricted Service Licences and spectrum licences
– Limited geography
• Up to c.20 channels operating at some point
– But none for long periods, or with great success
• General scepticism. National or regional scale seen
as necessary for successful TV broadcasting

4. 2010
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5. Birmingham Alabama 8, Birmingham UK 0
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6. 5
Is it really 8 stations?

7. 6
US local TV advertising market is 12x larger per capita...

8. 2010-11: How to create local TV?
• Platform
• Industry structure
• Capital costs
• Discoverability
• On-going revenues
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9. 2010-11: How to create local TV?
• Platform
– DTT (most popular platform, free-to-access)
– Opportunity to use ‘interleaved’ spectrum (squeezed in
between national TV multiplexes)
• Industry structure
– Three options:
• National ‘spine’ channel with local opt-outs
– (not local enough)
• Completely independent local broadcasters
– (not co-ordinated enough)
• So: single multiplex plus local channels
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10. 2010-11: How to create local TV?
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• Capital costs
– BBC funding agreed in Government settlement
• Up to £25m to build-out the network
• Discoverability
– EPG prominence for local channels (like PSBs)
• On-going revenues
– BBC funding agreed (purchasing news content)
– Benefit from EPG prominence
– Regulatory relaxation to permit more advertising
– For multiplex: capacity for two commercial services

11. 2012: Implementation
Ofcom’s role:
• Licensing authority: awarding multiplex and local
licences;
• Regulator, e.g. local content;
• Continuing policy work and programme management

12. 2012: Implementation
How are local licences awarded? Beauty contest based on:
• Meeting needs of the local area;
• Broadening range;
• Increase range of programmes about the local area;
• Ability to maintain service

13. Content regulation
• Local regulation through ‘Programming Commitments’:
• Drafted by applicants, written into licence
• 250 word summary of service
• Hours of local programmes
• Advertising regulation: no limits on minutage where the
service is available only within the UK
• Otherwise, usual TV broadcasting regulation applies

14. Current status
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• 28 services
licensed
• Five launched
– Grimsby
– Norwich
– London
– Nottingham
– Glasgow
• More to come!