The NS responded last week to the BBC Trust’s review of
bbc.co.uk. The review found that, although bbc.co.uk was highly
valued by users, spending on the website was out of control, links
to external sites were poor, and the BBC local sites were among the
least valued and distinctive parts of the service.
David Newell, director of the NS, said:
“The BBC Trust has acknowledged the validity of the Newspaper
Society’s concerns over BBC local news online, which is using
sizeable sums of licence fee money to replicate services already
provided by local media companies and using its cross-promotional
power to attract audiences away from local media sites.
“The fact that the BBC management has been found so
lacking in financial control or accountability that it has
overspent on its website budget by £36m only underlines our
worries. The Trust has pointed out in its report that the BBC local
sites are among those not perceived to be original or different and
has stressed that more needs to be done to ensure that all parts of
bbc.co.uk are distinctive. Yet these are the areas of the website
into which the BBC wants to divert more public money, encroaching
further into the local news market.
“We will need to consider whether the measures outlined in
the Trust’s report would provide sufficiently effective controls to
safeguard plurality of local news for UK audiences."
One of the Trust’s three main conclusions was that “it is
essential that the service remains distinctive and the boundaries
in which it operates are strong enough to make this a
reality.”
Dame Patricia Hodgson, BBC
Trustee who let the review, said: “The Trust endorses
that management’s plans to develop the service further … but we
need to be sure that additional investment of licence fee payers’
money will deliver their expectations and – in doing so – does not
stifle enterprise from others who seek to offer excellent online
services to the public.”
Meanwhile, the BBC’s proposals to strengthen its local news
online with video content across 60 regions will be the subject of
a separate public value test. The NS will be responding formally on
this once the proposals have been published.
As well as 1300 core regional and local newspapers, the
industry has over 1100 websites, many with video streaming and
online audiovisual services, plus a variety of online service and
mobile telephone services, 750 magazines, 36 local radio stations
and even two traditional television channels.
"The local market is well-served and there is no gap which
the BBC needs to fill,” said David Newell.