[CMA] Ofcom's review of the Community Radio sector

Mon Nov 27 18:47:09 GMT 2006

Hi all

Of course there are concerns...and for those who were at the fantastic festival and AGM this was one of the issues raised. It's really difficult on what the right method is or what targets should remain or be set on this issue.

In one hand I do fear that if all the restrictions were lifted then there would be few who would solely seek advertising and just playing music to justify their need for community station without anything else.
It also wouldn’t be fair on those who are trying to pay the rent, keep the transmitter from switching off if the electricity suddenly wasn’t paid. Ok this might seem a bad analogy but reality. Passion of your station only goes so far and usually not more than 28 days of RSL.

Quality of content is important and I'm not saying we have to sound polished, but there has to be a level of quality the listener must find rewarding.

I think in terms of advertising for special interest groups might take a different angle, still not sure what that would be, and I would agree, like my dear friends (Phil K.) who agree advertising limit must remain.

I think what is needed...

1> All stations must be allowed advertising and just because you fall in an MCP area where no advertising is allowed is unfair. Having this allows Social Gain to be achieved in some capacity without worrying where the bills will be paid.
2> Stations which can demonstrate their target audience, i.e. like those who serve BME, then business in those areas aren’t going to advertise on local ILR, a) its too expensive and b) they wouldn’t want to advertise to an audience that doesn’t listen to local ILR. c) If the community station is delivering good quality content then why should it be deprived of advertising?
3> Change the percentage for these groups to have more advertising.
4> It was also suggested at the AGM that maybe separate advertising and sponsorship...something which must be considered, HOWEVER a single sponsor for the overall station scares me to hell and I am totally against that. (radio abc sponsored by xyz supermarkets just make it all sound like the football league or any other high profile event...just not what we are about.)
5> Can a station have an official partner. Someone did ask me this question at the weekend at the festival. Seek Ofcom I said...!!!
6> Top Slicing the Licence Fee...Primarily for local stations to deliver content (this was taken from a similar idea 'Sound and Vision' which in Ireland have for everyone or every media group applies for and no doubt the same model can apply here - 
Sound and Vision is a grant scheme designed to support the production of new television and radio programmes in the areas of Irish culture, heritage and experience and adult literacy. The Scheme is the result of the Broadcasting (Funding) Act, 2003 and is funded by 5% of the television licence fee. Total so far I think is €11M. http://www.bci.ie/broadcast_funding_scheme/index.html

In regards to Professionalism, I have to disagree with you on that remark...we are excellent in being creative in what we do and do it professionally. Maybe even this professionalism of content of programs will enable it to be heard on so called professional platforms.

I know what you meant it just didn’t sound right and we have to be serious in our attitude and show we are truly professional enough to be at the same table as the big boys. Sadly it’s the way this works.
Changing Government and Funding Bodies attitudes to take us serious requires us to be Professional. So if that’s the little we have to do then I'm all for it.

Keep the debate alive.

Javed

-----Original Message-----
From: servenet [mailto:servenet at blueyonder.co.uk] 
Sent: 24 November 2006 03:25
To: javed at awazfm.co.uk
Subject: Re: [CMA] Ofcom's review of the Community Radio sector

I read all you say with some interest, Javed, and also some concern. The blurring of boundaries may be relevant to sustainability but the fundamental issue for me is an ideological one. Your mention of third sector input to community capacity is significant because I think technology has advanced to the point where the awarding of licences for networks which subsequently become obsolete is a hugely wasteful use of limited resources - both human and financial.  The digital revolution is upon us and the sun of progress rises strongly from a different direction. Either CM faces it or it allows a dark shadow to fall over traditional transmission networks. For me the central core of our difficulties is the sloppiness of our overall focus - no matter how 'professional' the service we provide. What I'd like to see but will never get is some powerful consensus on the political stance that CM should adopt in the face of a government and society thirled to consumerism, to the quick and easy buck.to all that tends to corrupt and demean us as individuals. What CM should be doing is acting like the yeast in the dough. Leave 'pure entertainment' to the commercial stations. That is what they do very well. Our focus, as a third sector, is to change the perception of the role of community  media by changing the language we use to describe what we do. CM increasingly becomes what is done of its own volition by the local community  and with individuals within that community.  "The" local community is such a poorly defined concept that it can be made to fit any political scale of operation one chooses. It can be and often is used to cast the work of the government in  the most favourable light!  If we can at last grasp the anarchic (leaderless) role of truly local community initiatives, we can surrender our 'educated' prejudices and tell professionalism to go prostitute itself elsewhere. It is not that standards should not be set and met but, as in every field of creative endeavour, it is the desire to do better which imposes its own discipline.  I wish your stations and you continuing success.  Kris Laidlaw.
------------------  

-----Original Message-----
From: "Javed Sattar" <javed at awazfm.co.uk>
Date: Thu, 23 Nov 2006 21:28:46 
To:<cma-l at commedia.org.uk>
Cc:'Alan Fransman' <alan.fransman at commedia.org.uk>
Subject: RE: [CMA] Ofcom's review of the Community Radio sector

Thank you Alan,

It's a testing time for the sector knowing that in a few years there could
well be over 150-300 community radio stations in the UK.

The two questions posed...'the restrictions are unnecessary' or 'too
burdensome'

In respect to my station - Awaz FM, which serves the Asian Community in
Glasgow and likewise that of sister stations like Desi Radio serving the
Punjabi community in Southall and the Afro-Caribbean New Style Radio in
Birmingham we would feel that the restriction on sponsorship and advertising
is a burden. All three of us are broadcasting to a community of interest.

I support the view that restrictions on advertising should NOT remain and a
classic example of this:
When an ILR station like Sunrise feels under threat and complains not
because a local business, who cannot afford to advertise on Sunrise but
chooses a more local station like Desi Radio because of its unique
programming and local content. Desi Radio was doing what Sunrise should also
be doing...catering for the community it broadcasts to.
Some community radio stations can't afford to take advertising, even if they
are allowed to carry advertising they might not have the resources due to
just trying to concentrate on running the station. Keeping the station
on-air is a challenge in itself.
If a community station broadcasts Quality Content - people will listen,
people want to advertise and people will feel its there station.
Running a 28 day licence station is totally different to running a fulltime
community radio station, we have to think like a business otherwise we will
go under and even though the Pilot Projects scheme didn't have anyone go
under there is a real danger that as Ofcom issues licences to who ever can
demonstrate on their application form that they tick all the right boxes
that all the hard work done to getting on-air will be for nothing.

We either have the same restrictions or we lose them.
Having them is a burden to most... and so far I haven't heard from anyone in
community radio that one major funder (50% of the total income), if they
have a major funder dictates how the station is run. I haven't seen any ILR
station go under and more of a case they are bought over (Q96 in Paisley
which actually moved to Glasgow which was a shocking in the first place, was
recently allowed to be acquired by Real Radio and yet there complain was
that we in the community radio sector have this fund that pays stations fat
salaries.
To both questions posed...I am from the camp that agrees that there should
be NO restriction as both are unnecessary and burdensome.
Also...what we need is BBC and Commercial Stations to agree that in order
for Community Radio to be an important player and work alongside in the
sector it needs at least 1 or 2% percent of the Licence Fee and some of the
advertising revenue of Commercial Stations to be set aside for Community
Radio where it will enable Community Radio to develop staff, programming and
evaluating the effect it does bring, a place where new talent will emerge.
None of the ILR stations in my area feel the threat of community radio in
Glasgow and there are three in Glasgow. We are all different in our own way.
Half a million pounds in the fund is a laughing stock and makes no sense in
supporting and developing Community Radio.
Without proper funding to operate will see many voices struggle to be heard.

This is an important time and we as the third tier need to raise our voices
and show how important we are but we need to survive to deliver what we were
set out to do.
Someone once said...'Community Radio doesn't see it self sometimes as
professional enough' we need to change that attitude and show that we are
important and just like BBC and ILR we are just as valuable and important.

'Release this Apartheid placed on us with this restriction and lets us speak
freely over the airwaves.'

Not sure if this is a strategy but a platform to breathe life back in all of
us. Over to you...!!!

Regards,

Javed

-----Original Message-----
From: cma-l-bounces at commedia.org.uk [mailto:cma-l-bounces at commedia.org.uk]
On Behalf Of Alan Fransman
Sent: 23 November 2006 16:14
To: cma-l at commedia.org.uk
Subject: [CMA] Ofcom's review of the Community Radio sector

+ Ofcom's review of the Community Radio sector +

On 16 July 2004, in the House of Lords Debate on the Community Radio 
Order 2004 Lord McIntosh of Haringey, (Minister for Broadcasting at the 
time) said the following about the restrictions in the Community Radio 
Order:

"We have formally asked Ofcom to conduct a review of the community radio 
sector two years after the first community station is licensed. If that 
review concludes that the restrictions are unnecessary or too 
burdensome, we will remove or modify them by bringing forward a further 
order for Parliament's approval. In short, this order is not necessarily 
the final word on the subject. Once we have better knowledge of how the 
two parts of the sector are developing, we will revisit the restrictions 
in this order to see if they are still necessary."

The full transcript of the debate is available on this link:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200304/ldhansrd/vo040716/text/407
16-05.htm

Ofcom's review is now getting underway and the regulator expects to 
conclude the process towards the end of 2007.

Today Javed Sattar from Awaz FM in Glasgow opens a discussion on 
strategies for influencing Ofcom's review of the Community Radio sector.

Over to Javed...

-- 
Book now for the Community Media sector's premier event!
http://www.commedia.org.uk/festival2006

CMA Festival & AGM 2006
25 November 2006
City University
London

Alan Fransman
Community Media Association
15 Paternoster Row
Sheffield
S1 2BX

+44 114 279 5219

www.commedia.org.uk

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