BBC to join satellite channels
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Your support makes all the difference.THE BBC expects to be involved in the launch of four or five specialist subscription or advertising-supported satellite channels over the next two or three years.
It emerged yesterday that the corporation may co-operate with Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB service in further arrangements similar to the two football deals the organisations have jointly negotiated.
James Arnold-Baker, chief executive of BBC Enterprises, acknowledged that the BBC has adopted a strategy which was diametrically opposed to ITV, whose leaders identify BSkyB as their major threat. ITV is also leading a campaign to press Parliament to re-examine the issues of cross-media ownership and the way this appears to favour Mr Murdoch.
ITV has provoked controversy by saying it will buy up all programme rights to ITV hit shows for 15 years, to prevent satellite opposition undermining audiences and advertising by running cheap repeats of top programmes.
BBC Enterprises says that BSkyB has other investors to balance Mr Murdoch, including Pearson, the publishing group, and Granada. The BBC is unable to hold a licence for a satellite channel - though its lawyers say it can hold a minority stake - and therefore needs to find other partners: BSkyB is the obvious partner for a rolling news channel.
In the UK Gold satellite service, the first it plans to launch this September with Thames Television, it would put up programmes, rather than cash. It wants its repeated programmes to be clearly marked with the BBC logo.
Mr Arnold-Baker said the BBC adopted the new policy of holding minority satellite TV stakes, and gaining extra revenue from subscription television, rather than simply selling rights to programmes, as part of a review of its future last autumn.
The BBC also wants to be sure that repeats of its products are not run directly against any current series.
BBC Enterprises yesterday announced a pre-tax profit of pounds 5.4m for the 1991-92 trading year, compared with pounds 3.8m, on sales of pounds 210m (pounds 225.2m). It said that Radio Times had emerged victorious from the first year of open competition in programme listings.
ITV is scrapping its traditional regular Sunday evening religious slot from January 1993 to make way for feature films and a new quiz show called Divine Inspiration. Religion will be pushed to a graveyard slot of 11.30pm.
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