7 July 2003
Three weeks ago fury erupted at Radio Netherlands following a leak of the McKinsey Report into efficiency in Dutch public broadcasting, as the closure of RNW appeared to be one recommendation of the report.
Now the report is out, Radio Netherlands is no happier. One cost saving suggested is indeed the scrapping of both the Dutch and foreign language services of Radio Netherlands. “Internet is, after all, sufficient and the role of Radio Netherlands for non-Dutch listeners could easily be taken over by embassies and other agencies,” says the report.
Radio Netherlands points out that it is an autonomous organization that doesn’t come under the umbrella of domestic public broadcasting and that recommending changes to the core tasks of the Dutch international service was outside the remit of the McKinsey Report.
The broadcaster says that if McKinsey’s researchers had delved deeper, they would have discovered that Dutch expatriates would not be so well informed without the specifically targeted programming it provides. They would also have found out that, while satellite and Internet make an important contribution, shortwave remains indispensable for the time being. The McKinsey researchers would also have learned that only the independent and highly respected Radio Netherlands can fulfil the role of giving listeners in other languages “a true picture of The Netherlands.”
On the basis of an earlier study, Radio Netherlands has already embarked on a modernization and cost-saving plan that involves more partnerships, more focus on The Netherlands, and a rationalized use of shortwave. This plan will produce cost savings of around 10 per cent. As for the McKinsey report, Radio Netherlands concludes that it is of such a poor standard that it cannot be taken seriously.
7 July 2003
News Corp’s Hong Kong-based Star Group has set up a new arm in Dubai Media City. Star will be using its Dubai Media City facility as an operational base and will become functional in August, according to a statement from Dubai Media City.
“DMC’s advanced, comprehensive and fully-customised facilities make it an ideal operational base for Star to grow our business in this region,” Altaf Alimohamed, president, Digital Platforms Group, Star (Middle East) Ltd, was quoted as saying in a media report.
2 July 2003
Russian news agency ITAR-TASS notes that the Voice of Russia, now taking part in the initial phase of broadcasting in the DRM format, has become the first digital radio station in the country, broadcasting to Europe four hours a day in digital format.
VOR is using only one transmitter for digital broadcasts at present, but according to ITAR-TASS all others are expected to go digital in the very near future to cover all continents by the end of the year. Complete transition to digital should be completed by 2015.
2 July 2003
The BBC Latin American Service and Ecuador’s leading daily, El Universo, have launched a joint FM station in Guayaquil called Radiocity 89.3 FM. The station will rebroadcast via satellite 12 hours a day of the BBC Latin American Service programming.
Radiocity 89.3 FM is the result of a close collaboration between the BBC and El Universo which started with a contents exchange agreement between their online sites, bbcmundo.com and eluniverso.com The collaboration was further extended to radio as the BBC Latin American Service provided the budding station with training in journalism and programme making. Under this latest partnership, the BBC will be Radiocity’s exclusive provider of international news and current affairs programmes. The BBC will also bring a wide variety of music, science and entertainment.
And BBC World Service has begun transmitting on FM in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates capital and plans to launch a second FM frequency in the UAE in Dubai, one of the Middle East’s major business centres, this summer. The new 24-hour FM frequency in Abu Dhabi, on 90.3 MHz, is the fifth new FM frequency to be launched by BBC World Service in the Middle East since March. Last month BBC World Service announced it had begun FM broadcasts in Arabic and English in the Iraqi cities of Baghdad, Basrah and Al-Amarah.
Around the world BBC World Service is now present in FM in 140 capital cities.
2 July 2003
An English-language version of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s official website is now available on the Internet, Russian Mayak radio reported. The link to the page is located at Putin’s Russian-language website at www.kremlin.ru.
2 July 2003
The BBC is underlining its commitment to DAB digital radio, with a major on-air promotional campaign for its complete portfolio of digital radio stations – 1Xtra, Five Live Sports Extra, 6 Music, BBC 7 and the Asian Network.
The five-week campaign, the first by the BBC to promote its family of digital radio services, incorporates TV, radio and online elements. The BBC also confirmed details of the upgrading of its digital radio transmitter network from 65 per cent to 85 per cent coverage of the UK population in 2004.
Jenny Abramsky, Director of BBC Radio & Music and Vice-Chair of the Digital Radio Development Bureau (DRDB) said “For the first time digital radio is on its way to becoming a mass market proposition, rather than the preserve of audio enthusiasts. For the BBC there is also the encouraging sign of digital converts being attracted by new stations, particularly those provided by the BBC.
