Today Channel 4 has published a proposal named “4: The Next Episode” which outlines what the channel would seek to create as an “alternative vision” to privatisation. Earlier, the UK Government had outlined privatisation plans for Channel 4, which they stated were “to protect our mixed ecology, and ensure public service broadcasters remain at the heart of our plans.”
The proposal published by Channel 4, which was founded by Margaret Thatcher in 1982, includes a wide range of ideas including increasing the number of staff the TV channel employs from outside of London by 50% by 2025. Other plans include expanding the scope of the current catch up on-demand service “All 4” to include a global audience under the name “Global All 4”.
Last week the UK government published a policy proposal, which included the privatisation of channel 4 and the idea that streaming services could be regulated in the UK by Ofcom.
Commenting on the launch of the Channel 4 proposal, Alex Mahon, the chief executive of Channel 4 began by saying that the Channel “agree with the government on a number of things” and that the UK Government had “clearly thought about some of the issues that we collectively face” in their policy proposal.
However, Mahon added that the proposal published by the channel today “represents our vision of what more Channel 4 can be and can do, while continuing to be owned by the British people” and acknowledged that “standing still in this ever-changing world is not an option”
Responding to the proposal announced today by Channel 4, a spokesperson for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport within the UK government described the proposal document as “based on flawed assumptions”, before adding that “a change of ownership is necessary to give Channel 4 the best possible tools to innovate and grow at pace without asking the taxpayer to effectively underwrite the business”.
You can read the proposal published by Channel 4 here.
Featured Image Credit: Channel 4
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