The future of Channel Five has been secured for now, after it was taken over last week by Richard Desmond, the owner of the Daily Star and the Daily Express. Desmond’s company, Northern Shell completed its takeover with immediate effect from the German broadcaster RTL, in a deal worth an estimated £104 million. RTL confirmed that a pick-up in the UK advertising revenue convinced them that it was the right time to sell.
Mr. Desmond, who has also indicated that he’d like to buy The Sun newspaper off Rupert Murdoch and News Corp of recent times, was delighted with his new acquisition:
“I am delighted to have taken over as ownership of the network, and know with the right leadership, drive and investment; it can go from strength to strength as a competitive broadcaster and a modern player for the big consumer.”
Richard Desmond has had a very enterprising career in the media industry since he left school with very few academic qualifications. By the age of 21, he owned two record shops, and acquired the rights to the Daily Express in the year 2000 – through money that he had made in the adult entertainment market. Under his ownership, the Daily Express and OK! Magazine seem to have thrived underneath his ownership, both on a content and commercial basis, which will make this move very positive for Dawn Airey, the chief executive of Five.
Channel Five was launched by the Spice Girls on March 31st 1997, but was hit very hard by the slump in advertising revenues during the recession last year. It has managed to rebuke several attempts and suggestions for a merger with Channel 4, but has struggled to make an impact on the major players in the terrestrial market. Five is currently home to CSI, Flash Forward, UEFA Europa League Football and Australian soaps Home & Away and Neighbours.
It is likely that Desmond will make significant cuts to begin with, like he has with the Daily Express. However, he has already indicated that he wants to bring back Top of the Pops, and possibly attempt to revive Big Brother, currently in its final series with Channel 4. It will be very interesting to see how things work out, but whilst RTL were only in the game for a moneymaking venture, Desmond’s takeover can only be seen as a positive step forward for Five. Not only has it secured its future, which has been questionable for some time, but it will give them the stepping stone to start competing heavily with other channels in public broadcasting.
No comments:
Post a Comment