News Corp takeover sparks legal claims

NEWS Corporation, Rupert Murdoch’s empire faces legal challenges from several companies, after getting permission to fully takeover BSkyB.  BT, Trinity Mirror and the Telegraph Media Group are considering taking matters further in a deal which would see Sky News become an independent news channel.

RELAXED: Jeremy Hunt seems satisfied with News Corp's intentions

     Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt has given the go-ahead for News Corporation to go ahead with its ambitious plans.  Under the proposal, Sky News would become an independent public limited company, which would give Murdoch his complete power to fully takeover BSkyB.  Sky News would have an independent board, but News Corp would still retain nearly 40% of its shares in the news provider; the heartbeat of 24-hour news worldwide.  The remaining 60% stake would be owned by BSkyB shareholders.     Hunt has defended the move saying; “I believe that these proposed undertakings by News Corp will address concerns about media plurality.  The undertakings given offer Sky News more independence from News Corporation than it currently has.” 

EXCELLENT: Sky News logo (1994) has provided a brilliant service

     Sky News has been part of the BSkyB family since it launched on February 5 1989.  Had Murdoch not decided to relinquish Sky News, it would have left him with 100% complete control of BSkyB, alongside The Sun, The Times, The News of the World and 20^th Century Fox underneath his News International banner.  By allowing this change, it will give Murdoch the prize he wants more than anything.  Under the new plans, Sky News would have to restructure its news channel, alongside appointing a board of directors and an independent chairman.  News Corp would also guarantee funding for Sky News for the next decade.       

     However, the opposition against this takeover are furious.  They feel the new deal is a complete whitewash.  The coalition government have come under fire from these opponents for their relatively friendly relationship with the Murdoch family, especially as The Sun, the UK’s No.1 selling newspaper is politically supporting the Conservatives.  Ex-BBC board governor Sir Christopher Bland is convinced that the deal would be very bad for the UK media industry.  “The point is that the proposal does not address the fundamental issue, which isn’t about Sky News, which is an excellent service.  The issue, which should be outlined by the competition, is the power News International has over television and newspapers in the UK.”

     Clearance has yet to be fully given though, as these opponents to the takeover have until March 21 to try and changed the mind of Culture Secretary Hunt.  If that process ends up not working out, this could end in a messy little wrangle involving the courts; a process that is bound to drag on and on.  It is safe to say that we haven’t heard the last of this protracted takeover. 

TV License Price Is Frozen

On Thursday, the BBC Trust confirmed that they were freezing the price for the cost of a TV License until 2013.  Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt and the rest of the government have managed to convince the BBC to keep the current fee, which stands at £145 the same.

The Trust has proposed a two-year freeze, due to the economic recovery, although Mr. Hunt still wants to review the structure again in 2012.  Understandably, Mr. Hunt was delighted at the BBC Trust’s decision.

"I have made it clear that the BBC needs to take proper account of the current economic climate and this move, which comes with the Trust's assurances that it will not significantly impact on the quality of services provided to licence fee payers, will be welcomed by the public."

Traditionally, the BBC is required to increase the TV license every financial year by 2%, but the recent recession, and the budget cuts that the corporation has been forced to make of late has made this an almost untenable rise.  The news come on the same week that the current chairman of the BBC Trust, Sir Michael Lyons announced that he would not be standing for election at the end of the year and the corporation’s drama controller was placed on ‘gardening leave,’ as she is joining Channel 4 next January.

There have been many calls in recent months for the BBC to either reduce or axe the TV License fee, neither were really logistical.  However, this is a step forward between the BBC and the coalition government, so it is a positive move, whatever the final outcome may be.

6 Music Is Reprieved - The Campaign Worked!

BBC Radio 6 Music has been saved this week, after massive petitions and campaigns to keep the station alive, have been approved by the BBC Trust.  The initial plans to shut the station in January 2010 seem to have been overturned.

The governing body of the BBC – which is the BBC Trust, said it was still planning cuts to its digital service, but understood the support fans have for 6 Music, and clearly felt under pressure and a possible public uproar, should their controversial plans had gone ahead.  It is now believed that the BBC is considering its digital radio future, at the next broadcasting strategic review, planned for the autumn this year.

The chairman of the BBC, Sir Michael Lyons is still convinced that there is a lot of uncertainty over the national switchover to DAB.  The government is expecting a switch to the DAB in 2013.  The government believes that by 2013, 50% of people should be listening to digital radio, despite its very slow uptake on sales since it made its technological breakthrough seven years ago.  The high prices and poor coverage reception, might well explain why forecasts of people listening, via the digital format is 22% behind where they should be.  The recession has also played a major factor – with Channel 4 shutting down its digital radio plans back in 2008. 

The Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt has pledged his support for 6 Music, and since news of its expected closure were broken in the press, the audience viewing figures have risen by over 50%.  However, there are still plans to trim spending of the BBC Online format by 25%, as well as the full shutting down of the BBC Asian Network.

Whilst 6 Music looks like it has been saved, the traditional analogue TV have finally disappeared from the High Street.  Last month saw absolutely no sales of the old television format for the first time ever, since it was invented back in 1925, by John Logie Baird.  The digital switchover began in Whitehaven, back in 2005 and now 20% of the UK has been converted.  By 2012, the whole of the UK will have a digital TV signal.  

Calls For Tory Sports Minister To Quit After Hillsborough Jibe

Conservative Sports Minister Jeremy Hunt has resisted calls to step down from his post, after a comment he made on the 1989 Hillsborough football stadium disaster, which has angered many relatives of the injured and the dead. 

Appearing on Sky News on Monday afternoon, Mr. Hunt was praising the behaviour of England supporters in South Africa, where despite the team’s embarrassing exit from the World Cup, at the hands of Germany, not a single arrest was made.  He then went on to make this remark:

“I mean, not a single arrest for a football-related offence, and the terrible problems that we had in Heysel and Hillsborough in the 1980’s seem to be behind us.”

To say the least, it wasn’t the best remark to come out with, and has seen the city of Merseyside respond in fury, that he was implying that fans were to blame for Britain’s worst sporting disaster.  On April 15^th 1989, 96 Liverpool supporters were crushed to death on terraces of Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough, whilst attending the team’s FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest.  An enquiry into the events of that fateful day twenty years ago, led by the late Lord Justice Taylor found that police crowd control was the main reason for the horrific crush, not hooliganism. 

After realising his damming comments could have caused offence, Hunt released the following statement hours later:

“I apologise to Liverpool fans and the families of those killed and injured if my comments caused any offence.”

That apology doesn’t wash though with the chairwoman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group.  Margaret Aspinall, who lost her son James at Hillsborough said:

“I am fed up of people saying things like that.  For 21 years, we have been fighting for justice, to get the message out that it was not down to drink or hooliganism.  He is the Culture Secretary.  He should know better.  I want him to understand that he has reopened old wounds which should have been healed many years ago.” 

After apologising, Hunt has received the full backing from the Prime Minister David Cameron.  However, for those who lost people at Hillsborough, the pain will never go away, and they will feel that this piece of incompetence should be heavily punished for more than a simple apology.