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The BBC today confirmed plans, leaked last Friday, to close BBC 6Music and BBC Asian Network.
Confirmation was given today in a briefing by Director General Mark Thompson, who said that the two stations would not close until the end of 2011 at the earliest.
Mr Thompson also confirmed that BBC Radio 7 would be renamed as BBC Radio 4 Extra, that there would be a cap on the amount of money spent on sports rights, a reduction of the number or pages on bbc.co.uk, the closure of teenage brands BBC switch and Blast! and a reduction of spending on foreign imports.
The full text of the reason for closing 6Music is outlined below:
"The BBC Trust’s recent review of Radio 6 Music confirmed that it is popular amongst its fan
base and its music offering is distinctive. However, although it has achieved good growth in
recent years, it has low reach and awareness and delivers relatively few unique listeners to BBC
radio. And whilst 6 Music does not have a target demographic audience, its average listener age
of 37 means that it competes head-on for a commercially valuable audience. Boosting its reach
so that it achieved appropriate value for money would significantly increase its market impact.
Given the strength of its popular music radio offering from Radio 1 and 2 and the opportunity to
increase the distinctiveness of Radio 2, the BBC has concluded that the most effective and
efficient way to deliver popular music on radio is to focus investment on these core networks.
"The BBC therefore recommends that the Trust should consider closing Radio 6 Music by the
end of 2011. Accepting the critical role that it must play in driving audiences to adopt digital
radio, the BBC should nonetheless maintain its overall levels of investment in original radio
content aimed specifically at digital services. It should evaluate the best use of this content
investment and of the digital spectrum that the closure of 6 Music would release. The BBC will
also review how some of 6 Music’s most distinctive programmes can be successfully transferred
to other BBC radiostations, and how its support for new and specialist music can be sustained
across the BBC."
And concering the closure of Asian Network, the report said:
"The BBC Asian Network aims to provide high-quality news and discussion, helping British Asians
connect with their cultural and linguistic roots. However, the increasing plurality and diversity of
British Asian audiences are stretching the coherence and relevance of this service; its audience
reach is in decline and its cost per listener extremely high. The BBC therefore proposes that the
Trust considers closing the Asian Network as a national service, exploring a number of options
for redeploying its investment and meeting the needs of Asian audiences more effectively. One
option is to replace it with a network of five part-time local services with some syndicated
national Asian programmes. These would be available on local DAB and local Medium Wave,
serving areas with the largest British Asian communities."
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Friday 30th July
