BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - Printable Version

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - Stuart - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 02:44 AM)thevaran Wrote:  Speaking of NewsNIGHT...
Around midnight we are currently getting something called NewsDAY on BBC WN.
That name doesn't feel like it's targeting a global audience. NewsDAY in late-night?

Newsday has been part of the overnight schedule of BBC NC for many years. It's presented jointly between London and Singapore, but certainly the main anchor is in Singapore where it's the start of the working day and discusses many aspects relating to Asia.

It's always daytime or nightime somewhere on the planet. When you have an international channel, you aim for where you think your audience will actually be awake and watching your content.

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - ALV - 20-03-2023

From the editorial aspect:

The difference between GMT, Newsday, Impact, WNA etc... and Newsnight is that Newsday, Impact, WNA are classified as general news bulletins -  that consists of 50% US/Europe/Asia news while you also get 50% of news from other parts of the world (during non-breaking news days) (at least that's what the intended plan is.) So it's not completely irrelevant to the global audience. They are intended for a general world audience who want a little more news from these regions, yet without going super-in-depth on a particular country that they lose context if they're not familiar with the story.

For programmes like Newsnight, it's like 80% domestic news with super in-depth ground level investigations, interviews and analysis on a handful of topics. It's not a news bulletin, it's a current affairs programme. The ident announcer pretty much sums up the scope of the programme:
"Now on BBC World News, hard hitting interviews and documentaries from around the world - Newsnight with stories making the news this week!"
(Yes it says "from around the world" but anyone who watched the WN repeats would know it's mostly UK stories..."

So putting Newsnight on weekends as a summarized 30 minute back-half pre-record makes sense, it's just one of the current affairs programme with an in-depth look on a certain part of the world that deem to be of a certain interest to global viewers. That's one of the purpose of the weekend pre-record blocks - providing an in-depth look on a certain place every week. 

However, if we would to air Newsnight every single weekday, in full 40 minutes every night, it would just overwhelm viewers. Not only is Newsnight NOT a news bulletin, but the weekday schedule on WN is not designed to make documentaries, current affairs programmes take up the majority of the schedule. The weekday schedule are designed to take up general news bulletins, business, sport instead.  

Yes, I do realize some documentaries like Our World and current affairs programmes like HARDtalk take up a bit of schedule on weekdays. But, those programmes usually air on the deadest slots in Europe, like late overnights and early morning. To me it seems like they're just there to give viewers a last chance to catch up these programmes before it goes off air, since there's no equivalent of "iPlayer" on WN.

(The current international VOD services like "BBC First" (for Asia), "BBC Player" (for Singapore and Malaysia), "BBC Select" (for North America) do not carry repeats of WN programmes like BBC iPlayer. I would gladly subscribe to a provider if they do carry WN programmes~)

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From the logistical aspect:

As some people mentioned above, it would be logistically difficult for WN to take Newsnight without making modifications to the show's format. 

If we were to take Newsnight live, the UK viewers on BBC Two will see awkward opt out points like "We now say goodbye to viewers around the world" at 2256 every night. Do you really want to see a news-making interview being cut off in the middle for an awkward opt out point?
 
If we were to take Newsnight on a repeat, say at 2330, the staff would have to truncate and edit a WN version of the programme almost immediately after broadcast every night. Not only does it add extra cost, but I think it's very hard to truncate a programme every night to exactly :26 minutes... You have to know when to cut off interviews or packages without ruining much of the context...  

This logistical problem applies to ALL suggestions here who wants WN to simulcast/take domestic programmes from BBC One/Two.

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - Radio_man - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 02:44 AM)thevaran Wrote:  Speaking of NewsNIGHT...
Around midnight we are currently getting something called NewsDAY on BBC WN.
That name doesn't feel like it's targeting a global audience. NewsDAY in late-night?

Neither does World News AMERICA feel like a show targeting audiences around the world. It screams Made-for-America.
Question is, would anyone in let's say Singapore care to watch WN America or News at Ten?
I would say probably yes, but I think they would prefer seeing something British, after all they are watching the BBC. 

It seems to me that you want the new BBC news channel to be a UK news channel that broadcasts abroad, the same as Sky News. But as has been explained many times on these and other forums, BBC World News is not, and never has been, a UK news channel broadcasting abroad. It is an international news channel. Since simulcasts have increased and due to the merger, more UK news has crept into BBC WN bulletins, but the World stream of the new channel will not just be a re-broadcast of the UK stream for all the reasons that have already been explained.

Next you'll be calling for Nicky Campbell's phone-in, Politics Live and Question Time to also be shown on World News. It's not going to happen. (And hopefully it won't happen for UK news channel viewers either......)

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - DTV - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 07:19 AM)ALV Wrote:  It's not a news bulletin, it's a current affairs programme. The ident announcer pretty much sums up the scope of the programme:
"Now on BBC World News, hard hitting interviews and documentaries from around the world - Newsnight with stories making the news this week!"
(Yes it says "from around the world" but anyone who watched the WN repeats would know it's mostly UK stories..."

From what I recall, the specially edited global edition of Newsnight used to be more world-focussed - back when Newsnight regularly did 'films' from around the world. Of course, these have gradually disappeared due to Newsnight's budget being slashed, which meant more domestic political stories had to fill the gaps. From an editorial persepctive, network bulletins are also more UK-focussed now than they used to be and their (justified) presumption of familiarity with UK terms/news would make them unduly alienating to an international audience

(20-03-2023, 02:44 AM)thevaran Wrote:  Neither does World News AMERICA feel like a show targeting audiences around the world. It screams Made-for-America.

I don't think anybody has ever made any secret of the fact that BBC World News America is a world news bulletin made primarily for American audiences. Although it does include a fair bit of US news, it's still primarily a world news bulletin that is more suitable for international audiences than network bulletins. As ALV points out, a small editorial lean towards one region (typically those that are in breakfast or evening prime) is true of pretty much all branded programmes, and to a lesser extent of standard news bulletins. Plus, WNA is on during the 'night' for most of World's key markets, so, even if it was itself alienating, alternative programming is less of an issue.

While network bulletins are rebroadcast elsewhere in the world, nowhere are they big raters and services like SBS and NHK BS are non-commercial and specialist - unlike BBC World News. It might seem like a simple idea, but there are too many commercial, editorial and logistical issues involved for it to be workable. Even small things, like clips of sporting events, would have to be done completely different if network bulletins were being broadcast on BBC World News.

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - thevaran - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 11:10 AM)Radio_man Wrote:  Next you'll be calling for Nicky Campbell's phone-in, Politics Live and Question Time to also be shown on World News. It's not going to happen. (And hopefully it won't happen for UK news channel viewers either......)

Nope. I really hope they will keep Nicky Campbell off BBC News in general. 
I think that show will suit BBC Two much better than the news channel, if they wanna steal viewers from Channel 5. 
It's a bad idea from start to have it on two channels instead of real news, especially if news are already produced for the world feed.

I see no point of showing Politics Live and Question TIme on the world feed, unless there's something special going on.

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - thevaran - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 07:19 AM)ALV Wrote:  (The current international VOD services like "BBC First" (for Asia), "BBC Player" (for Singapore and Malaysia), "BBC Select" (for North America) do not carry repeats of WN programmes like BBC iPlayer. I would gladly subscribe to a provider if they do carry WN programmes~)

BBC iPlayer, BBC First, BBC Player, BBC Select. So many brands, so many different names for the VOD service.
From next month the Nordic region will get their new VOD service called BBC Nordic+. Yet another name.
So what's the reason for keeping news out of these services?
https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/bbcstudios/2023/bbc-nordic-and-bbc-nordic-plus-to-launch-april-17 

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - Matrix - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 01:38 PM)thevaran Wrote:  

(20-03-2023, 07:19 AM)ALV Wrote:  (The current international VOD services like "BBC First" (for Asia), "BBC Player" (for Singapore and Malaysia), "BBC Select" (for North America) do not carry repeats of WN programmes like BBC iPlayer. I would gladly subscribe to a provider if they do carry WN programmes~)

BBC iPlayer, BBC First, BBC Player, BBC Select. So many brands, so many different names for the VOD service.
From next month the Nordic region will get their new VOD service called BBC Nordic+. Yet another name.
So what's the reason for keeping news out of these services?
https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/bbcstudios/2023/bbc-nordic-and-bbc-nordic-plus-to-launch-april-17 

A few reasons spring to mind...

[list=1]
[*]Licensing agreements: BBC News has licensing agreements with different media companies and broadcasters around the world, which might restrict its ability to stream its content globally via VOD services. The BBC might be contractually obligated to provide its content to certain broadcasters exclusively. *PBS in the States, for example. 
[*]Regional restrictions: BBC News might be subject to regional restrictions due to local laws, regulations, and censorship policies. Some countries might have restrictions on the type of content that can be broadcast or streamed, which could limit the availability of BBC News on VOD services.
[*]Technical challenges: Streaming video globally requires a significant amount of infrastructure and resources to support the large amount of data transfer required. BBC News might not have the necessary technical infrastructure or partnerships with VOD providers to ensure that its content can be delivered globally without interruption. It might sound simple, pass over a recording to the relevant VOD but it doesn't all work off the same tech or even business standards. 
[*]Cost: Expanding the reach of BBC News via VOD services could require significant investment in technology and infrastructure. The cost of expanding globally might not be justified by the potential revenue generated by the additional viewership. Like, the model (successful, I would add) is to target a certain demographic. Typically, this features a business traveller and hotel rooms. I'm just not sure World Business Report is necessarily the thing you want on demand in a hotel bedroom compared with other 'video on demand' services... 
[/list]

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - thevaran - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 11:33 AM)DTV Wrote:  While network bulletins are rebroadcast elsewhere in the world, nowhere are they big raters and services like SBS and NHK BS are non-commercial and specialist - unlike BBC World News. It might seem like a simple idea, but there are too many commercial, editorial and logistical issues involved for it to be workable. Even small things, like clips of sporting events, would have to be done completely different if network bulletins were being broadcast on BBC World News.

I doubt Focus on Africa and Worklife India have been big raters on BBC WN in Europe. Perhaps as local shows in their own respective regions.
They seem very non-commercial and specialist, public service broadcasting in a sense, but for other regions than Europe.
If BBC (World) News want ratings they probably need to take a different path for prime time in Europe.

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - Matrix - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 01:56 PM)thevaran Wrote:  

(20-03-2023, 11:33 AM)DTV Wrote:  While network bulletins are rebroadcast elsewhere in the world, nowhere are they big raters and services like SBS and NHK BS are non-commercial and specialist - unlike BBC World News. It might seem like a simple idea, but there are too many commercial, editorial and logistical issues involved for it to be workable. Even small things, like clips of sporting events, would have to be done completely different if network bulletins were being broadcast on BBC World News.

I doubt Focus on Africa and Worklife India have been big raters on BBC WN in Europe. Perhaps as local shows in their own respective regions.
They seem very non-commercial and specialist, public service broadcasting in a sense, but for other regions than Europe.
If BBC (World) News want ratings they probably need to take a different path for prime time in Europe.

With one of the youngest demographics globally, and a growing economic voice, I'd argue that having a focus on Africa (see what I did there?) is never a bad thing, irrespective of your geographical base. BBC World News (as was), and indeed as it transitions to the new service, retains a core focus on business - amidst all of its other features. 

Arguably, something like Talking Movies would be a better candidate for moving to a streaming only option but it is about striking a balance and making assumptions on viewer trends--based entirely on geography--isn't the best way forward for an international news channel.

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RE: BBC News Channel/BBC World News Merger - DTV - 20-03-2023

(20-03-2023, 01:56 PM)thevaran Wrote:  I doubt Focus on Africa and Worklife India have been big raters on BBC WN in Europe. Perhaps as local shows in their own respective regions.
They seem very non-commercial and specialist, public service broadcasting in a sense, but for other regions than Europe.
If BBC (World) News want ratings they probably need to take a different path for prime time in Europe.

I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't rate well in Europe, but Worklife India was only broadcast once a week in the afternoon in Europe, plus it hasn't been on air since December anyway. Focus on Africa does move into Europe Evening Peak for half the year, but has done so for over a decade without any real issues and evening programmes aimed at Europe have typically aired later, between 19:00 and 22:00 UKT. I'm also not sure either are non-commercial - India/South Asia and Africa are some of the channel's largest markets, and, as Matrix says, are growing in various senses.

Ultimately, I don't think it's really worth the hassle for them to bother about finding alternates for a few back-half-hours, especially as the non-Africa feeds do often drop Focus on Africa if there is major breaking news anyway (something made easier by Focus moving). Also, outside some of the Asia breakfast back-halves (Asia Business Report, etc.), I don't think BBC World News has ever really done regional variations in live news programming? Regional variation has largely been in terms of pre-recorded programmes, and even then it has been on the decline in recent years (I mean, there's nothing today like BBC World India's output in the early-2000s)

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