C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - Printable Version
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RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - VMPhil - 07-02-2024
God I'd forgotten about 4 Radio. They won the bid to launch the second national commercial multiplex, years before it actually did, but the credit crunch put paid to that. A lot of the formats they proposed did end up on digital radio in some form or other though:
E4 Radio - interactive music and entertainment spin-off from E4
Channel 4 Radio - talk based channel, including comedy, drama and documentary
Pure4 - "music and modern culture"
Talk Radio - from UTV
Closer - spin-off from the magazine
Sky News Radio - 24-hour rolling radio news
Sunrise Radio UK - "station offering mix of Asian music and culture"
Virgin Radio Viva - aimed at women 15-30
Original - album-led music station for 40- to 59-year-olds
Radio Disney - children's station
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - DAL1189 - 08-02-2024
(07-02-2024, 01:25 PM)VMPhil Wrote: God I'd forgotten about 4 Radio. They won the bid to launch the second national commercial multiplex, years before it actually did, but the credit crunch put paid to that. A lot of the formats they proposed did end up on digital radio in some form or other though:
E4 Radio - interactive music and entertainment spin-off from E4
Channel 4 Radio - talk based channel, including comedy, drama and documentary
Pure4 - "music and modern culture"
Talk Radio - from UTV
Closer - spin-off from the magazine
Sky News Radio - 24-hour rolling radio news
Sunrise Radio UK - "station offering mix of Asian music and culture"
Virgin Radio Viva - aimed at women 15-30
Original - album-led music station for 40- to 59-year-olds
Radio Disney - children's station
Looking further, they also planned a podcast network too. This really does feel like a missed opportunity in hindsight.
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - tellyblues - 08-02-2024
(07-02-2024, 01:08 AM)XIII Wrote: Channel 5 has the advantage of privately owned but also they know what their audience wants and they give it to them.
But Channel 5 can go after any audience they want, and do - an older demographic who watch linear.
Channel 4's remit is young, diverse and underserved audiences, which are difficult to attract for several reasons, the first being that young people tend not to watch linear TV and are far more likely to go to Netflix etc where there are shows for them, unlike linear where there are hardly any. Diverse is also tricky because do you have, for example, a competition format (accessible but an overcrowded genre) where all corners of society are represented or something specific to do with race, sex, class, disability that will appeal to a small audience such is the situation regarding inclusion and diversity in the UK?
The underserved audiences - do property shows count on the basis that the other channels aren't showing them in primetime? The shows for younger viewers - big budget reality that has flopped because, what do you know, younger viewers aren't just interested in reality shows and no demographic is bothered about them anyway because the shows are crap. There have been hits like Derry Girls but that appealed to a wide audience partly because of subject matter that everybody including older viewers were familiar with.
It's terrible what's happening but there isn't an easy solution. Or is it simple as having a double bill of sitcoms at 6pm, something different for the slot and using it to its fullest advantage by promoting new shows during the ads?
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - XIII - 08-02-2024
I wonder if Ralph Lee's departure from BBC Studios might see him end up at Channel 4?
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - Brekkie - 10-02-2024
Interview with Alex Mehon in the Guardian. I just have little confidence in what she's saying and the attack on Gladiators and Big Brother being resurrected seems unnecessary.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/feb/10/channel-4-ceo-alex-mahon-tv-deep-crisis
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - Kim Wexler’s Ponytail - 10-02-2024
(10-02-2024, 08:18 PM)Brekkie Wrote: Interview with Alex Mehon in the Guardian. I just have little confidence in what she's saying and the attack on Gladiators and Big Brother being resurrected seems unnecessary.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/feb/10/channel-4-ceo-alex-mahon-tv-deep-crisis
“Look at what has been on in January – Gladiators, a show from 1992, Big Brother, a show from 2000 – we shouldn’t be doing those shows,” Mahon says. “Everybody is relying on brands they know for those reasons, but that is not what Channel 4 should be doing. Around 60% of our titles each year will be new, underscoring our commitment to innovation. It is easy and obvious to do a retread.”
Talk about pot, kettle, black.
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - TV Insider - 10-02-2024
Not sure it's a good idea to be smiling in photos after you've just fired 200 people and your company's future is this bleak.
Unfortunately this bizarre interview proves that Mahon is not the right person to lead Channel 4 at the moment. Pivoting to digital in 2024 is embarrassingly late. She should have begged the government to let Channel 4 make their own programming when she first started. They are in this situation because they failed to build their own IP.
"It's happening everywhere" - It's not happening at Sky and it's not happening at ITV.
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - JMT1985 - 10-02-2024
Does Channel 4 not have the ability to sell their programming internationally or is that all down to each programme's production company?
Channel 4 is a publisher broadcaster, so I assume one big reason their are in the financial mess, is they can not make capital out of their content.
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - iloveTV1 - 10-02-2024
(10-02-2024, 09:00 PM)TV Insider Wrote: Not sure it's a good idea to be smiling in photos after you've just fired 200 people and your company's future is this bleak.
Would you rather she was crying instead?
RE: C4 Programme Commissioning Woes - Omnipresent - 10-02-2024
Quote:Channel 4 has a “national headquarters” in Leeds and operations in Bristol, Glasgow and Manchester.
I can understand C4 reading the political mood music and setting up a new HQ in Leeds and "creative hubs" elsewhere, but an operation of its size doesn't need that many offices.