[Moz]

I just can’t get my head around posters here thinking that something should continue to be funded at levels that don’t reflect its value. The fact is that people consume news differently to how they did 15 years ago. I really think it needs to be understood that the fondness (for want of a better word) that some have here for the news channel is massively out of step with the wider public, and focusing its resources in the right places (app, online, social media, podcasts) is 100% the right thing for the BBC to do.

They could plough millions into the news channel, it still wouldn’t change habits which are increasingly moving away from linear channels for news consumption.

Never thought I’d be quoting Hairspray here, but “you can fight it, or you can rock out to it.” In other words - embrace where things are going rather than trying to cling onto where they were.

I think the issue is how the BBC has approached it and how they are selling it - they're clearly holding on to the linear channel and running a significantly downgraded version of the UK news channel based on a BBC World simulcast, rather than looking at the picture as a whole and building what is arguably needed for today.    I'd argue they should have been looking more at the CBSN model to move forward.


What is interesting is they're now talking about a potential red button service to accompany it - I think it'll likely be pop-up iPlayer streams rather than anything along the lines of the BBC News Multiscreen or previous Connected TV app, but also suggests they are perhaps looking at alternatives to going into UK breaking news mode on the channel too.

rxtvinfo.com 

That could be a clever move from BBC News - putting the UK breaking news opt-out via a red button sending you to an iPlayer stream, rather than the UK broadcast changing.

This way they could monitor how much interest there is, and work out the cost per button push!

If a major UK story breaks and very few people press red to watch the coverage, then they know to scale it back. However if every time UK viewers are given the opportunity to watch the break away service tens of thousands choose to view, then they know it’s worth expanding the offering.