[Keith]

However I also notice from the same webpage, the exasperating comment:  " outside of these reductions [to local content quota amounts], failures to meet programming output obligations [for Local TV providers] have only been noted by Ofcom a handful of times over the last 10 years "

Which seems to suggest to me simulcasting Talk TV (and previous CBS Reality) appears to count towards the quota, which is ridiculous because CBS Reality on its own aired Judge Judy all day, which is an American show that was made on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles...

If they are "due to expire on 25 November 2025" there's will have been a general election by then, and quite likely a change of government.

I personally think that most of these "local" TV channels take the proverbial these days and are now local in name only. It would be nice if OFCOM (and/or government) could insist that if the "local" channel wishes to remain in it's channel 6/7 position it must air two hours of original local content between 6am and 11pm every daily. Alternatively they could relinquish their channel 6/7 position for a much lower channel number. I suspect this might sink most of the rebranded local Talk and That's channels, but it would at least end this farse.

[Spencer]

This feels like a grim move. You’re telling me the local Liverpool channel is now going to essentially be the televised version of The Sun?

Because that’s going to go well.

The focus of hatred in Liverpool is very much directed towards The Sun, with the paper widely boycotted. Other Murdoch outlets don't seem to be particularly affected though, with The Times available in most places. So I'd imagine the fact it's not called Sun TV will be its saving grace in the city.

[orange]

Funnily enough I’m from Liverpool which is why I immediately felt it was odd when I read the news.

The boycott mainly targets The Sun, yes - but at least in my experience the city usually has contempt for anything News Corp churns out, and I’ve absolutely seen stickers calling for The Times to be boycott as well. It’ll be interesting to see if they get away with it, anyway. I don’t particularly feel too amazing seeing Talk TV and Liverpool slapped together but it’s not like it (Channel 7) is watched.

[James2001]

Though for it to be boycotted, it would have needed to have had viewers in the first place

[Brekkie]

Of course Liverpool happily took Murdoch money from Sky for years.

However I also notice from the same webpage, the exasperating comment:  " outside of these reductions [to local content quota amounts], failures to meet programming output obligations [for Local TV providers] have only been noted by Ofcom a handful of times over the last 10 years "

Although waving through reductions from something like 35 hours a week to 15 minutes a day makes it tricky to not meet their obligations.

[Neil Jones]

Of course Liverpool happily took Murdoch money from Sky for years.

Although waving through reductions from something like 35 hours a week to 15 minutes a day makes it tricky to not meet their obligations.

Yeah but that's not what the documents on Ofcom's website say

If we take this one, for Birmingham for eample:
www.ofcom.org.uk 

It says "Hours of local programming per day/week Year 3 onwards 35hrs first run hours a week and 14hrs a week in peak time. 20 hours of news and current affairs per week, with a minimum of 60 minutes per day"

There's obviously something I'm missing because there's no way Big Birmingham TV or whatever they're calling themselves this week is pumping out 14 hrs of "first run" local content after 6pm. If nothing else simulcasting Talk TV for hours on end fills the news quota, but I fail to see how it fills anything else.

[lookoutwales]

There's obviously something I'm missing because there's no way Big Birmingham TV or whatever they're calling themselves this week is pumping out 14 hrs of "first run" local content after 6pm.  If nothing else simulcasting Talk TV for hours on end fills the news quota, but I fail to see how it fills anything else.

When the actual local blocks (outwith simulcast hours) are mostly compiled of generic syndicated content, it does beg the question.

[Brekkie]

Think Notts TV and KMTV in Kent are about the only ones that come anywhere near close to providing what was envisaged initially for local TV.

NVTV in Belfast looks like it still has some limited local programming but no news bulletins at all.

[eyeTV]

Even the amended licences on the Ofcom website for the Local TV services do not recognise anything like the reality. Ofcom are failing to uphold the licence conditions at all on these services.

This consultation for renewal is also a joke, especially the bit about how the objectives for these services, as outlined in 2012, remains the framework for the operators to work within when they renew the licences. The majority of these services are not meeting these objectives even remotely.

www.gov.uk 

Consultation on the renewal of local TV licences - GOV.UK
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  Source: www.gov.uk

I think the whole thing should be dismantled.

[interestednovice]

Thing is that 95% of their output is the national Talk TV anyway. The token local stuff won't affect things too much.

And looking at their ratings it can't make things any worse

Indeed, and it’s really just a cheap way of getting Talk TV (most of the time) on a high LCN so more Freeview viewers end up watching it.