The EU's ministers responsible for broadcasting expressed concern in Galway last week that public service television is losing the battle with its commercial rivals. The European Commission is to come up with proposals for defending public service broadcasting. Yet, the member State which hosted the meeting is the one which is least affected by the growth of commercial television because RTE's two stations remain entrenched and the advent of its commercial rival, TV3, seems as far away as ever.
The decision by Ulster Television to pull out of the TV3 consortium is an enormous setback. UTV insisted on conditions which its TV3 partners went along with (reluctantly, it may be presumed) but which the IRTC, which is responsible for giving out the licence, could not agree to. One element was that UTV itself would be pulled from the Cablelink and MMDS services so as to reduce competition and give TV3 a better chance of winning viewers and advertisers. It was a daft proposal given that a new station is meant to increase choice - never mind the political considerations involved in pulling a Northern Ireland station (received by 70 per cent of homes) off the screens. It is surprising that UTV thought it attainable but it is even more surprising that its TV3 partners agreed to put it, to the IRTC.
The other issue was control. UTV, which was to be a 48 per cent shareholder, proposed that it would supply at least half the board membership, and determine the appointment of the chairman and of the programme controller. It amounted to 100 per cent control and the station, under such a scenario, may have had precious little "southern" feel about it. The IRTC is desperate to get TV3 up and running the better to metamorphose into a fully fledged broadcasting authority but there are limits.
For the TV3 consortium it is now almost a case of back to the drawing board. It must seek out shareholders not just with deep pockets but with broadcasting expertise and access to a stream of programming. The Manchester based Granada has been mentioned as has Channel 4 and RTL from Luxembourg. The candidates may however be discouraged by the fact that TV3 first lost Yorkshire Television as a partner and then UTV. Lady Bracknell would not be impressed.
But this is pessimism. TV3 can be a viable proposition. There is a gap in the market for a station with a manifestly Irish feel and if TV3 gets its programming and presentation right it could fill the gap. As an entirely commercial concern, relatively unfettered by public service constraints, it can better focus its programming for building and then holding audience share. The two hours a day which will be home produced will be crucial and the news service (a tie up with Radio Ireland?) will be vital. At all costs though the IRTC must strive to maximise the quality of programming. Another television station can be an asset to the nation but in television more can sometimes mean less.