In the beginning man created the BBC and man saw what he had made and it was good. But quarter of a century later and the BBC is no longer alone on our television screens. Marie Kemplay asks in the digital age what is the future for the original analogue channel?

Turn on your TV and you can choose from hundreds of channels, and although at any given time about 70% are showing Top Gear re-runs or home decoration programmes we, needless to say, still have a lot more choice than when we had just five channels. In this environment the broadcaster which was founded with the duty “to inform, to educate and to entertain” seems to be losing its way.

In the past few weeks the Ross/Brand fiasco seems to have highlighted just how vulnerable the BBC’s position is. Being attacked from all directions from an older generation for caring too much about being ‘edgy’ and not catering to let’s say more ‘refined’ tastes and the younger generation criticising them for caving in to pressure from people without a sense of humour. MPs have also been having a field day in Parliament over this. For example just listen to Liberal Democrat MP Phil Woolas: “I think once again the BBC have demonstrated that it is one law for its highly paid stars and one law for everyone else. When we are forking out millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money on presenters, the least we can expect is a level of propriety commensurate with what the public considers decent.”

One of the most contentious issues is of course Ross’ hugely inflated salary of £1.8m which literally as Ross - so frequently loved to point out – came at the price of 1,800 journalists, who were made redundant last year. It begged the question if providing edgy entertainment is seemingly more important than news programmes how is the BBC still able to justify its public service funding?

It seems in its quest to be the ‘everyman’ of British television, the BBC has lost touch with exactly who its target audience should be. In the digital age broadcasters such as Sky have a very distinct advantage in that it does not have a prescribed public service remit and is freer to court the rapidly changing tastes and habits of its viewers.

Both Sky and the BBC are currently foraying into High Definition television. The obvious benefit with the BBC is that if you have all the right HD equipment you have to pay no extra charge. However with Sky you must pay an extra subscription but you also get far more HD channels for your money such as sky films, Sky Sports and Discovery Channel as well as BBC HD.

Another point is that in recent years people have increasingly wanted to watch television more flexibly. It is now completely the normal to watch programmes on the computer rather than television screen. Recognising this, last year the BBC launched iplayer, a hugely successful online viewing platform. Sky has recently announced it will follow suit and although the details are not yet confirmed Sky have said it will show favourite programmes from its favourite channels. Sky Player will be available to everybody regardless of whether you currently subscribe to Sky or not, and although you will have to pay a fee, what most people are quick to forget is the BBC is not free, currently costing £139 a year, somehow I doubt that Sky Player will cost that much.

It seems likely in the future the BBC will be forced to stick to a more ‘public service’ role, i.e focus more on educational programming such as news and documentaries if it is to retain its license fee funding in a world where there are hundreds of channels providing entertainment. However I hope it is not forced to abandon entertainment altogether where would we have been without the likes of Fawlty Towers, Little Britain and Yes Minister, it will be black day indeed when the BBC is forced to abandon comedy. As for Sky I think it will continue to do what it does best, provide great sports coverage, great movies and the next generation of quality American television a la ’24’ and ‘Lost’ – and to boot probably all of the above in glorious High Definition quality.

Something to bear in mind though is what will happen if Channel 4 gets its wish and is given Public Service funding, now that would completely change the landscape of broadcasting in the UK.

Tags: BBC, Digital TV, Sky by Marie Kemplay
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Marie Kemplay looks at the impending launch of the Sky Player

Following in the footsteps of the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, Sky have announced they are to launch their own online viewing platform. The imaginatively named Sky Player will show programmes from some of the broadcaster’s most popular channels such as Sky One and National Geographic. Although they are yet to confirm many of the channels they have already said that Sky Sports will be available. So you’ll be able to watch that winning putt/try/goal over and over again. They are currently in negotiations with Hollywood executives over showing films from Sky Movies as well.

The best news is that Sky player will be available to everybody, regardless of whether you subscribe to Sky television or not. This poses the obvious question of why bother having a television anymore? Several of my friends now solely really on their computers to watch their favourite programmes. However, for the time being at least, television sets will still provide superior viewing. In the words of Mike Darcy, Chief Operating Officer of Sky: “While the laptop won’t replace the TV experience for most people, we’re creating more choices to allow customers to choose the option that suits their lifestyle”.

Perfect, laptop for example when you’re up late and don’t want to wake everybody up and television for when you fancy a night in with a good film. I love this new flexible way of viewing television; Teletext will soon be as obsolete as the milkman and the floppy disk. I can’t imagine that High Definition laptops are too far away in the future either. They would certainly be the perfect excuse for a long train journey; my great aunt in Abergavenny would probably get more visits!

Sky player will be launched “in the next few months” according to Darcy. In the meantime you might actually have to suffer the inconvenience of watching programmes at their listed times on that familiar big square box in your living room.

Tags: Digital TV, Sky by Marie Kemplay
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With a new season of television programmes imminent, Sky One have decided that the time is right to change their style. Peter Moore explains more

Just as September heralds the start of a new academic year, it also ushers in the beginning of a new wave of television programming. The nation’s most prominent channels frequently use the autumnal season to promote their latest series and, of course, with the full fanfare of an elephant parade the top sports providers unveil their all-new coverage of the new sporting seasons.

Along with the barrage of new programmes, new presenters and new action, one of the leading digital channels, Sky One, has undergone a thorough makeover. Traditionally considered an afterthought in Sky’s programming selection, suffering in the shadows of Sky Movies and Sky Sports, Sky One has undergone something of a renaissance during the past eighteen months.

The catalyst for this change seems to have been the appointment of Richard Woolfe, the former controller of Living TV, as the channel’s boss in early 2006. During his tenure, Woolfe has re-organised the rather cluttered schedule of Sky One, which traditionally hid behind thousands of Simpson repeats, and encouraged a rich blend of new programming: from the return of the clinging lycra of The Gladiators, to the exploits of Ross Kemp with the British Army in Afghanistan.

Woolfe’s achievements at Sky One were recently recognised that the ‘Broadcast Digital Channel Awards’ where they received the winning accolade as the top digital channel. As a reward, it seems that Sky bosses have bestowed a thorough paint-job on the Sky One image, which has seen the website and logo disappear under a new colour scheme of midnight blue and black and punctuated by floating airborne ice cubes.

So, times look exciting at Sky One, and a cursory look over their programming schedule reveals a host of autumnal treats just waiting to be dispatched. There is a second series of The Gladiators, a new series of Ross Kemp on Gangs, a new series of Lost and the musical Hairspray. All in all, it seems that the return to the office, the school or the university can be stomached much better with the return of quality British broadcasting.

Tags: Digital TV, Sky by Peter Moore
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Barack Obama passes an important milestone in American history as he officially accepts the nomination of the Democrat Party to run for the office of the President of the United States

It is only a few short months since the American Democratic Party were caught in a tremendous internal squabble, but last night they gritted their teeth, buried their differences and stood to applaud the Illinois Senator Barack Obama as he accepted their nomination to run for the office of President of the United States.

It did smack a little of a family emerging with bright smiles to a public event, having only recently endured a fearful argument behind closed doors. But Obama, clean cut and with the requisite snow white smile, seemed unfazed, declaring that: ‘America, we are better than these last eight years,’ to the excitable approval of the assembled crowd.

On evenings such as these, Americans are at their very best. Naturally more demonstrative than us Brits, they dress in vibrant red, white and blues, wave flags, applaud enthusiastically and whoop in delight, at all of the appropriate moments. The speeches themselves are a carefully balanced delivery of rhetoric, promises, patriotism, flattery and the odd inoffensive joke.

It is hardly needs documenting, as it has been said a thousand times before, that Obama thrives in this environment. It is quite a skill to be relaxed and personable in front of a crowd of around 80,000, but with an effortless grace Obama carries it off, and for that reason alone he should be relishing live tussles with the more-robotic John McCain.

We should not forget that last night marked the passing of an important milestone in American history. Accepting the nomination, Obama became the first American of African descent to be selected as the presidential candidate of one of the two main parties; and in a country that is openly proud of its history and heroes, it was by no coincidence that last night was also the forty fifth anniversary of Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream,’ speech.

A key element in Obama’s success will be his ability to appeal to broad sections of the Democratic Party, and mindful of this one of Obama’s first statements was one of gratitude and magnanimity towards his erstwhile foe:

‘Let me express my thanks to the historic slate of candidates who accompanies me on this journey, and especially the one who travelled the farthest, a champion for working Americans and an inspiration to my daughters and to yours: Hillary Rodham Clinton.’

But his main thrust of attack was a clear and steady attack upon the one man who stands between him and the Oval Office. ‘John McCain likes to say that he’ll follow bin Laden to the gates of Hell, but he won’t even follow him to the cave where he lives,’ Obama argued. ‘If John McCain wants to follow George Bush with more tough talk and bad strategy, that is his choice, but it is not the choice that America needs,’ he continued.

This is an odd period of the American presidential campaign, following a dip in the action during the two summer months. Collectively Americans are drawing in a slow breath, waiting to be submerged in a barrage of publicity, advertising, pledges and posters. By November the country will have lost its sanity, drenched in colourful bunting and being ‘God blessed,’ from all directions.

American Presidential elections are an odd mixture of things – and for a nation well capable of putting on a show, the 2008 Presidential knock out promises to be compelling.

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Here you can see a video of Barack Obama’s address to the Democratic Convention four years ago, in what was to become one of his most famous speeches. To follow all of the latest news and political development regarding the US political elections and for round-the-clock-coverage, look into the digital news channels, for unprecedented coverage.

Tags: News, Politics, Programmes, Sky by Peter Moore
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One of Britain’s finest directors brings his familiar breed of grit and working class charm to the nation’s capital

Curiously, whilst most people don’t relish such things as violence, social dysfunction and the abuse of hardcore drugs in their own lives, they seem quiet motivated to go to the cinema and watch films about them. Perhaps this desire to peer over the fence and observe the life of others is a distinctly British quality and if so, its citizens have no better opportunity for a helping of social voyeurism than they do with the films of Shane Meadows.

About Britain now, Meadows’ reputation as a gritty and talented director is assured. Testament to his success was the declaration by The Times of London that, ‘certainly Meadows bears comparison with (Ken) Loach.’ Not faint praise for the lad who started off life in the 1970s in the distinctly downtrodden Staffordshire market town of Uttoxeter.

Meadows forged his reputation with a succession of low-budget features that were released to a quiet flutter of critical excitement at around the turn of the millennium. Amongst them was A Room for Romeo Brass, where he revisits his childhood home, conjuring a thought provoking and gritty portrayal of the characters to be found there. In 2006 he suddenly struck it big, with the release of This is England, which that year won the Best Film category at the British Independent Film Awards.

Meadows’ latest film is Somers Town, which quibblers may say is a touch short at 72 minutes in length, but is heralded by the Edinburgh Festival as one of the top British films this year. In the same vein as many of Meadows’ films, the plot follows the experiences of two adolescent boys: there is Tommo, a runaway from the Midlands, and a Polish boy that he befriends named Marek.

Their unlikely partnership is cast into the unfamiliar territory of north London, running the streets that line the Euston Road around the great St Pancras Station. Shot with typical spontaneity, much of the dialogue is ad-libbed, keeping it fresh, witty and smooth, whilst Meadows’ mines the humour of the situation for all that it is worth.

It is not merely the characters the characters that are dragged out of their familiar environments, it is also the director. Propped up behind the lens for the first time in London, Meadows confessed to being frustrated by the bustle and noise of the Big Smoke: ‘If someone isn’t reversing up the road in a digger, it’s jumbo jets flying overhead. I’ve never known anything like it. How anything ever gets made in London I’ll never know,’ he said.

Somers Town is being tipped by the critics as one of the year’s finest feature films. It is currently under release across the United Kingdom.

Tags: Digital TV, Films, Sky by Peter Moore
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The shift towards high-definition digital television grows stronger with Sky’s latest announcement

For those amongst us who are fond of the good things in life, the news that Sky are upping their number of high-definition channels by seven to 26 can only be welcomed warmly.

Sky HD technology is one of the impressive cutting innovations of the past few years. Just as digital television cast away for good those days of thumping the roofs of televisions to encourage good reception, high-definition has chased away the presence of dull colours, ill-defined images and the slightest prospect of a blur.

Sky High-definition television betters the traditional digital signal by four times: that means sharper images, vivid colours and the portrayal of an unprecedented level of detail. Amongst the new channels that will be available on Sky HD will be Sky Movies Action/Thriller, Sky Movies Sci-Fi/Horror and Sky Real Lives.

Originally, when Sky launched their HD service in 2006, they offered just nine different channels, but now digital customers are offered a wide and alluring choice. The new channels add a wide selection of the Sky Movie cannon to the HD service for the first time, augmenting the existing sports and documentary HD channels.

Hilary Perchard, a Sky spokesperson commented that, ‘With equipment prices falling and the choice of content increasing, this is shaping up to be a big year for HD. Almost half a million homes are already enjoying Sky + HD and we are exciting to be offering even more HD content to our customers.’

Tags: Digital TV, Sky by Peter Moore
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A glorious summer of ‘fiestas’ awaits

Just one week ago, the streets of Central London bubbled with the sight of thousands of Spanish football fans celebrating on the streets. Fast forward seven days and Rafael Nadal has fuelled the festivities once more, emerging victorious after a titanic tussle with Roger Federer as the new Wimbledon Gentleman’s Champion. What better time has there been to be Spanish?

The atmosphere around the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club fizzed with anticipation early yesterday afternoon before the final began. Nadal had powered his way through subsequent rounds, dismissing opponents with a shrug of his shoulders and with the clout of Optimus Prime. Waiting in the final, however, was the imperious Roger Federer. The artist of the tennis court. Quite capable of winning a tennis match whilst washing his hair.

Nadal started auspiciously. Taking the few opportunities to arise he soon led Roger Federer by two clear sets. Then, in a potent cocktail of British weather, Swiss determination and excellent tennis, the nature of the match changed. Federer was able to take full advantage of the intermittent rain delays and clawed back two sets, both on tie-breaks.

The fifth and deciding set took the players almost two hours to complete. Federer giving hope to his supporters, that included Gavin Rossdale and Gwen Stefani, that he might complete one of Wimbledon’s most memorable comebacks. In a set which could be portentous for the immediate future of men’s tennis, Nadal emerged victorious. The end finally coming at almost ten minutes past nine when Federer slapped a forehand into the net and Nadal crumpled on the ground in celebration.

The world’s press quickly adopted a uniform opinion as the players accepted their awards from the Duke of Kent. ‘The biggest match!’, claimed the Spanish newspaper Marca. Erstwhile champions John McEnroe and Boris Becker agreed, claiming that it was the ‘best match’ they have ever seen.

An exhausted Nadal told press: ‘It’s impossible to describe. I’m just very happy. It’s unbelievable for me to have the title here at Wimbledon. It’s a dream. Always as a kid I dreamed of playing here.’

Federer was magnanimous in defeat, perhaps buoyed slightly by the fact that he remains the world’s top seeded player. ‘It’s my hardest loss by far,’ he confessed. ‘I’m happy that we lived up to expectations, but right now it’s not much of a good feeling.’

Boris Becker, summing up with day’s action, was warm in his appreciation of both of the players. ‘We were watching two of the greatest players to have played this beautiful game of tennis… the rankings may still have Federer as number one but it’s only a matter of time before Nadal takes over.’

The scene is set perfectly for a scrap between these two young tennis players that may last for the next few years. It promises to be a gripping fight.

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To keep in touch with the very latest sports news, check out Select Digital’s current offers on Sky and digital television packages. These services give you 24 hour access to a range of sporting and news broadcasters, ensuring that you are always in the thick of the action, wherever it is.

Tags: BBC, Digital TV, Sky, Sport by Peter Moore
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Many viewers left ‘in the dark’

The many the ‘Digital Switchover’ is a puzzling concept, its significance diluted amongst a thousand Blairite sound-bites. And can you really blame people? ‘Education, Education, Education’; ‘Hearts and Minds’;’ Special Relationship’; ‘Prudence’ and now ‘Competence’ – is it at all surprising that people are failing to draw the meaning out of words anymore?

I say this, because a recent parliamentary report has claimed that ‘many viewers do not understand the implications of the digital switchover’, despite the efforts of a £200m campaign. The statistics are unequivocal. Of all of the television sets sold in the first half of 2007, over half of them were analogue. In total it is estimated that there are 26 million analogue televisions in existence that will need replacing.

Whitehaven became the first place to fall under the glimmer of digital television on 14 November last year. In that town, on the north western Cumbrian coast, it is now only possible to watch television on broadband, Freeview, Sky, satellite or cable. Like a pack of cards, the rest of Britain is poised to follow suit over the next four years. The problem is that many remain in blissful ignorance.

Once the analogue signal is switched off permanently, viewers will only be able to receive a digital signal unless they pay for expensive extra equipment. The upshot of this is – that people across the country need to begin to consider what digital service they would like to opt for in the future.

Sky and Freeview are the two most prominent options available. Sky with its array of programming and effortless programming quality and Freeview boasts a quick-fix connection to the digital signal and comes with a cart load of free-to-air channels. Other companies have joined the mix – and currently Virgin Media, BT, Tiscali and Setanta are amongst a cluster of companies offering attractive digital packages.

Meanwhile the report suggests that the government have to do more to make the population aware of the impending change. Specifically, it suggested that the digital tick that signified whether or not a product was suitable for the digital changeover remained a ‘mystery’ to many sales staff and customers.

Therefore it is clear that the facts surrounding the digital switchover will have to be better promoted – otherwise viewers quite simply could be caught in the fuzz and forced into a last minute upgrade.

Tags: Digital TV, Sky, Switchover, Virgin by Peter Moore
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