Comments on: So Long C4 Radio, We Never Knew You… http://www.mattdeegan.com/2008/10/10/so-long-c4-radio-we-never-knew-you/ Posts about radio, digital, media and the future Tue, 07 Feb 2012 08:59:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Steve Green http://www.mattdeegan.com/2008/10/10/so-long-c4-radio-we-never-knew-you/comment-page-1/#comment-78849 Steve Green Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:59:24 +0000 http://www.mattdeegan.com/?p=283#comment-78849 There was absolutely nothing stopping the real radio industry as you call it from carrying on with whatever plans you had in the pipeline, so I think it's unfair to criticise C4 for supposedly messing you about. And where do you get 10m DAB radios sold from? <a href="http://www.ofcom.org.uk/media/news/2008/10/nr_20081010" rel="nofollow">Ofcom today said 7.7m have been sold</a> There was absolutely nothing stopping the real radio industry as you call it from carrying on with whatever plans you had in the pipeline, so I think it’s unfair to criticise C4 for supposedly messing you about.

And where do you get 10m DAB radios sold from? Ofcom today said 7.7m have been sold

]]> By: John Handelaar http://www.mattdeegan.com/2008/10/10/so-long-c4-radio-we-never-knew-you/comment-page-1/#comment-78847 John Handelaar Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:48:13 +0000 http://www.mattdeegan.com/?p=283#comment-78847 Damnit. No preview. Sorry about the missing closing <em> tag in para 3 there. Damnit. No preview. Sorry about the missing closing <em> tag in para 3 there.

]]> By: John Handelaar http://www.mattdeegan.com/2008/10/10/so-long-c4-radio-we-never-knew-you/comment-page-1/#comment-78846 John Handelaar Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:47:25 +0000 http://www.mattdeegan.com/?p=283#comment-78846 It's not like I've ever been a fan of the concept, and I had no confidence whatsoever that C4 had the first idea what it was doing (looking for people who understand how to make decent speech radio far more cheaply than the BBC, I don't think that the smartest thing to do was to start hiring high-ranking BBC execs). But. Of <em>course</em><em> they had to pull the plug. More than half the stations on the bid document have been dead in the water since Christmas -- and C4 didn't even acknowledge it. There's more multiplexes than buyers on D1. C4 needed rental revenue to make at least some money in YY 1-2 and the current market value -- defined as what a willing buyer is prepared to pay -- of those extra slots is </em><em>nothing</em>. [Of course that's not entirely correct but it gets us into the real problem of DAB - the cost of transmission per listener, compared with any other form of broadcasting, <em>even the preposterously-expensive-per-user internet radio</em> is off the scale. Eight quid per person per year (Planet Rock)? £11 (Oneword)? Are these people on crack? It’s not like I’ve ever been a fan of the concept, and I had no confidence whatsoever that C4 had the first idea what it was doing (looking for people who understand how to make decent speech radio far more cheaply than the BBC, I don’t think that the smartest thing to do was to start hiring high-ranking BBC execs).

But.

Of course they had to pull the plug. More than half the stations on the bid document have been dead in the water since Christmas — and C4 didn’t even acknowledge it.

There’s more multiplexes than buyers on D1. C4 needed rental revenue to make at least some money in YY 1-2 and the current market value — defined as what a willing buyer is prepared to pay — of those extra slots is nothing.

[Of course that’s not entirely correct but it gets us into the real problem of DAB – the cost of transmission per listener, compared with any other form of broadcasting, even the preposterously-expensive-per-user internet radio is off the scale.

Eight quid per person per year (Planet Rock)? £11 (Oneword)? Are these people on crack?

]]> By: Nick http://www.mattdeegan.com/2008/10/10/so-long-c4-radio-we-never-knew-you/comment-page-1/#comment-78845 Nick Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:52:35 +0000 http://www.mattdeegan.com/?p=283#comment-78845 It's a bit unfair to say that Channel 4 have messed everyone around. They were obviously very serious about their commitment to radio and they've had to make a difficult business decision. It’s a bit unfair to say that Channel 4 have messed everyone around. They were obviously very serious about their commitment to radio and they’ve had to make a difficult business decision.

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