Thursday, 24 April 2008

In article <205063.49761....>, ... () wrote:

*From:* ...
*To:* ...
*Date:* 23 Apr 2008 22:40:39 +0000

I would love somebody to tell me what choice I have in Brum on my
'local' stations.

Maybe the list needs correcting Roy ???? http://www.radio-now.co.uk/central.htm

Eric

Alan Milewczyk wrote:

If you don't have kids why fund the portion of taxes that goes towards
education?<

But weren't you educated, I don't think its a question of just funding offspring you don't have?

If you're healthy why pay for the NHS?<

But what if you get ill, or had been ill in the past? I haven't heard of anybody dying because they couldn't get to the BBC.

I don't think it would throw anything into confusion, the BBC make enough money from flogging off old TV programmes that licence fee payers had already paid for, only to pay to watch them again on subscription based TV. Nah, make them work for their funding I say. Stop this Gestapo approach, press-ganging everybody that owns a device capable of receiving TV into buying a licence is nothing less than bullying.

Andy

This ofcom ruling has obviously thrown up the free radio versus Government legislated radio. I do believe the licensing of stations should be down to frequency availability and then the format is the decision of the frequency winner. Highest bidder wins with two frequencies allowed for a lottery style that they are not allowed to sell the licence, just handed back if they cannot make a profit, then another lottery.

BBC Should have two national stations and one local, the rest handed out for commercial ventures. Eventually the market would decide on what is sustainable and what is not. Newspapers are not required to go through this format rubbish, so why should radio. If you want specialist radio you seek it out, you cannot tell me you can't find what you want on the Internet. The same goes for the published word, if you want a specialist magazine you will seek it out, you may not find it at WH Smiths but you can always order it. Radio has now reached the stage where it can be free from format interference, let the Government get on with doing it and reap the benefit in taxing the spectrum.

Steve

In article <586343.53869....>, ... () wrote:

As I said Eric, what choice. Apart from community licence's (one
returned and one bankrupt project) the main licenced Regional /
local stations are all POP. Newstyle is ok if you like
Afro-Carribbean (the odd track is ok) – Smooth / Galaxy / Heart /
BRMB / Kerrang and that is no choice, mainly playing 80's to today
with Smooth and Heart playing an occasional 70's track (Smooth told
Roger Day they are going for a younger market?? – how they are
staying with their licence is beyond me considering the argument
about the London and Manchester licences)

I get your drift Roy and it is very much a thing of taste.
We have just sat together for our weekly new music meeting and I, ME, JA, MOI, was pushed into accepting some tracks which were so border-line that on my own they wouldn't have got loaded onto the music PCs.
Now when it can to the upbeat/power tracks there was no debate at all.
I even moan when I hear a ballad and two in a row would send me to the playout system faster than a knife through hot butter.
Equally, we have no 50's music even in the parked music section, well not that I know of. Whilst we did have a time when tracks were being requested by people who were clearly on a wind-up mission, we didn't play them nor add them.
And when you look at the age span of the listeners we do encourage people of 50+ as well as those in there 20's.
So where does the younger market break-point appear, 51, 52, 53, 54 or even 55? Oh gawd that's me :-)

I do take a listen to many of the stations mentioned here, from time to time, and I can't say those which are supposed to be for my age do anything for me at all, in fact if I manage two tracks it's a miracle. Most times they have me running for the handset.
R2 isn't that bad but some of the specialist shows are way out of my ear/range, even though the presentation is clearly very high standard.

Just my thoughts
Eric

In article <b10e2363eac3ba7eb3ec53054c5f9c6e@jiglu-wc>, ... (Stephen Sullivan) wrote:

BBC Should have two national stations and one local, the rest
handed out for commercial ventures.

Radios 1 and 2 then.

Eric

Technology "expert" Steven Murdoch from I.S.O. Solutions joins Iain Lee on Virgin Radio tonight from 10pm.

Listeners are invited to call in for advice and answers to technology problems, but perhaps should not be surprised if they come away rather disappointed from the experience judging from Steven Murdoch's past efforts, which have included having an emotional breakdown live on air. Barry from Watford was recently quoted as saying of him that, "The man is a buffoon!".

Q_1_2_3_4_5_6 <...> said:

Q_1_2_3_4_5_6 <...> said:
From today the Dutch 828 kHz-transmitter is in use by Arrow Classic Rock
Radio for testtransmittions on behalf of its new radiostation Arrow Talk
Radio. Greetings of Nico from Gouda, the Netherlands.

Read also the press-release on
http://www.radiofreak.nl/nieuws.php?id=7175
about the used power of the 828 kHz-transmitter (in the Dutch language).

Greetings of Nico from Gouda, the Netherlands.

This 828 kHz-transmitter is now off air. Nico.

Stephen Sullivan <...> said:

This ofcom ruling has obviously thrown up the free radio versus Government legislated radio.
I do believe the licensing of stations should be down to frequency availability and then the format is the decision of the frequency winner. Highest bidder wins with two frequencies allowed for a lottery style that they are not allowed to sell the licence, just handed back if they cannot make a profit, then another lottery.

BBC Should have two national stations and one local, the rest handed out for commercial ventures. Eventually the market would decide on what is sustainable and what is not. Newspapers are not required to go through this format rubbish, so why should radio. If you want specialist radio you seek it out, you cannot tell me you can't find what you want on the Internet. The same goes for the published word, if you want a specialist magazine you will seek it out, you may not find it at WH Smiths but you can always order it.
Radio has now reached the stage where it can be free from format interference, let the Government get on with doing it and reap the benefit in taxing the spectrum.

Steve

HEAR HEAR!!!

Quoting Andy P <

I personally think it is time the BBC generated their own funds by whatever
other method apart from this ludicrous licence fee; PPV, or advertising. My
car insurance is now cheaper than this damn fee! I drive my car every day,
but I cant remember the last time I watched anything on a BBC TV channel,
I'm being diddled! However, I would be willing to pay the 6 or 7 quid or
whatever it is that comes out of the TV fee to pay for BBC radio, I do
listen to that on a daily basis.

I don't mind the licence fee as I consider it fairly good value. I would probably be prepared to pay that amount for the radio alone, as a sucker for radio dramas, comedy, and documentaries R4 is superb and globally, an unrivalled service as far as I can see. I greatly value 5Live. Peter Allen and Anita anand are a dream partnership on 'Drive' -or in my case- bicycle. The weekly cinematic sparring between Simon Mayo and Mark Kermode makes excellent listening- and I bloody hate going to the cinema. (I'm not keen on the phone ins though, your average pub bore's mechanism of torture for the rest of us. Also Nicky Campbell needs a bloody good smacking the cocky little bastard). Locally, Radio Norfolk's sports coverage is brilliant and saves me a packet on internet subscription to Norwich commentaries if I can't get to a game. Roy Waller is a true Norfolk hero. So frankly- the telly's an added bonus for me though I'm not really much into telly.

I do feel the fee itself though, as a method of supporting the Beeb must be well past its sell-by date. The Beeb make a fortune from selling programmes abroad etc and even advertising (on BBC World for example). To set up this enormous beaurocratic apparatus to collect £90 or whatever it is (unless you're blind and you get a small discount- I love that) each year off every house in the country with a telly just seems bizzare. And I detest those threatening ads they run on BBC1 that suggest if you don't pay your fee, your genitals will be hacked off by a machete wielding gangster and your kids will be fed to crocodiles-or some other similar threats that I forget the details of. And I'll never forgive Paul Merton for doing the voice over for one of these 'ads'. Twatt. He'll be doing Tesco's ads next.

Cheers
Giles.

gloworm558 . <...> said:

I do feel the fee itself though, as a method of supporting the Beeb must

be well past its sell-by date. The Beeb make a fortune from selling
programmes abroad etc and even advertising (on BBC World for example).
To set up this enormous beaurocratic apparatus to collect £90 or
whatever it is (unless you're blind and you get a small discount- I love
that) each year off every house in the country with a telly just seems
bizzare. And I detest those threatening ads they run on BBC1 that
suggest if you don't pay your fee.

I broadly agree with Gile's sentiments. The entertainment tax is an anachronism from the days of the two telly channnels and only BBC radio services. The problem is the no one wants to pay hard earned cash to what they perceive is 'free' out of the ether. The BBC in my opinion has lost the plot. They are top heavy in useless middle management positions, promoting ' on message' policies like 'safeguarding trust'. To the non initiated this means thou shalt not tell porkies to the audience. I was informed as a freelance, I could not be continued to be employed until a had attended a brainwash course of this nonsense. I had no option but to waste a morning absorbing the f**ing obvious. All production and operational staff have to comply.

The Beeb can do great shows but a major cull in non-productive career jobsworths would be a good reform to start with

 I have a pal who owns a remote hideaway on the west coast of Scotland. The previous owner had a telly, he does not. He is being persued by the licencing people , hereafter called the 'videots' to pay his fee. You Know where this is going. He told them he doesn't have televison apparatus at this address. They don't believe him. He says prove to the contrary. They say they will prosecute if he is found operating a telly. He says be my guest. They say we will require entry. He says please make an apointment but not without a warrrant and a copper present . They say ...... well they say nothing, they are in Bristol and the nearest policeman to my friend is 60 miles away. As Jack Lemmon once said 'It's all piss and wind'. The videots presumably have gone back to consider their next plan of civil harrassment.

To be fair to the Beeb the videots are a government agency not theirs.