Trinity Mirror has joined the dissenting voices against the BBC’s £68m plans to run ‘ultra-local’ websites producing video on demand.

Earlier this week Newspaper Society director David Newell said the BBC should not spend public money “duplicating local news services already provided.”

Now, the newspaper publishing giant, whose titles include the Liverpool Post and Echo and Birmingham Post and Mail, has also come out fighting.

David Black, group director of digital publishing, said: “As a growing multiplatform media business, Trinity Mirror is already providing consumers with a range of regional, local and hyperlocal products across print and digital platforms.

“This includes our trusted, market-leading newspapers, their companion websites and a growing network of hyperlocal community sites.

“The BBC’s plans to expand into this market with £68m of public money would simply be duplicating services which are already amply provided by commercial local media.”

Last month Trinity Mirror chief executive Sly Bailey voiced her own concerns about the plans during a meeting with the House of Lords Communications Committee.

The Lords met with Ms Bailey and Lord Rothermere, chairman of the Daily Mail and General Trust, to discuss media ownership. Their report is out today.

Comments

Roderick V. Louis (27/06/2008 17:54:33)
The BBC’s plans for ‘ultra-local’ UK services along with its proposals to move a lot of its resources from the south of England to Manchester and nearby are just part of a transparent, short-sighted scam…
A scam intended to create false-justifications for the BBC cannibalizing and shutting-down its international news-gathering and reporting services… along with dramatically reducing BBC non-news productions such as drama, documentaries, sport, etc…
Solutions: throw Labour out and rationalize the license fee so that it was termed a ‘media fee” instead… (Internet; radio; pod-cast; TV; cell-phone; etc)
The Uk needs the BBC for overseas profile and trading exposure…
Roderick V. Louis,
Vancouver, BC, Canada,
[email protected]