A campaigning newspaper group has forced a county council to release funding details of a controversial £1.4m internet TV project – and how much of the cost is being borne by the taxpayer.

Kent County Council had refused to disclose information about a feasibility study for its web-only local TV channel Kent TV, which is being operated by Ten Alps, a company founded by Sir Bob Geldof.

But the Kent Messenger Group used the Freedom of Information Act to launch a challenge and now the watchdog who administers the act has ruled in its favour.

In his ruling, the Information Commissioner said he accepted KMG’s argument that “the council should be open and transparent about the costs incurred by the taxpayer.”

The KM Group’s political editor Paul Francis has been engaged in a long-running dispute with the council over its refusal to disclose information about the channel.

Said Paul: “Our argument had always been that the public interest was served by the disclosure of all this information because KCC is using taxpayers’ money for Kent TV. The Information Commissioner clearly agrees with us.”

The commissioner also said KCC had been wrong to provide the paper with only a censored version of a briefing note provided to county councillors and has ordered the full briefing note to be published.

He rejected the council’s argument that those details should be kept secret on grounds of commercial sensitivity and said the council had failed to demonstrate how its commercial interests would be affected by full disclosure of the councillors’ briefing document.

The information now released reveals that at the time KCC was considering setting up Kent TV, it had considered whether to establish it as a stand-alone digital TV station broadcast on Sky. It also reveals the yearly running costs could be as much as £695,000 a year – nearly £200,000 more than it has actually set aside.

The county council has always argued that Kent TV will become self-financing but set aside £1.2million to cover running costs and in addition spent £200,000 on set-up costs.

However, in his ruling the Information Commissioner said the council need not release a document setting out the full business case for its project.

The Kent Messenger Group had argued it was in the public interest for that document also to be published in full.