UK government white paper sets out future for BBC

The UK government has released its white paper on the future of the BBC, stating that the licence fee will remain until 2016 and the current BBC governors will be replaced with a more independent BBC Trust.

Delivering the results of 'A public service for all: the BBC in the digital age' in Parliament on Tuesday, culture secretary Tessa Jowell described the findings as a "unique solution for a unique organisation".

In response to concerns from the commercial sector that BBC services present unfair competition, the paper outlines a set of codes and a 'fair trading regime' that will be applied to new services.

The new BBC Trust will carry out a 'public value test' for proposed new services, including a market impact assessment provided by communications industry regulator Ofcom. The white paper describes this test as 'both the mechanism and rationale for the BBC's decision making'.

Ms Jowell said the BBC will: "have to form a more consensual relationship with the wider industry, providing certainty, clarity and transparency about its business wherever possible".

The white paper, which forms the basis for the renewal of the BBC's charter later this year, also outlines six key objectives for the corporation including stimulating creativity, reflecting UK identity and building a digital Britain.

Director general Mark Thompson said the paper sets out a clear remit for the BBC, but will still be a challenge.

"The BBC is passionate about quality content and we want to deliver, on every appropriate platform, programmes that are innovative, distinctive and entertaining," he said.

"We are developing a creative strategy that will be the BBC's creative blueprint for the next charter and set the UK's benchmark for quality content."

In an interview with Ofcomwatch last month, Conservative MP and former shadow culture secretary John Whittingdale said that Ofcom should regulate the BBC, rather than the proposed BBC Trust.

"If the BBC is going to provide new media content through interactive players, mobile phones, broadband downloads - and doing so for free - then that is going to have a considerable impact on the market. And it is rightly leading to huge expressions of concern from a wide range of voices in the industry," he said.

"The BBC Trust will make the decision as to whether the public value of the proposed service outweighs the market impact, and that to me is unacceptable. It means that whether something the BBC wants to do is in the public interest is decided by the BBC.

"And that gives rise to a real concern among a wide range of commercial players - news providers, music companies, spoken word producers, archive film libraries - all of whom are faced by the BBC's ambitions in this area."

• Mobile phone users do need a valid licence fee to watch TV content on a mobile phone, it was confirmed in Parliament recently. Speaking for the government, Lord Davies of Oldham said that a licence is required for any device that receives any TV programme service.

"A television licence is required to install or use any apparatus for the purpose of receiving any television programme service, whether by means of wireless telegraphy or otherwise and whether or not it is installed or used for any other purpose," he told the House of Lords.

"The definition of a television programme service encompasses analogue, digital and satellite television services."

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