We’d like to wish all our readers a very Happy Easter.
Today is April Fool’s day.
Tory Stuff
Ed spoke at the LGA Culture Tourism and Sport conference in Gateshead yesterday. Read his speech, and about the conference more widely, on their blog, including ACE chief executive Alan Davey who has been making the case for maintaining funding at local government level, HERE
Creative Industries
Ofcom – busy, busy, busy!
Ofcom – Pay TV
Ofcom has published the conclusion of its investigation into the pay TV market and concludes that: Sky must offer Sky Sports 1 and 2 to other retailers at a wholesale price set by Ofcom; give conditional approval to Sky and Arqiva’s request to offer pay TV services on digital terrestrial TV (Picnic), dependent on a wholesale deal; it will refer concerns regarding the sale and distribution of film rights to the Competition Commission; and that Sky must offer wholesale HD versions of Sky Sports 1 and 2. More HERE and analysis on Media Guardian HERE .
BT does not think that Ofcom has gone far enough, saying : ‘Despite being a step in the right direction, it is disappointing that Ofcom seem to have compromised. This is because their remedy does not apply to all Sky Sports Channels, there’s also no price for HD channels, they’ve set a price bundle of Sky Sports 1 and 2 at a higher rate than they suggested and they’ve left out the issue of premium movies.’
Sky have confirmed that they will appeal.
Ofcom – broadband
Ofcom has said that ISPs must do a better job of telling customers about broadband speeds, or face stiffer regulation, Full research HERE more HERE
Ofcom – media literacy
Ofcom’s report into media children’s media literacy suggests that a quarter of UK internet users aged eight to 12 have profiles on Facebook, Bebo or MySpace last year, despite the lowest minimum age set on any of the sites is 13, and band news for the music industry, finding that 44% of children between 12 and 15 thought downloading shared copies of films and music for free should not be illegal, more HERE Read the full report HERE
Ofcom – termination rates
Ofcom has published plans to reduce mobile termination rates (MTRs) – the charges operators made to connect calls to each others’ networks – to benefit UK consumers.
They will be consulting on these proposals until 23 June, more HERE
Ofcom – CRR
Ofcom has published the submission it made to the Competition Commission on CRR. It states that “Ofcom does not believe that retaining the undertakings in their current form is appropriate” HERE
Broadband
US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman, Julius Genachowski submitted a new “100 Squared” Nation Broadband Plan to Congress, full plan HERE, he raised the bar to an unprecedented height by proposing that that a 100 million U.S. homes should have affordable access to actual download speeds of at least 100M bps (bits per second) Internet, and upload speeds of at least 50 Mbps by 2020, more HERE
Virgin are using innovative methods to get broadband to rural areas, more HERE
Press Complaints Commission
Following the extension of the PCC’s remit to blogs , Rod Liddle’s Spectator blog is the first to have a complaint upheld, more HERE
Video Games
Skillset have pointed out, rightly, that while the promise of tax breaks are an important step for the sector, the need to tackle the skills gap is as, if not more, important. More HERE.
Channel 4
The Culture Media and Sport Select Committee has published a report on Channel 4, more: HERE
It calls for increased over-sight of the channel if its PSB remit is extended to include other platforms including E4, More4, Film4 and online services. More in the Times,
HERE and from PA, HERE
Channel 4 is to double its budget for arts funding, under a new arts board chaired by its director of television and content Kevin Lygo. Tabitha Jackson has been appointed as commissioning editor art, more HERE
Advertising
Professor Tanya Byron published her progress review on child internet safety at Number 10 on Monday. Read it in its full 60-page glory HERE. The report commends the ad industry for the work done so far, especially the industry agreement to CAP’s remit extension – HERE.
UK internet advertising expenditure has grown 4.2% to £3.5bn in 2009, and IAB/PWC figures reveal that ad spend mushroomed by 2,200% during the last decade. Search has surpassed £2bn, while online video ads have enjoyed spectacular growth. The Internet Advertising Bureau’s Guy Phillipson appeared on BBC R5 and you can listen to him HERE.
Radio
The Lords Communication Committee has published its report into digital switchover of television and radio this week, a summary is on our blog HERE more on the radio aspects of the report HERE download the full report HERE
Film
The UK Film Council has published its three year plan and launches its new £15m Film Fund, following three months consulting on proposals across the film sector. More HERE
EM Media announces nine new digital media projects with the support of the East Midlands Development Agency, more HERE
Camelot
The National Lottery operator’s shareholders have agreed to sell their shares to the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan for £389 million, more HERE . Just think, it could have been you. Then again, if you used to teach in Ontario, it is you.
Fashion
Last week, twenty emerging London design talents flew to New York to show their work at the Soho Grand at the invitation of Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, more, and an analysis of the increasing profile of fashion in the political world, HERE
The British Fashion Council have launched their first ever ‘Pop-Up’ store to celebrate new British design talent at Bicester Village yesterday, featuring clothes from Erdem, Mark Fast, PPQ, Todd Lynn, House of Holland, Osman and Hannah Marshall, more HERE
Meanwhile Skillset’s remit is expanding to cover fashion and textiles creating one of the biggest Sector Skills Councils, more HERE
Arts and Heritage
Libraries
Following the Libraries Review, which promises to make an ‘affirmative order preventing libraries from charging for ebooks lending of any sort, including remotely’, the Booksellers Association has written to Margaret Hodge warning that the commercial book business risks being undermined by the free loading of ebooks by libraries in a letter sent to culture minister Margaret Hodge, more HERE The Booksellers Association have been joined in their protest by the Society of Authors and the Writers Guild, who have also written to La Hodge on the matter, more HERE
Visual Art
As part of its tenth anniversary celebrations, Tate Modern will host a festival of independent arts, No Soul For Sale, hosting over 60 of the world’s most innovative independent art spaces, not-for-profit organizations and artists’ collectives to take over the turbine hall, more HERE
Meanwhile Tate has appointed former Guardian and Observer marketing director Marc Sands to be director of audiences and media, congratulations to him, more HERE
Heritage
Ben Bradshaw has announced £250,000 funding for Bletchley Park Museum funding an urgent repair programme within the conservation area, more HERE
The Historic Houses Association have a lovely new website, HERE
The Heritage Lottery Fund has announced a £25m increase in its annual budget for new awards to heritage projects across the UK following a rise in National Lottery ticket sales, more HERE . They’ll get even more if we win the election.
Dance
The Dance sector has a national campaign running to get as many Parliamentary candidates as possible interested in and connected to dance, more HERE
Music
The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic’s In Harmony music project is the subject of a specially commissioned 30-minute film to be broadcast on BBC One North West on Easter Monday, 5th April, at 3.40pm , more HERE
Cultural Learning Alliance
The Cultural Learning Alliance brings together the cultural sector including museums, film, libraries, heritage, dance, literature, new media arts, theatre, visual arts and music with the education and youth sector to promote the vision of a stronger cultural entitlement. More HERE It sounds great to us, and there’s a lovely film of David Cameron on their website.
Museums
Congratulations to the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry, which won the 2010 Guardian Family Friendly Museum Award today! More HERE
The NMDC’s monthly newsletter is out now, read it HERE
Writing
Congratulations to British writer Rosemary Sutcliff has been awarded the major US 2010 Phoenix Award, for The Shining Company more HERE
Culture Blogs
Lord ‘jostle like a dragon’ Tebbit has his own culture blog, more HERE
Election Fever
Rumour has it the election might be called shortly. We hope that this email will continue during the campaign, although we can’t quite confirm that as yet, so watch this space. Email-wise, during the campaign Ed will be on HERE. Helen will be delighted to receive your suggested Weekly contributions on HERE.
In Parliament
Parliamentary Questions
Pricey hospitality at the DCMS HERE
Payments to the Newspaper Licensing Agency HERE
Almost 23000 people employed at the BBC HERE
Public opinions of the BBC HERE
EDMs
1228 Hospital Radio Awards HERE
1223 Digital Economy Bill HERE
1215 Licensing of Live Music HERE
1206 National Anthem and the BBC HERE
Where we’ve been and who we’ve seen
Game Based Learning Conference, Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner at Working Title, AOP, Getty Images, BAPLA, Video Games Hustings, City Screen, LGA Annual Culture Tourism and Sport conference, Newcastle City Library, Great North Museum: Hancock, Telegraph digital team, Ofcom, UK Music reception, Big Society Seminar.
Ed Vaizey
Shadow Arts Minister
Jeremy Hunt
Shadow Culture Secretary
