BBC Director General Matt Brittin Says Some Channels and Radio Stations 'May Well' Close
Matt Brittin, the Director General of the BBC, indicated that the broadcaster's evolving audience habits and financial difficulties might necessitate the shutdown of specific channels and radio stations to prioritize on-demand offerings. The BBC plans to achieve savings of £500 million, with Brittin highlighting that no channel or program is assured of survival. He pointed out that while some shows draw approximately 100,000 viewers, around 500,000 engage with the same content through iPlayer, leading to a pivot towards on-demand services. Recent program cancellations include Football Focus and Blankety Blank, with further reductions expected. Brittin, who took on the role in May, is receptive to incorporating AI in programming but stressed the importance of human supervision. The complete interview will be broadcast on 27 September at 09:00 BST.
Key facts
- BBC Director General Matt Brittin said some channels and radio stations "may well" have to close to fund on-demand services
- The BBC is seeking £500m in savings
- Brittin said the BBC "wouldn't guarantee any programme or any channel will exist forever"
- He cited services where about 100,000 watch broadcast while 500,000 use iPlayer
- Recent closures include Blankety Blank, Celebrity Mastermind, Live At The Apollo and Football Focus, with more cuts expected
- Brittin became director general in May after a decade as president of Google in Europe, the Middle East and Africa
- He said he would allow an AI-made and AI-presented programme "within guardrails" but not as a substitute for humans
- He warned six non-European companies could control access to information and misinformation
- The full interview airs on BBC One and iPlayer on 27 September at 09:00 BST
Entities
Artists
- Matt Brittin
- Laura Kuenssberg
- Winifred Robinson
- Jonathan Wall
Institutions
- BBC
- BBC One
- iPlayer
- Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg
- Blankety Blank
- Celebrity Mastermind
- Live At The Apollo
- Football Focus
- BBC Radio 4
- BBC Radio 5 Live
- BBC Sounds
- Today
- The World Tonight
- Newsnight
- Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg
- DCMS committee
Locations
- United Kingdom
- Europe
- Middle East
- Africa