WOCC around the clock

Tim Davie has welcomed the BBC Trust's decision to create more space for indies to compete with in-house radio production teams. He would do; but that wasn't his recommendation to the Trust.

BBC Audio & Music currently has a commitment to taking 10% of its output from independent production companies. In fact, over the last three years it has exceeded that figure, by 2 or 3 per cent. On top of that, Radio 4 operates a "Window of Creative Competition" for a further ten per cent of its airtime, where BBC teams and indies compete.

The BBC Executive proposal was to increase the indie quota to 12.5% all round - essentially a reflection of the current reality. It did not want a WOCC for Radios 1,1Xtra, 2, 3, 5, 5Live Sports Extra, 6Music, 7 and the Asian Network. The Trust said keep the quota at 10%, but YOU WILL IMPLEMENT A 10% WOCC across all radio.

The Trust's review also picks at the BBC for poor management information, a late commitment to cost benchmarking, and notes that indies have lower costs per hour in general - though that may be because they are mostly offered the cheaper commissions.

Grant Goddard's independent report on the BBC/Indie relationship is instructive. The BBC side always complains that they get too many offers to handle in open commissioning, and thus try to work with lists of preferred suppliers. The Catch 22 is that you can't get on the lists without previous experience of network commissions. The indie side point out that the BBC seems to be able to ride every commission with a dedicated accountant, going line by line through deals as small as £8,000 - taking time and any potential profit out of their side of the contract.