Rogue male ?

Has Tim "IP" Davie gone rogue ?  An internet-only-delivered BBC in ten years ?

This is part of a BBC submission to Ofcom, published in April this year... 

Digital terrestrial television (DTT, known in the UK as Freeview) will remain critical for the BBC to deliver our mission and public purposes, as a key requirement for universal access to BBC content and the societal benefits conferred by public service media. There does not have to be an ‘either/or’ decision between mobile and DTT. The UK’s spectrum governance must protect spectrum allocated for DTT and programme making at home, as well as recognising the use of spectrum for delivery of UK objectives outside the UK.

We therefore welcome Ofcom’s expectation that DTT will need to continue until at least 2030 and likely beyond, and are clear that use of the sub-700 MHz spectrum band well into the 2030s is vitally important for both audiences and programme makers. It is particularly important for older and vulnerable
audiences, and we note that research shows that audiences from ‘Freeview-only’ households (the biggest proportion of all UK homes in 2019) are typically older audiences and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

As the Government noted in its 2021 Consultation on the renewal of Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) multiplex licences, ‘There are approximately 11.3 million ‘Freeview-only’ households in the UK (c40% of all) and this category makes up the biggest proportion of all UK homes. Freeview has a broad audience; however, in ‘Freeview-only’ households, its audience has traditionally been older and from lower socio-economic backgrounds compared to the audiences using pay platforms. DTT is currently a

crucial requirement for universal access to BBC content that informs, educates, and entertains, ensuring that many people are able to access public service TV who would otherwise not be able to.