News story about a speech by Channel Four Television chief executive Andy Duncan pledging that its planned new digital radio content will "redefine commercial radio" in the UK, written by Grant Goddard in June 2006 for The Radio Magazine.

1. NEWS: CHANNEL FOUR TV CEO
DUNCAN PLEDGES TO
"REDEFINE COMMERCIAL
RADIO" WITH NEW DIGITAL
RADIO CONTENT
by
GRANT GODDARD
www.grantgoddard.co.uk
June 2006

2. Channel Four Television chief executive Andy Duncan has declared that his
company’s aim is “to redefine commercial radio” because “the BBC’s dominant
56% share of listening isn’t healthy”.
Channel Four will achieve this by “bringing in independent producers with fresh
ideas, new advertisers to boost the flagging commercial sector, and real public
service competition to the BBC where it counts – on quality and original
content.”
Addressing the audience for his 'New Statesman' Media Lecture at the
Banqueting House in Whitehall, Duncan said: “For too long, there’s been a
yawning gap between the BBC’s supremacy in the world of the spoken word
and the commercial operators’ limited range of formats. Digital radio makes
room for us to come into that middle ground with something different:
intelligent speech and music content with attitude and younger appeal that will,
for the first time, involve listeners in the creation of a station.”
He continued: “Why should a television company want to move into radio?
Because digital convergence is now a reality. People are listening to radio on
their TV sets; watching TV on their mobiles; getting their news online. We no
longer work in media silos. We’re not just in the television business any more;
we’re in the communications business.”
Duncan’s words echoed those of Mark Mays, chief executive of Clear Channel
Communications Inc., the largest US radio group, who told analysts recently
that his radio division had “moved beyond just being in the radio business” and
was now “in the content creation business”. Mays explained: “We find,
develop, produce and promote content like no other radio or audio
entertainment company. We have invested an unprecedented programming
initiative to provide compelling and unique entertainment and information
products to local and national audiences through our current and future
distribution platforms.”
Similar sentiments have been offered by US analysts such as Jim Boyle of
Wachovia Securities who, a year ago, had said of radio companies: “I believe
that there’s a solid future ahead for those of us who recognise that we’re not in
the radio business. We’re in the entertainment... information…
companionship… dependability… trust, ‘values’ business.”
Mark Ramsay, president of US strategy company Hear2.0, had commented in
December 2004: “With the swarm of up-and-coming technologies rocking the
headlines and our world daily, with satellite, iPods, podcasting, streaming
broadband, etc. all threatening to slice off a portion of our listening audience,
it's fair to ask what turf we should be defending. It's fair to ask, as an industry,
where is radio going? Fundamentally, we all need to understand one thing loud
and clear: we are not in the ‘radio’ business.”
[First published in 'The Radio Magazine' as 'C4 To "Redefine" Commercial Radio', #742, 28 June 2006]
News: Channel Four TV CEO Duncan Pledges To "Redefine Commercial Radio" With New Digital Radio Content
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©2006 Grant Goddard

3. News: Channel Four TV CEO Duncan Pledges To "Redefine Commercial Radio" With New Digital Radio Content
page 3
©2006 Grant Goddard
Grant Goddard is a media analyst / radio specialist / radio consultant with thirty years of
experience in the broadcasting industry, having held senior management and consultancy
roles within the commercial media sector in the United Kingdom, Europe and Asia. Details at
http://www.grantgoddard.co.uk