Newsdesk 13/12/07 - Auction for 'digital dividend'

Ofcom have launched a multi-billion pound auction of airwaves for a new wave of digital services.
This could mean that during the next decade, ultra-fast wireless broadband and many more digital channels could become available as radio spectrum is freed during the digital switchover. The regulator has said that the market will decide how the spectrum is used with an open auction.
The BBC, Channel 4 and ITV had pressed for ring-fenced space for high definition TV over Freeview.
Ofcom chief executive Ed Richards said the decision to opt for a "market-led approach" was "one of the most important decisions we have ever made".

The regulator has packaged the available spectrum into key uses:

*National digital terrestrial TV in high or standard definition
*Cognitive radio - a new wireless technology which can deliver broadband
*High-speed mobile broadband and mobile TV
*Local television - 25 new local TV stations across the UK

Ofcom said HD television remained a "premium" service. HD For All has now said it supports Ofcom's position and has agreed to deliver HD on Freeview by 2012.

Newsdesk 07/12/07 : Broadband Division

At this current time, people that live in the country have much less of a choice in broadband provider and are a lot more likely to get slower speeds, while paying for it at different prices to friends and family that live in the cities. With the new introduction of super-fast broadband looking to be introduced, it looks like things may get a lot worse for people living outside of the city.

It looks like it may be decades before they can create the same coverage for those living in rural areas for those closer to the city.

"There is going to have to be an acceptance that broadband will be faster in the cities. The model of equal access will have to be adapted," said Ian Fogg, an analyst with Jupiter Research. He added: "Fibre costs such a fortune to roll out that it may take decades to get to ubiquitous coverage in rural areas."

Next year looks set to have the introduction of "ADSL2+", which promises speeds of upto 24mb, but like ADSL, it will be dependant on how close to the exchange you live.

Visit to BBC Bristol 23/11/2007

Last Friday, myself and 4 fellow students took a trip to BBC bristol to see the people involved in creating the BBC's daily local news show, "Points West".

We started off in the main offices for all the staff, which was bustling with people. Everyone from the reporters to the technical crew to the presenters have desks in this room. It was a very frantic place to be, phones ringing, people chatting and shouting things to one another, handing over information and you could tell as soon as you entered it was a very busy place with a constant work flow coming through.

First of all, we were introduced to the weatherman, Richard Angwin, who surprisingly had a much larger work role than i would have first thought. He told us that he not only presents the weather on a daily basis but is responsible for cutting up the information given to him, into a local format and creating the graphics to go with the report. The weather report is also the piece, the news team has to either cut or extend depending on how time constraints are going, so if the news runs 30 seconds under its predicted time, the weather report may be extended with a weather report for local events.

Richard Abgwin - BBC Points West Weather Reporter

We then had a chat with the a guy who deals with some regional news for the web and ceefax. He constantly searches and waits for news to come in from web sources and reporters, and then checks the information and corrects any mistakes using a super spell-checker, before uploading it through the BBC servers onto the website or ceefax. He also has to decide what news items should go up or come down and issue them into priority order. It was amazing how quick it was uploaded and after making an update, showed us where it had gone onto the website and ceefax.


Our host then escorted us into Radio Bristol which was surprisingly quiet. There was a reception area with a single receptionist and three surrounding studios, one of which was in use. The host, Steve Yabsley, spotted us watching him through the window and much to my horror, beckoned us to come in. So i played it cool, and almost forgot who i was and what i was doing there on live air, much to everybody else's amusement. The host then thanked us for filling in a couple of minutes he had to kill off and we moved on to an empty studio next door, where nobody could get me, and spoke to an off-duty presenter who showed us the basics of the studio. This had a simple control desk that had a large "play" and "stop" button on it, along with mixers, and cd, mini-disk.etc players for on air music.

Steve Yabsley - BBC Bristol Radio Presenter

There was also a few lights above the studio door and we were told of the obvious on-air red light, a light for emergencies and a blue light that would only flash when someone very important had died, such as a royal family member or the prime minister, and all on air activity would be cut when this happens, for all broadcasting to go onto that issue.
I also noticed that there was a cd attached to the wall and the host told us that it was an emergency pack of a few cd's that could be played in case of a major emergency.

We were then taken into the "points west" studio, which i noticed was surprisingly small, compared to how I'd perceived it from watching it on television. The sports sofa, the presenters table and chair and the projection screen for the weather were all in much closer proximity of one another, than i expected.
What also suprised me was the size of the cameras they were using. They were mounted on fully mobile stands, which moved with unpredicted ease and the cameraman was able to move them around easily with one hand. We then met the presenter, Chris Vacher, who didn't really have time to talk with us, unfortunately.

Chris Vacher - BBC Points West Presenter

Finally, as lunchtime dawned, we were taken into the gallery. The room basically had one wall of television screens, which contained very large screens with much smaller ones surrounding. The producer seemed to have the most, with what each camera was seeing, plus what was happening live with the main news. It was quite strange to see the presenter, sitting in the chair while off air, having a laugh with the people in the gallery and shuffling around seconds before it cut back into the studio, where he assumed a very poignant stance and spoke very well.
Something i think that shocked Chris more than anyone else, was the way they pre-recorded the headlines with the presenter about 5 minutes before they went live, which were then replayed a few times throughout the show as an introduction.

Overall, it was a fantastic experience to see how the BBC production teams work and a surprise to see the sheer amount of coordination and communication that it takes to put a show like that together.

Photos

The Points West Studio

A Close up of the cameras used, with the presenter in shot

Newsdesk: On-Demand Alliance

The BBC, Channel 4 and ITV are going to launch a joint on demand service, bringing together hundreds of hours of programming. The service will go live in 2008.
The service is waiting for the go-ahead to plan from The BBC Trust as well as other major share-holders.
The BBC's iPlayer, ITV's catch-up and Channel 4's 4oD will continue to exist, along with the new combined service.
Free streaming, download, rental and purchasing of programmes will be available.
John Smith, the chief executive of BBC Worldwide, said the venture was a "historic partnership" between the BBC, ITV and Channel 4."The new service will contain some of the very best of the UK's content for consumers to view in one place, which will be both easy to use and great fun," he added.
For Channel 4, chief executive Andy Duncan said further innovation in the area of on-demand would "give viewers ultimate control over what they watch and when they watch it". "Partnering and sharing expertise is the best way of doing this," he added.

Newsdesk : Producer - 23/11/07

News In The Media From This Week:

• BBC jobs cuts. Huge job cuts are to be made to Current Affairs and Political Programmers, in order to fund the new digital age.
  
• Amazon releases The Kindle, a wireless digital book, that can store newspapers, full books and documents.
• The BBC are set to release The White Season, a season of programmes concentrating of the white working class today and where they fit in, with possibly controversy on the line.
• Channel 4 are working on a new reality TV series in which a diverse group of people spend 3 weeks living as devout Islamics. Another one that may cause controversy.
• The BBC have licensed Australian, State-Owned broadcasting company SBS with the rights to create they're own version of Top Gear and has plans to license more internationally.
• Also, according to new studies, the UK's use of broadband is at an all time high, with the use of dial-up connections on the verge of dying. Check out the statistics here.
• And according to new surveys, it seems many children are choosing to sit on the internet, rather than turn on the television.
  

Researcher Job Spec.

Genre - Factual/Historic Entertainment

Working Area - Bath/Bristol, South West

Contract Duration - 9 Months

Application Deadline - 9th November 2007

Salary - 14,000

Job Description - Researcher, A Saxon Bath
BBC Bristol
9 Month fixed term contract / Attachment

We are looking for an experienced researcher, preferably with experience in historic programming to develop programme ideas and historic knowledge to be presented to decision makers. You'll have to quickly establish a rapport with production and contributing personnel and be able to access varied information using contacts and a variety of different sources.

Aim of the job

After being briefed by The Producer, you will carry out detailed historic research and check contributor availability and arrange times for interviews.etc to be shot.

Key Responsibilities And Professional Knowledge And Skills

• Be able to originate and develop programme ideas, using your own knowledge.
• Be able to understand industry requirements and to quickly gain confidence of key talent and nurture it.
• Be able to quickly research and check facts and present your findings to decision makers.
• Must be able to work within relevant legislation and regulations.
• Have a good understanding of the BBC and the ways in which it works.
• Be able to identify relevant data, contributors, locations and archive materials and compile them to meet the requirements of the producer.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Excellent presentation skills.
• Advanced analytical skills.
• Precise attention to detail and methodical approach to work.
• Ability to conceptualise ideas.
• Ability to think visually.
• Initiative and problem solving skills.
• Endless energy and determination.
• Advanced IT skills.
• Diplomacy and sensitivity when working with writers, producers, actors, presenters, other contributors and crew members.
• Current knowledge of the relevant legislation, regulations, and associated procedures, including Copyright, Data Protection, Public Liability, etc. and how to comply with regulatory requirements.
• Knowledge of the requirements of the relevant Health and Safety legislation and procedures.

Typical Work Activities

• Meeting with producers, directors, presenters and writers to discuss the research needs of a programme.
• Generating new programme ideas.
• Sourcing and researching facts, figures and information using the internet, film and tape archives, specialist collections, picture libraries, museums and government departments.
• Conveying findings accurately to others in report form and briefings.
• Updating scripts and editing news reports.
• Researching and booking appropriate people and locations.
• Booking resources, facilities and freelance staff.
• Providing administrative support, such as typing, answering the phone and dealing with contracts.
• Briefing scriptwriters and presenters on topics.
• Sourcing copyright for literary and music sources and gaining clearance for any materials used.
• Negotiating broadcasting rights.
• Tracking down film, archive and video tape.
• Finding interviewees and conducting initial interviews.
• Finding members of the public for a vox pop response to current events.
• Directing a small shoot and doing straightforward editing.

Roles of tv production

Executive Producer - Supervises one or more of the producers. Often the big cheese of the business and creative side of the production. He also checks and manages the budget.

Production Executive -

Boom Operator - Works under the sound supervisor/production mixer to achieve the highest quality of sound recording.

Sound Recordist - Also called production mixers. They ensure that high quality sound is achieved constantly.

Lighting Director - They design the looks required for each shot, using a script or brief from the production team. They design and set up, with the help of the lighting department. specialised lights and accessories.

Gaffer - Head electrician. Keeps all the electrical elements flowing and does repairs.

Director - Responsible for the look and sound of the media. They interpret the writer's visions.

Associate Producer - Performs some producing under the authority of the producer and often if charge of day to day running.

to be continued..



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_crew#Producer
http://www.skillset.org/tv/jobs/technical/article_2788_1.asp

My Media Consumption

Tuesday 30th October
TV - 1 Hour
Pc/Internet - 4 Hours

Wednesday 31st October
TV - 30 mins
PC/Internet - 2 Hours

Thursday 1st November
PC/Internet - 4 Hours

Friday 2nd November
Mp3 Player - 2 Hours
PC/Internet - 2 Hours

Saturday 3rd November
TV - 3 Hours
Games Console - 4 Hours

Sunday 4th November
PC/Internet - 30 mins
TV - 2 Hours
Games Console - 30 mins

Monday 5th November
Mp3 Player - 1 Hour
TV - 3 Hours

Tuesday 6th November
PC/Internet - 6 Hours
Mp3 Player - 30 mins

I do not have a television at university at the moment but watched my flatmate's earlier on in the week. I traveled home on Friday until Monday so was able to access my TV and Games Console. I Mostly use the internet at university for browsing, chatting and gaming. I listen to my Mp3 player when traveling to and from university.

Copyright, Royalties and Permissions

Copyright, royalties and permissions needed for a piece of music to be used in a DVD that will be sold in UK shop.

1.Which organisation(s) will you need to deal with?
-The MCPS-PRS. They are a collaboration of 2 previous companies MCPS and PRS. Its used by the worlds best music writers, publishers and composers. The MCPS-PRS is a royalties collection society and exists as an easy option for people to gain the use of music for personal use in areas such as film or audio and then takes the royalties and gives the money to its members. During its ten years of existence it has become one of the most efficient and easy to use ways of using professional music.
2.What are the steps involved in licensing music?
-Basically you have to apply through The MCPS-PRS, here is a list of steps involved in the whole process.

• Sign an agreement of terms and conditions with The MCPS-PRS to show that you understand how production music may be used and the procedure for making license applications. This only needs to be done once per person.
• You will then be issued with a "P" number, which is basically a registration identity that enables you allowance to approach and buy production music from any library that is an MCPS member.
• MCPS will issue you with a list of music libraries, rather than providing you with the music directly.
• You can then discuss what music you require with consultants before purchasing it.

For using production music in a DVD that is to be sold in UK shops there are a few steps required:

• You must first apply for a DVD1 license from the MCPS, by filling in the application for after thoroughly reading the terms and conditions. This license covers the "mechanical", which covers making copies of the music and "Synchronisation", which covers you using visuals with the music.
• The MCPS will then process your forms and grant you clearance to use production music in your DVD.
  
• You must fill in a "notification of intended release form" and send it to the MCPS a week before the planned release of the product in intended.

How much does it cost?
Category A (DVD singles) - 8.5% of Published Dealer Price, or 6.5% of Retail Price
Category B (Hybrid DVDs) - 7.25% of Published Dealer Price, or 5.54% of Retail Price
Category C (DVD-Video albums) - 6.25% of Published Dealer Price, or 4.78 of Retail Price

3 ways of legally reducing the costs:

1. The easiest and cheapest way of reducing the cost is a process called "Copyleft", which basically allows you to ask for rights to use the music with permission from the owner completely for free. Usually items released using copyleft, must then in turn after finishing be released again under copyleft. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyleft
2. Using The MCPS-PRS is a cheap way of doing it. http://www.mcps-prs-alliance.co.uk
   
3. Using self-composed music is another great way, if you have the ability to do so, as you can use it wherever you like, whenever you like.

What course of action would i pursue?
- I think i would go through the MCPS-PRS as it seems the most legally safe, and the most efficient way of doing so.

Advertising Standards Authority Concerns

Taste and Decency

Sometimes, people can use images and language in advertising that are intended to shock, but can sometimes offend or embaress, making the public angry at this controversial material. The ASA are there to control what is used in advertising and where to draw the line.
Although offensive advertising is a large area of complaint taken by the ASA, misleading advertising is the biggest. Offense caused by advertising is a lethal threat as it can reduce the possible revenue for the companies.

Some people argue that freedom of speech should be excersised in advertising and think that other peoples ideas and views should not be controlled by the government so many factors have to be taken into account before the ASA decide wether or not and advert should or should not be shown.

Terms in what is acceptable in taste and decency is obviously changing as can be seen with exposure of women, whereas a topless woman in a newspaper 50 years ago would have shocked everybody, nowadays its an everyday thing.


The advertising codes state that advertisements should contain nothing
that is likely to cause serious or widespread offence. Homosexuality, sex, race and religion are some of the topics that advertisers have to be careful with.

The ASA must consider these things before releasing an advertisement: context, medium, audience, product and prevailing standards of decency. The codes the ASA works with, will allow advertisements to be distasteful but not offensive.

Social Responsibility

Advertisements can be socially unresponsible by:

• Using scenes or images that people may unduely fear or distress the public.
• Scenes that could encourage people to behave irresponsively.
• Advertising products that can be hazardous to health.
• Advertising aimed at children that may encourage them to feel inferior, pester parents or result in mental or physical harm.

"Copycat Syndrome - So called "Young" or "Immature" people may copy some things seen in advertising which may cause mental, or physical harm to themselves or others.
Rule breaking is something advertisers need to keep an eye on aswell. Certain images or scenes that may provoke lawlessness can again cause the "immature" to act in a way they shouldnt. A good example is cars and the association of speeding in films such as "The Fast And The Furious" which portrays speeding as cool.

Advertisers also have to be careful when using well-known people to advertise their products and using someone who will cause controversy may not be worth using. A good example of this is "Reebok's 50 Cent" campaign, which caused many complaints due to his controversial history and the effects his music may have on some children and his use of a use of gun appearing to be endorsing "gun culture"

Children and Advertising

Common issues that concern the ASA regarding children and advertising:

• Advertising food and drink to children that may contain high sugar levels or excessive fat.
• Portraying children in any kind of sexual manner, such as wearing make-up or provocative clothing.
• Encumbering children with advertisements for products that children would not be able to afford or use or may make them feel inferior for not purchasing it.

Alot of advertisements use images of children using their products, that encourages children to want them. Charities and companies also sometimes use images of physically or mentally abused children in order to provoke emotion.
Some television channels are allowed to show more adult material between 9am and 3pm as its believed children should be at school and wont be viewing.

Some statistics about children and advertising:

•81% of three to six year olds remember having seen the Coca Cola logo
and 69% remember the McDonald’s yellow M

•By the age of five or six, most children are aware of the rudiments of
advertising

•By the age of eight, children are aware of the promotional and
persuasive role of advertising.

Neumann D-01

Microphones - The Neumann D-01 - Polar Patterns

Directional characteristic:
15 remote controllable polar patterns, from omni to cardioid to figure-8

OMNI
Cardiod
Figure 8

Microphones - The Neumann D-01

The Neumann D-01

We Chose the Neumann D-01 because Neumann are the De-Facto Standard when it comes to top-end Studio Condenser Mics and the D-01 (although not yet released) will be a Technological Breakthrough when it's finally available .....(blimey this is sounding like a sales pitch !!)

The thing about this Mic is that it has a built in Digital Encoder that converts the Analogue Signal into a Digital one within the Mic and transmits it via a Standard Balanced XLR Cable as a 24 Bit Signal.

Costs ; Likely to be between £3000-7000 depending on Accessories (Cradle, Software etc..)Comms&Sound.com, Soundlightltd.com, mveducation.com

Application ; High-end Studio Condenser Mic for Vocals & Instruments

Meets professional audio production requirements and permits recording with no “bottlenecks” or loss of signal quality. Unreleased yet but to be used as a high-end analog studio microphone.
Analog studio microphone. Uses digital technology though so gives fantastic dynamic range.

Type ; Condenser Mic

Used with Mac or PC as a remote controlling center for recording. Features an extremely wide dynamic range of more than 130dB. Phantom powering.

Connector ; Standard 3 Pin XLR Connector - which can carry Analogue Audio and/or 24 Bit Digital, AES/EBU

Polar Patterns ; (see seperate post for diags..)

Directional characteristic: 15 remote controllable polar patterns, from omni to cardioid to figure-8 OMNI Cardiod Figure 8

Pro's & Cons ; Hard to say as the Mic is not released yet - but a Common Misconception with Studio Engineers Recording a Single Vocal or Instrument is to put the Mic into Cardiod Mode and wonder why the Sound becomes thin and 'tinny'. This is because Neumann Mics (and other Condenser Mics) historically use Phase Cancellation to achieve a Cardiod Response and this can affect the quality of the sound - so the Rule is use Omni unless you have good reason not to !

Frequency Response ; 20 Hz to 20 kHz

Frequency response refers to the way a microphone responds to different frequencies. It is a characteristic of all microphones that some frequencies are exaggerated and others are attenuated (reduced). For example, a frequency response which favours high frequencies means that the resulting audio output will sound more trebly than the original sound.

Radio Treatment

Radio Treatment – Drew’s Deceit – Comedy Radio Show

Premise
Famous actress Drew Barrymore plays crude gags on the unprepared public via telephone.
Like MTV’s Punkd, Drew can use her celebrity status to play cruel jokes on her unsuspecting famous friends and colleagues including her godfather, Steven Spielberg.
Drew’s cruel shenanigans can range from telling people their love one’s have died in a comical but believable way, to informing them that a partner has been downloading a vast amount of child pornography and is about to be shot. We will use current audio technology to distort her voice from people that may recognise it.

Characters
Drew Barrymore – Lovable, well-known host, whom people know as notoriously be a beautiful, young actress with many blockbuster films under her belt such as “Donny Darko” and “Charlie’s Angels.”
Tom Green – Her Ex-boyfriend and producer of the show. He is well known for his live stand-up shows and starring in movies such as “Freddy Got Fingered” and “Road-trip”. He is also known for his audacity and has performed such skits and placing a cows head in his parents bed while they slept because his father was a fan of the “Godfather” films and pretending to have intercourse with a dead moose by the side of the road.

Setting
Live studio, probably on a station such as radio 1, where they are more likely to get away with cheek and vulgarity. Should be played on a Friday evening from 7pm to 8pm for an hour, while people are getting ready to go out, or having a couple of drinks before they hit the town. Will have the aim of an older teen audience of maybe 15-25 year olds.

Mood and Style

Will contain crude sound effects such as belching noises as well as sound effects that will be used in tricking the public. Rock/metal music will also be played at different points throughout the show to spread it out a little.

Finish the show up with the celebrity phone call, followed by Drew revealing herself to the person she's been winding up and letting them choose a song which is played to end the show.

Future Possible Concerns

• Possible loss of the ability to shock the audience with documentaries when ideas start to run thin.
• Relying on the American drama industry for alot of their high end programming, which could flop or be taken away from them, or people get bored of crime dramas

"Five" Audience

The charts below illustrate the viewing figures that Five delivers.
The share of viewing includes all TV channels whereas the share of commercial impacts* includes all commercial channels (the most obvious examples of this include ITV, C4, Five and Sky).

* A commercial impact is defined as one person seeing a commercial on one occasion).

Top 20 Programmes on Five in 2006

	Programme	Date	Viewers
1	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	31/01/06	4.5m
2	Men In Black II	10/12/06	3.9m
3	CSI-New York	29/08/06	3.8m
4	Home Alone 2	17/12/06	3.6m
5	CSI -Miami	10/10/06	3.4m
6	House	06/04/06	3.0m
7	Extraordinary People: The 7 Year Old Surgeon	20/03/06	2.9m
8	Oliver	10/12/06	2.7m
9	Armageddon	01/01/06	2.7m
10	Daddy Day Care	19/03/06	2.7m
11	Shallow Hal	10/09/06	2.6m
12	Dirty Dancing	15/10/06	2.5m
13	Law & order: Criminal Intent	04/02/06	2.4m
14	Extraordinary People: The Woman Who Lost 30 Stone	13/03/06	2.4m
15	Bad Boys 2	10/12/06	2.4m
16	Maid In Manhattan	12/03/06	2.3m
17	Home & Away	03/02/06	2.3m
18	UEFA Cup: Newcastle v Fenerbahce	19/10/06	2.3m
19	The Glimmer Man	12/03/06	2.2m
20	Larger Than Life: Eating Themselves To Death	02/01/06	2.2m

Top Ten Advertiser Categories 2006

	Category	Spend (£)	% of Total Five Revenue
1	Finance	42.2m	12.5
2	Entertainment & Media	39.2m	11.6
3	Food	38.6m	11.5
4	Cosmetics & Toiletries	31.8m	9.4
5	Retail	27.8m	8.3
6	Pharmaceutical	23.8m	7.1
7	Motors	23.5m	7.0
8	Household Stores	19.7m	5.8
9	Drink	15.6m	4.6
10	Telecoms	15.2m	4.5

At Present 92% of all UK households can receive "Five", which is equal to about 51.3 million people. The reach (the actual number of people who tune in to "five") has an average weekly figure of 51.3% of the population, which is over 27.5 million people and an average daily figure of 20.5%, which is over 11.4 million people.

From the evidence above you can see that the most popular programmes are blockbuster films and American dramas. The audience ages for these spread from early teens right up to the elderly. Sport and documentaries are also popular and may have a slightly higher viewing age, but again covers a very large collection of people.


Due to the huge demand for the items they broadcast, "Five" will keep on showing American dramas and highly popular films to bring in the viewers and have film premieres such as The Da Vinci Code, Spider-man 3 and Monster House lined up to be broadcast in the next couple of years.

• Figures taken from the "Five" website

"Five"

Channel 5 was launched on 30th March, 1997. It was created by Tom McGrath, then-president of Time Warner International Broadcasting and National Trans communications Limited. Lord Clive Hollick, then CEO of Meridian Broadcasting joined the project as lead investor as UK law prohibited Time Warner from owning more than 25%. Pearson television then joined and when McGrath left them to become President of Paramount they were replaced by CLT, owned by Bertelsmann who are one of the biggest media companies in the world. CLT and Pearson then merged in 2000 and became RTL Group. RTL Group are the largest TV and radio broadcasting company in Europe and have 39 TV channels and 29 Radio stations in 10 different countries with over 10,000 hours of programming every year.
In 2001 RTL Group bought out Pearson's 22% share and now owns 89.8% of the company while the rest lies in shares. They are now the largest independent distribution company outside of the US.
The Channel began with the name "Channel 5" in 1997. The channel featured poor audience figures in the beginning due to bad programs. "Channel 5" featured poor day television, which didn't compare with ITV and BBC daytime viewing, an afternoon and an evening film, which were often of poor quality and became renowned for using risque programming such as "Red shoe diaries" and "Sex and shopping" as well as soft-core porn films shown late on Friday nights. One of the main attractions to channel 5 was their gain of live football, which brought the channel very high ratings. The Channel currently had an audience of football fans, teenage boys, and the occasional film fanatic.
A scandal appeared when Dawn Airey, programming director 1996-2003 commented that "Channel 5" was "more than just films, football and ****ing".
In 2002 the company relaunched the channel, with a multi million pound makeover, as "Five" in an attempt to lose the smutty reputation they had gained. Since the change they have gained high rating American TV shows like "Grey's Anatomy", the "CSI" franchise and "Prison Break" They dropped "Family Affairs" in 2005, which freed up 10 million pounds, and they bought popular Australian soaps "Neighbors" and "Home And Away".
"Five" now holds a major role in terrestrial television and has a wide range of shows, such as early morning kids shows, popular US drama, Popular films, Both major European and American sport coverage, High rated soaps and good daytime television. "Five" have also gained popular comedy such as "Joey" and "Everybody Hates Chris", shows late night international sports programing such as "Major League Baseball" and "NFL".
Since "Channel Five" has become "Five", the quality and style of the programing has risen greatly and now captures a much wider target audience with their huge range of programs.
Recently the company have also bought a stake in digital terrestrial televisions "Top Up TV", in which they have set up two new channels, "Five Life" and "Five US", which are used to display some of the more popular programming options."Five Life" features mainly lifestyle programming aimed towards women and "Five US" shows popular American TV shows, drama and films.