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C4 sell-off ‘overwhelmingly negative’

Privatising UK public broadcaster Channel 4 would have an “overwhelmingly negative” impact on the country’s creative sector, according to a report released today.

C4 boss David Abraham

David Abraham

The UK government is considering selling off C4 and UK culture secretary John Whittingdale has said the network would be “better off” in private hands.

However, C4 is opposed to privatisation and CEO David Abraham has repeatedly warned that privatising the channel would undermine the country’s independent production sector and lead to widespread job losses.

Now the report, authored by London Business School professor Patrick Barwise and Gillian Brooks, research fellow at Oxford University’s Centre for Corporate Reputation, has claimed C4’s public service remit is “comfortably sustainable.”

The Consequences of Privatising Channel 4, commissioned by C4, found that the impact of privatisation would be “overwhelmingly negative for the overall economy, the broadcasting ecology and creative industries, technology adoption and commercial innovation, C4’s consumer surplus and advertiser surplus, and wider society.”

The report analysed the likely consequences of privatisation, focusing on the investment case for a potential buyer and found that to achieve returns on investment the network would need a more mainstream commercial mix of programmes.

John Whittingdale

John Whittingdale

The report added that finding credible bidders for C4 without weakening the current 100% publisher-broadcaster model would also be difficult.

Abraham said the report showed that C4 “is in strong creative and commercial health and, critically, it is delivering well to its public service remit.”

The report follows similar research from EY and Enders Analysis last month that found C4’s future was sustainable.

undressedTalk of the channel’s sale emerged last September when a government official was photographed carrying a Department for Culture, Media and Sport brief that outlined options for the channel’s privatisation.

Whittingdale has previously said that no decision would be made until after discussions over the future of the BBC’s charter renewal this year.

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