RTE Cutbacks The Plan

MrMusician18

Irish Times wrote:

She (Dee Forbes) pointed out that many of the fee contracts for staff were put in place at a different time. “We simple cannot afford to continue to pay them.”

Lol, who is she trying to fool? There have been massive contracts since the era of Gaybo who was lifting half a million punts per year towards the end of his career. Is she actually trying to suggest that contracts have not been renegotiated in the last 20 years?

D'Arcy joined while RTE was struggling yet they still gave him a gilded package. Commercial earnings peaked in 2007, they've had 12 years to get their house in order.

suicide_circus

Matt Barrett wrote: »

Old dated info, however one year RTE, with tax payer money, out bid TV3 for the rights to show Desperate Housewives.
RTE should not be spending piles of money to get a foreign show people can just as easily watch elsewhere, like when they aired Eastenders and Coronation Street, home and away etc. Complete waste.

This is exactly it.

RTE needs to be streamlined, heavily.

Duane Dibbley

Idbatterim wrote: »

It rte wasn’t such a failure , we’d live in a better country ! Do they ever stand up for the taxpayer? Do they invite councilors in and grill them on being The prime culprit of the housing crisis ?

No just get Margaret cash etc on and instead of asking her some hard questions , they just ask why the state hasn’t given her a 4eva home ... in ballsbridge... with 17 bedrooms ... on an acre at least ( for the horses ) should have approached Sean Dunne about selling Walford !

I refer you to what I said earlier

Duane Dibbley wrote: »

I think what the Publics expectations of RTE are verses RTE's perception of the Publics expectations seem to be wildly different.

I believe if they actually delivered on the publics expectations they would save alot of money.

As RTE is our national broadcaster and by the looks of it has gone completely rogue based on their regurgitating miscellaneous content, the government needs to create a mechanism to collect the publics expectations from RTE.

RTE seems to expect us to fund this disaster. RTE are blaming the Government and the public for they're own misadventure.

Elmo

Matt Barrett wrote: »

Old dated info, however one year RTE, with tax payer money, out bid TV3 for the rights to show Desperate Housewives.
RTE should not be spending piles of money to get a foreign show people can just as easily watch elsewhere, like when they aired Eastenders and Coronation Street, home and away etc. Complete waste.

No they didn't RTÉ buy packages which contain certain programmes from abroad. TV3 had a deal with its owner CanWest for US programmes, with the exception of one package which include Sex and The City (It also included a whole load of TV films that RTÉ didn't want). TV3/Virgin Media never competed with RTÉ for imports.

TV3 took Coronation Street when they were bought by Granada, RTÉ had a deal with BBC WW for first refusal on shows like EastEnders, in 2001 after lossing Coronation Street they decided to take EastEnders.

I am not saying that RTÉ are right to spend €25m a year on imports, but Virgin Media and TV3 before them have always kept to one package of programming rights (Currently ITV Studios). If TG4 are able to buying in programmes like The Wire, Breaking Bad, Orange is the New Black, Oz, Cold Case etc then RTÉ aren't stopping them, indeed Channel 6 was able to get their hands on numerous imports which TV3 subsequently dropped on its rebrand to 3e, now VMT TWO.

Zird

It's annoying that every time RTE plan to make a cutback, every gobshote politician starts jumping up and down, the same politicians also want to divert some of the licence fee money to local radio stations and local newspapers which would mean even less money for RTE

Boggles

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon here.

Fair City costs 10 million.

Would anyone really miss it?

tv3tg4

Very few would miss Fair City.
Give digital radio over to the private sector to provide niche stations.
2fm should be sold off with rte2.

MrMusician18

Boggles wrote: »

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon here.

Fair City costs 10 million.

Would anyone really miss it?

Bella

H3llR4iser

Boggles wrote: »

It doesn't matter, they knew this when they bought the TV. Go buy a large monitor then you will be exempt.

But lets me honest, the majority of people evading license are doing so because they can.

Boggles wrote: »

Something I firmly disagree with as well. Why should another private company be tasked with collecting revenue for a another state agency?

There has to be an option to opt out, when the critical mass of opt outs is reached then there needs to be a rethink.

It's not "tasking" another private company, quite the opposite - the government imposed a "per account" levy on electricity companies, the company turns it on the customers. Same way other taxes on services are collected.

But yes, obviously an opt out would be absolutely ideal...it's however EXTREMELY clear it's not the way they want to go about this - they don't want people to "officialize" the fact they're not paying, they want EVERYONE to pay, regardless of using the service.

So the real options are only two: either make it a actual tax or scrap the service altogether. The way it is...it inexplicably looks like it's set up on purpose to be easy to evade.

Brock Turnpike

Kivaro wrote: »

If one was to look up the dictionary to search for "partial reporting", a picture of Claire Byrne would pop up. She has repeatedly demonstrated the bias and liberal agenda of the RTE hierarchy by being one of the most vocal advocates for ultra-liberal asylum/migrant policies.
Her audience and "experts" are rigged to suit this agenda and many cast doubts on the validity of the polls she uses on her "show".
Claire Byrne is awful and without any sense of integrity in either her professional or private life.

A desperately sad post. One of the saddest I've ever seen on boards. At least have the dignity to clarify the chip on your shoulder at the start of your post.

B_ecke_r

is there anything half decent even on RTE nowadays?

Spon Farmer

Does Tubridy really make €500,000 a year?

Calhoun

So funny all the whinging on news at 6, apparently staff buying houses at peak of the boom in limerick is somehow the public's problem.

They are really hoping someone steps in and gives the money to save it. I want more cut.

lawrencesummers

I don’t think this announcement is anything other than an effort to get the government to change the license fee collection system. RTÉ want to piggyback on the ability of the revenue to collect money, instead of door to door inspectors, who must find it impossible to cover one off hosing / rural areas, that or the introduction of a system where it makes compliance with the fee higher like the broadcasting charge or the local authority property tax system.

James Brown

Boggles wrote: »

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon here.

Fair City costs 10 million.

Would anyone really miss it?

I stopped watching it when they wrote out Johnny one. His more successful brother was a talking robot of some note.

Loafing Oaf

Spon Farmer wrote: »

Does Tubridy really make €500,000 a year?

joeysoap

Stick €10 a month on to everybody’s electricity bill. ( vat exempt) Job done. No big cost. Extra money for Rte. only spongers not happy. And reduce the big wages.

saabsaab

All public service broadcasting is under threat by the new media. Most youngsters I know don't watch TV anymore.


To save costs they could sell Montrose for big money and set up a new slimmed down complex at much less cost in Athlone or Galway - TG4 is there already and is doing well.

Boggles

H3llR4iser wrote: »

It's not "tasking" another private company, quite the opposite - the government imposed a "per account" levy on electricity companies, the company turns it on the customers. Same way other taxes on services are collected.

Well no, that is exactly what you are doing. Also a private company will not do that for free, there will be cost.

The right people to do it is probably Revenue, but they have stated they don't want to, with good reason.

H3llR4iser wrote: »

But yes, obviously an opt out would be absolutely ideal...

That's what we currently have, there is no one forcing anyone to get a TV license.

H3llR4iser wrote: »

So the real options are only two: either make it a actual tax or scrap the service altogether. The way it is...it inexplicably looks like it's set up on purpose to be easy to evade.

Or make the service better, charge more for it.

MrMusician18

Spon Farmer wrote: »

Does Tubridy really make €500,000 a year?

His contracting company was paid €495000 in 2016, the most recent year for which figures are available

Calhoun

joeysoap wrote: »

Stick €10 a month on to everybody’s electricity bill. ( vat exempt) Job done. No big cost. Extra money for Rte. only spongers not happy. And reduce the big wages.

I would argue why should RTE get any more money ? We should have public broadcasting but nothing to say it should be a high cost union shop like RTE.

malinheader

I have always paid for a TV licence. If the cost of the licence rises and the fat cats in rte do not there massive salaries slashed I will not be taking out a license next year and am quite willing to face the consequences. I'm sure not forking out anymore to keep that shower in there royalty lifestyle.

Tea Shock

How are they allowed to use the income from a TV license to subsidise the running costs of their radio output? How is that even legal?

Plumbthedepths

I really hope they don't go strike......

Plumbthedepths

joeysoap wrote: »

Stick €10 a month on to everybody’s electricity bill. ( vat exempt) Job done. No big cost. Extra money for Rte. only spongers not happy. And reduce the big wages.

I work hard, I'd be very unf**king happy if my electricity bill went up 10 euro a month to support the muck that is RTE. Let them do what any business is required to do, live within your means or go bust. Simple.

BumperD

I’ve become to like RTE less and less over the years. I guess we have lots of choices now. But it’s more their spin. I don’t believe they are balanced in the reporting. I’d call what they are doing as Public Broadcasting rather than Public Service Broadcasting.

I used to ring them from time to time over their editing content/ inaccuracies.

They are not really needed anymore and well I guess have been overpriced for some time. I imagine many state broadcasters face similar funding issues now. Their whinging during the economic crisis 2008-2012 was really hard to take. Especially when they were all on jumbo contracts or salaries with gross pension/ other entitlements.

The beginning of the end me thinks. I kind of put it in the same plinth as the demise of the Catholic Church. RTE was like a pillar of the state. Many of the rest dismantling. It’s their turn now , which is ironic given their own role in sticking the boot into the CC in recent times when it wasn’t necessary/ seemed borderline vitriolic but that’s for another day.

Varta

joeysoap wrote: »

Stick €10 a month on to everybody’s electricity bill. ( vat exempt) Job done. No big cost. Extra money for Rte. only spongers not happy. And reduce the big wages.

I don't want to pay this. I don't watch RTE. How am I a sponger?

bmc58

Gerry G wrote: »

Meh. Watery enough. They could sack duffy, tubridy, darcy and all the other ****ehawks. That'd be a good start

What about the massive overruns in The Childrens Hospital and The National broadband Plan???Despite being strongly advised against by Robert Watt the Secretary General of Dept of Finance.These stupendous overruns are going to cost our country maybe 2 billion if were lucky?And our government ploughed on against all logical advice,just for votes.Wise up.€60mill savings for our National Broadcaster is chicken feed compared to these two scandals.

elperello

bmc58 wrote: »

What about the massive overruns in The Childrens Hospital and The National broadband Plan???Despite being strongly advised by Robert Watt the Secretary General of Dept of Finance.These stupendous overruns are going to cost our country maybe 2 billion if were lucky?And our government ploughed on against all logical advice,just for votes.Wise up.€60mill savings for our National Broadcaster is chicken feed compared to these two scandals.

Chicken feed indeed.
As for the "bloated salaries" you should see what the guys who really run the country take home.

Zird

Right away gombeen idiot TD Patrick O'Donovan has come out against the closure of aertel