RTE Two needs to change its branding

Late Noods Era Guy

These lame and outdated indents has been running since 2014 when RTE Two rebranded to RTE2.

JDxtra

Agree. However, RTE really stretch out their idents. Until recently, RTE One were still using idents that were at least 15 years old (cropped from 4:3 original to 16:9).

Late Noods Era Guy

That's stupid for an flagship channel of country

icdg

I said this before in the general RTE thread.

RTE2 has over the last couple of years suffered “death by a thousand cuts”. It had a clear identity as a “youth channel” but it’s clear it no longer shows most of those type of shows that it used to.

It’s still the home of kids TV and sports but after that it’s not clear as to what it’s remit is. Tonight for example in prime time it is showing largely British documentaries in prime time followed by an epic historical film that’s made by a US studio in English but mostly with a German/Austrian/European cast. None of this programming would have had a place on RTE2 ten years ago when these idents debuted and would be more BBC Two/Four than the old RTE2.

So that brings us to the idents, now essentially a relic of the channel’s former “yoof” identity and totally out of place. Really they should be replaced, but with RTE in the state it is, is it realistic to say they should be spending money on branding/presentation at this point? Maybe they need to sort out what RTE2 should be in the future, and the branding will follow. It’s worth nothing that general channel brands tend to last a lot longer than they used to - time was when RTE One would get new idents every three years.

EdmondShiels3

I know young People are not watching broadcast TV as much but RTE 2 are not giving them any reason. I only had the Irish channels growing up and could not imagine only having them now.

decor58

Have RTE been using new idents as you call them for the last few weeks, vertical multi coloured lines with the caption something like " your media partner" or something to that effect.

icdg

Break bumpers rather than idents, they started on Monday afaik and read “RTE - Your Public Service Media”.

Idents (station identification) are played directly before the start of a show, a break bumper is played at the start of a commercial break, typically after any promos but before the commercials themselves.

Late Noods Era Guy

They also did it on RTE One as well with blue shade

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122314990#Comment_122314990

Late Noods Era Guy

True I just saw A Hidden Life with Michael Fassbender

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122314990#Comment_122314990

Over the last number of years they did make Idents for their "special" LIVE programming on RTÉ ONE, I don't understand why they did not opt for these idents?

The "bumpers" had to be considered and a plan would have been implemented, and it would have cost some time, energy and even money to come up with that banality of trying to desperately promote yourself as "Public Service Media". Massively repetitive for many viewers that watch RTÉ ONE and 2 regularly.

From what I can see these "bumpers" are used : -

1. Coming out of a commercial break into a new programming
2. Coming out of a channel bumper into a commercial break
3. Coming into a channel bumper into a programme
4. Coming out of the credits of a programme and into a commercial break

This along with their "Supported by the Licence Fee" end credit.

During the WWC they did utilise the WWC promo as idents on both RTÉ ONE and 2.

Basically RTÉ want to spend money rather then consider alternative options to their Channel brand. Sad to see.

And the change in direction for RTÉ2 does not give RTÉ the ability to: -

1. Not refresh the idents for the new market
2. To decided to stop making programming for the channel (bar sports, and as we know on Strategy move was to consider moving sports to RTÉ ONE, in effect making RTÉ2 redundant)

icdg

I don’t think it’s any contest, RTE’s presentation on both channels is now a total mess, and these new break bumpers don’t really improve things.

The issue is can RTE in the current climate be seen to spend money on branding and presentation, and the answer is no.

RTE2 is the bigger problem, as its presentation reflects the youth-oriented channel it used to be, rather than what it is now. But before it rushes into any rebrand, it needs to decide what it is now, because on the face of it, apart from being where the kids and most sports reside, it no longer has a clear identity of its own. Outside of kids and sports the channel is now nearly entirely repeats and quite a lot of those repeats are the type of programming that would have been more at home on RTE One in the past. Yes it’s the high summer now, and I’d love to say that the traditional summer doldrums are why this is. But it’s not. The channel’s been that way for a while now. The youth programming being commissioned is a shadow of its former self.

As for RTE One, it’s now a mess of elements that were introduced at various times and has no cohesiveness. Little of the 2006 rebrand, other than the soundtrack, remains now, or even the 2014 refresh (which retained the 2006 idents), but what is left has no cohesiveness whatsoever, it’s bits and bobs that date from different times.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122362199#Comment_122362199

I don’t think it’s any contest, RTE’s presentation on both channels is now a total mess, and these new break bumpers don’t really improve things.

Unnecessary should be removed. Messy. They'd argue limited cost over intro of new Idents.

The issue is can RTE in the current climate be seen to spend money on branding and presentation, and the answer is no.

But then can spend circa 3m on PR and marketing across arrange of services over the next 3 years!

RTE2 is the bigger problem, as its presentation reflects the youth-oriented channel it used to be, rather than what it is now. But before it rushes into any rebrand, it needs to decide what it is now, because on the face of it, apart from being where the kids and most sports reside, it no longer has a clear identity of its own. Outside of kids and sports the channel is now nearly entirely repeats and quite a lot of those repeats are the type of programming that would have been more at home on RTE One in the past. Yes it’s the high summer now, and I’d love to say that the traditional summer doldrums are why this is. But it’s not. The channel’s been that way for a while now. The youth programming being commissioned is a shadow of its former self.

That presentation wanted to suggest it was yuff, but largely RTÉ had cut back on RTÉ2 by 2014, their was no sign of re-invigorating the channel in 2014, it was continuing with largely pilot dramas or formats that never succeeded in moving beyond into series. and the yuff programming commissioned on the Player is not comparable to what RTÉ were commissioning on the second channel. Instead they decided to push €3m a year from the licence fee into 2FM.

RTE2 is the bigger problem, as its presentation reflects the youth-oriented channel it used to be, rather than what it is now. But before it rushes into any rebrand, it needs to decide what it is now, because on the face of it, apart from being where the kids and most sports reside, it no longer has a clear identity of its own. Outside of kids and sports the channel is now nearly entirely repeats and quite a lot of those repeats are the type of programming that would have been more at home on RTE One in the past. Yes it’s the high summer now, and I’d love to say that the traditional summer doldrums are why this is. But it’s not. The channel’s been that way for a while now. The youth programming being commissioned is a shadow of its former self.

RTÉ ONE could utilise other idents rarely used, again here's a company that rebranded the Concert Orchestra at cost, while spending 70k on their last autumn launch in the RDS. (They also rebranded 2FM during this time).

I think a small well thought out (as cost neutral, as can be) refresh for the services they provide would go a long way to impressing the audience. Not stamping their services with the idea that they are the Public Service Media company that looks just as shoddy as their running of the company.

RoTelly

Letter in The Irish Times today about this from Martin Block (founder a few of the local Dublin Station over the years, his last venture was 4FM, I think).

icdg

The letter is a really cheap shot to be honest - names three foreign imports that RTE shows without paying any acknowledgement to all of the public service broadcasting RTE does show.

RoTelly

RTÉ pay €25m a year on imported programmes. He is right. You could place this around your own home produced programming but to place it on RTÉ2 that mainly airs imported programming outside of sport, is a bad marketing campaign. On top of looking bad.

RoTelly

they could have used their Olympic promos for RTÉ idents, seems they produced more that just one, but kick-boxing is the main me used and I’ve only seen the weight lifting one tonight. Anybody seen the rest of these promo?