It’s the day local media in Kent have waited three years for: the council-funded online news and information portal Kent TV is be scrapped, as the Newspaper Society enthusiastically reports.
The station – run by multimedia production company Ten Alps – was set up in 2007 with an initial investment of £1.4m of council funds. In the face of strong criticism from the Kent Messenger Group and the Newspaper Society, council chiefs had argued the site would be self-funding.
But now Kent County Council leader Paul Carter says “difficult economic times” mean spending has to be prioritised and online TV operations are not top of the list. The station will shut when its two-year pilot scheme ends in March.
Geraldine Allinson, KM Group chairman, was understandably pleased…
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“We welcome the decision KCC has made to stop KentTV… There is a vibrant independent media in Kent and we hope that going forward KCC recognises the strengths and benefits independent local media can bring to help deliver cost effective and innovative communication.
An FOI request from Kent Messenger Group political editor Paul Francis in 2008 found that the KTV project couuld cost up to £695,000 a year – more than £200,000 over its bugedted costs.
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