The BBC's new chief signals closures in a £500 million savings drive
Matt Brittin, the former Google executive now running the BBC, says some services may well close as viewing moves on demand.
Director-General Matt Brittin has added a £500 million savings target to the BBC's existing plans, with BBC Three and BBC Scotland among the services in question.
The BBC's director-general, Matt Brittin, has said a new £500 million savings drive may well mean that some services close. Brittin, a former Google executive who took over the corporation this year, made the comments in an interview with Laura Kuenssberg.
No closure has been confirmed, but BBC Three is seen as the most exposed. The channel went online-only in 2016 and returned to broadcast in 2022. Questions have also been raised about BBC Scotland, where around 60 roles are expected to go this year.
The target builds on the BBC's existing £1.5 billion savings programme, with about 2,000 job cuts planned across the organisation. The BBC News channel is already cutting its lunchtime and overnight sports bulletins, removing 41 posts.
Behind the cuts are two pressures: audiences moving from scheduled channels to iPlayer, and a funding gap. According to the BBC, 94% of the UK population uses its services each month, but fewer than 80% pay the £180 annual licence fee.
Sources: Northeast Times, Variety, Bloomberg.
Source: variety.com
