Funding cuts for BBC will hurt music business, says MU.

Musicians' Union submission to Ofcom review stresses the importance of Beeb for musicians

THE MUSIC BUSINESS HELPED TO SHAPE the future of the BBC and public service broadcasting last week, with the Musicians' Union, the Performers' Alliance Parliamentary Group and other industry groups making submissions to the second phase of Ofcom's review into the area.

The first phase of the Ofcom's Second Public Service Broadcasting Review found that broadcasters are broadly fulfilling the purposes of public service broadcasting. But it also showed that public service broadcasting under the current system will not survive the transition to the digital world and that the market needs to make a growing contribution.

As a result, phase two of the consultation, whose deadline closed last Thursday, asked stakeholders what action they considered appropriate.

In its 28-point submission, the MU stresses how important the BBC is to its 30,000-plus members, with the BBC orchestras alone employing 382 contract musicians.

But it warns against using BBC Worldwide, a cash cow for many musicians, to help finance Channel 4, which is likely to play an increasingly important role in public service content. "Virtually all MU members will work for the BBC at one stage of their career. Any reduction in the scope or funding of the BBC would, therefore, impact negatively on the employment of musicians," states the submission.

On funding, the MU agrees that it is vital to find new ways of funding public service broadcasting in the future and offers "cautious" support to Ofcom investigating additional PSB funding through industry levies collected from organisations such as ...