The 2010 era has contacted us, requesting for its digital strategy to be returned. For those well-versed in the struggles of standard media over the previous two decades, this week A New Direction, a detailed look into RTÉ’s strategic plan for the next five years, might feel oddly familiar. This feeling of recognition would intensify when hearing Kevin Bakhurst, the company’s director general, discuss the impending “third age” of the organisation, switching priority from traditional broadcast TV and radio to digital mediums.
If the projected transition in 2024 seems overdue, it speaks volumes about the size of the challenges Bakhurst is facing. For him to suggest that the company is only now embracing a digital-first strategy—a concept many media companies have adopted (in words, if not actions) for over a decade—shows the complexity of their situation.
The problem statement is elementary: linear broadcasting audiences are getting older and dwindling in number. Modern consumers, predominantly the younger generation, gravitate towards on-demand and streaming services for information and entertainment. The solution, however, is intricate, demanding a significant transformation in internal principles and habits that have been ingrained over years, and a readiness to relegate older audiences in hopes of attracting a younger and hypothetical one who might be convinced to abandon their familiar platforms.
A New Direction does a satisfactory job of addressing the unmistakable reality of these dynamics, predicting an unavoidable decrease in public service media audiences over time. The future tense usage is notably unusual; this alteration is already in progress.
RTÉ has always been unfairly juxtaposed with the BBC, and parallels with the iPlayer and Sounds apps are inevitable. The digital counterparts of RTÉ seem to be lingering in Bakhurst’s “second age”. However, one minor unobserved advantage RTÉ derives from the digital transition is that the iPlayer, unlike BBC TV, is geo-blocked in Ireland.
The refurbishment of the RTÉ Player and the introduction of a new audio application are emphasised in the scheme, even though it’s merely what’s expected. But, what’s truly intriguing is the agreement to relinquish outmoded studio resources and features in Montrose, substituting limited financial support for new production capabilities and transferring production off-site.
The news this week has predominantly focused on the proposition of relocating Fair City and The Late Late Show away from the Montrose vicinity, either assigning them to the autonomous sector through a competitive process or arranging a joint production deal with independent entities. Serving as substantial expenditure hubs and key sources of income for RTÉ, these two flagship shows also possess significant symbolic value. The relocation indicates a potential move towards outsourcing bastions other than news and current affairs division to the autonomous sector. This strategy could potentially achieve the proposed 20% staff reduction in RTÉ’s bid for a new public funding scheme. It could be seen as a reaction to the barely concealed doubts from high-ranking government officials regarding RTÉ’s capability for self-improvement.
The strategy envisages a leaner organisation that devotes a more substantial chunk of its resources to content creation, rather than non-essential overheads like administration and property upkeep. Is this a negative development? Some may view it as part of a harmful trend towards media outsourcing and casualisation. But there’s perennial tension between this viewpoint and the argument advocating for a larger independent audio-visual sector.
After all, there’s nothing to suggest that only public sector staff can generate public service media. The present media environment contradicts this, a truth acknowledged by the 2022 Future of Media Commission’s report.
The core issue with “A New Direction” lies in its lack of recognition towards the imminent hurdles that entities like RTÉ and diverse media outlets currently face. These include the advancement of innovative artificial intelligence, the faltering online promotional industry, and the concluding phase of the global drama production surge. Moreover, there’s no acceptance of RTÉ’s duty to abstain from monopolising the delicate local media environment. The regrettable incidents at Montrose that led to past year’s crises were self-perpetuated and stemmed from RTÉ’s intentional ambiguity about its obligatory public service and commercial undertakings. How will these clear-cut distinctions be made in its so-called ‘third age’? On this point, and numerous others, “A New Direction” provides no guidance whatsoever.