British Media The United Kingdom has a highly developed media sector, comprising historic national newspapers such as the London Times, radio services that trace their roots back to 1920s pioneers, the world's first regular television service - continuing to this day as BBC One - and a modern day ecosystem of publicly funded services and commercial competition.

British Media Definitions Media Sector: A media social group that forms part of the society or the economy Analog: (electronics) Of a circuit or device in which the value of a data item is represented by a continuously variable physical quantity rather than digitally Pioneers: Take the lead or initiative in; participate in the development of Modern Day Ecosystem: Today’s system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment Transmissions: Communication by means of transmitted signals Satellite: Man-made equipment that orbits around the earth or the moon Analogue Predominant: Most frequent or very common Franchise: A business established or operated under an authorization to sell or distribute a company's goods or services in a particular area Commercial: Connected with or engaged in or sponsored by or used in commerce or commercial enterprises Licenses: The act of giving a formal (usually written) authorization Permission: The act of giving a formal (usually written) authorization. Approval to do something. Persecution: Cause to suffer

History The first British television channel was launched by the BBC in 1932 and called simply The BBC Television Service. The service used Baird's 30-line system and these transmissions continued until 11 September 1935.

History On 2 November 1936 the BBC began broadcasting a dual-system service, alternating on a weekly basis between Marconi-EMI's high-resolution (405 lines per picture) service and Baird's improved 240-line standard from Alexandra Palace in London.

History Six months later, the corporation decided that Marconi-EMI's electronic picture gave the superior picture, and adopted that as their standard. This service is described as "the world's first regular high-definition public television service", since a regular television service had been broadcast earlier on a 180-line standard in Germany.

History The outbreak of the Second World War caused the service to be suspended. TV transmissions only resumed from Alexandra Palace in The BBC Television Service held a complete monopoly on television broadcasting in the UK until ITV was launched in The station was renamed BBC1 when BBC2 was launched in April 1964.

Newspapers Main articles: List of newspapers in the United Kingdom and History of British newspapers

Newspapers Newspapers are traditionally categorized into two types in the United Kingdom. Broadsheets which are larger in size and are seen as being more intellectual and upmarket; Tabloids which are smaller in size and seen as being more downmarket than broadsheets, containing more stories about celebrities or gossip. However, some broadsheet papers, such as The Times and The Independent have recently switched to a smaller size, preferring to call themselves compact rather than be stigmatised by the tabloid label.

Magazines A large range of magazines are sold in the UK covering most interests and potential topics. Famous examples include Private Eye, Hello!, The Spectator, the Radio Times and NME.

Radio The BBC also provide 40 local radio services, mainly broadcasting a mix of local news and music aimed at an older audience. Also available nationally are three national commercial channels, namely Absolute Radio, Classic FM and talkSPORT.

Radio Commercial radio licenses are awarded by government body Ofcom, which advertises a license for a specific area and holds a so- called beauty contest to determine which station will be granted permission to broadcast in that area. Stations submit detailed application documents containing their proposed format and the outcome of research to determine the demand for their particular style of broadcast.

Radio Most local commercial stations in the United Kingdom broadcast to a city or group of towns within a radius of 20–50 miles, with a second tier of regional stations covering larger areas such as North West England. The predominant format is pop music, but many other tastes are also catered for, particularly in London and the larger cities, and on digital radio. Many of these stations, including all the BBC radio, are also available via digital television services.

Television Analogue terrestrial television in the United Kingdom is made up of two chartered public broadcasting companies, the BBC and Channel 4 and two franchised commercial television companies, (ITV and Five). There are five major free-to-air analogue channels: BBC One, BBC Two, ITV, Channel 4 and Five.

Television The BBC is funded by public money accrued from a television license fee gathered from all UK households with a television set. This fee is legally compulsory and failure to pay it is punishable by prosecution, resulting in a fine or imprisonment. There are exceptions to paying, for homes with a pensioner (person over 65 years old). It is cheaper for those with a black & white TV or eyesight that is impaired It is currently set at £135.50, but is not set in stone. The fee chargeable is limited by the government and regulatory authorities. The BBC provides two analogue channels, BBC One (consisting of a network of local BBC stations) & BBC Two.

Television Channel 4 is similarly chartered to the BBC, with a remit to provide public service broadcasting and schools programs, however it runs commercial advertisements to provide a revenue stream. It produces a single analogue channel, currently branded as Channel 4.

Television The commercial operators rely on advertising for their revenue, and are run as commercial ventures, in contrast to the public service operators. The ITV franchise transmits one analogue channel known as ITV 1 (consisting of a network of local ITV stations) and Five transmits one analogue channel also.

Television All the major analogue broadcasters provide additional channels on the free- to-air Freeview digital television service, and all of these channels can be accessed via a cable or satellite provider, such as Virgin Media or BSkyB.

Television Freesat, a satellite-based free-to-air service similar to Freeview, has been reported to be planned by a consortium led by the BBC.

Television In the UK the BBC has eight digital channels: ◦ BBC One (also available on analogue) ◦ BBC Two (also available on analogue) ◦ BBC Three ◦ BBC Four ◦ BBC Parliament ◦ BBC News ◦ CBBC Channel ◦ CBeebies

British Media Definitions Media Sector: A media social group that forms part of the society or the economy Analog: (electronics) Of a circuit or device in which the value of a data item is represented by a continuously variable physical quantity rather than digitally Pioneers: Take the lead or initiative in; participate in the development of Modern Day Ecosystem: Today’s system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment Transmissions: Communication by means of transmitted signals Satellite: Man-made equipment that orbits around the earth or the moon Analogue Predominant: Most frequent or very common Franchise: A business established or operated under an authorization to sell or distribute a company's goods or services in a particular area Commercial: Connected with or engaged in or sponsored by or used in commerce or commercial enterprises Licenses: The act of giving a formal (usually written) authorization Permission: The act of giving a formal (usually written) authorization. Approval to do something. Persecution: Cause to suffer