RTÉ 2 years left, unless finances are sorted out

msg11

From the Sunday Tribune.

Mark Hilliard

RTÉ Staff have been warned that cash reserves will be depleted in two years unless dramatic action is taken to pull its operational deficit back from the brink.

An external financial review of the station's fiscal health was carried out to see if the 2009 pay cuts could be reversed. But its findings instead showed that the station is set to lose about €30m this year based on current budget projections.

According to Montrose sources, staff were told at a heated meeting on Friday that the station could only sustain current losses for another two years. They were told: "The way things are going, if RTÉ's figures were to continue like this, the station's cash reserves would be depleted in two years."

However, sources stressed the station would never be allowed to go broke. Demands have been made in some quarters that the station's highest-paid stars, who earn hundreds of thousands of euro a year, should be forced to take significant wage reductions of up to 30%.

A deficit of €5m for 2010 is expected to be revealed when the annual report is published in March.

But it's a far more serious situation for this year, with €30m in losses anticipated because of a recent restructuring of the licence fee and record lows in advertising revenue.

Only further severe pay cuts, redundancies or a slashing of programme budgets can get the station back on course, sources have said, although further cuts to salaries will not be tolerated by unions.

Total income at the station is projected at €363m this year but the projected operational cost will be significantly more. RTÉ, by law, cannot operate at a loss.

Staff are now bracing themselves for further cost-saving measures this year although how they are imposed will depend on the incoming director general Noel Curran.

Cathal Goan is understood to be stepping down next month.

A spokeswomen for the station said: "2011 will be a very challenging year for RTÉ as with other media organisations."

January 9, 2011

Couldn't give a rat's if it went down the ****ter. Top stars ain't going to take anymore cut's . Think Rté has it's faith sealed .. Or let me guess, it will be receiving a bail out.

You got to laugh some star obviously didn't believe the company was losing money, so hired someone to do an audit . Turns out there losing more than expected hahaha.

What's the guesses here too, some poor low paid workers in there are going to lose there job's , can see it now ' 100 jobs to go at rte ' .

ibarelycare

Would absolutely thrill me to see smug overpaid bastards like Ryan Tubridy and Pat Kenny be forced to take a paycut. But you're right OP, more than likely the people at the bottom will suffer the most.

Sea Sharp

Even with TV licences and adverts?

They should cut it down to one channel and stop showing sh1t TV.

AlmightyCushion

Never watch RTE anymore but I'd much rather see them break even and start producing some decent TV while at it instead of just closing the doors or whatever. Hopefully this is the kick up the arse they need to sort RTE out.

RockinRolla

I hope they privatise the bastard and let all those hangers-on who are getting a huge wage at our expense, clear out. It's daylight robbery that we are obliged to pay for this low production, innovative-less crap to begin with or else you're fined? "We've heard all the excuses and none of them work"...oh really, you extortionate pig.

If I don't watch RTE, if my family don't watch RTE and if I never intend to watch RTE - then why MUST I pay (by law, the TV license) RTE?! Ludicrous and the stuff of science fiction.

Once RTE becomes privatised, it becomes directly answerable to it's audience - meaning, WE get to see the programming WE want.

marcsignal

2 years is too long

it's a horse with a broken leg, shoot it now and get it over with ffs..

Carl Sagan

Hopefully the higher paid 'stars' will have to take a paycut. Haven't watched RTE in years so to be honest, I couldn't give a **** if the doors are closed.

PeterIanStaker

I hope the top earners get a severe pay cut, its not like they produce anything of quality.

mikom

Altogether now.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbAqWA-dxvw

skelliser

Its a well known fact that RTE is a closed shop.
The only way you can get a job there is if your related to someone, Lucey Kenndy, have political pull, Ryan Tubridy or have been around for so long that you basically own the place Gay Byrne, Joe Duffy etc.

With a situation like that no wonder it is in the ****.

Privatise the lot of it, dont see why we have to finance these gob****es massive pay packets.

Jesus Wept

msg11 wrote: »

€30m in losses anticipated because of a recent restructuring of the licence fee and record lows in advertising revenue.

What restructuring are they referring to? There hasn't been a cut in the fee, fewer people paying it probably.

From Wiki

An Post has signalled its intention to withdraw from the licence fee collection business

Anyhow, I could cut a great deal in RTE without any real loss.
Stop giving Katharine Lynch money to make tv shows, Pat Shortt doesn't need 3 - 4 shows on RTE on the go at any one time.

Wolfe Tone

RTE radio is decent enough now tbf

HellFireClub

Sea Sharp wrote: »

Even with TV licences and adverts?

They should cut it down to one channel and stop showing sh1t TV.

Everyone in the country with a TV in their house is subsidising this bucket of sh*t and they still are still losing their hoop. Their list of presenters is a national embarrassment, from the cringeworthy Tubridy to the truly extraordinarily embarrassing Derek Mooney, that's before we even start to look at what they are being paid.

With any luck they will run out of rope...

msg11

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

RTE radio is decent enough now tbf

Are you joking ?

I take it you are. 2FM has one of the worst , station imaging packages I have ever heard. And it's a national station. RTE Radio 1 , RTE Lyric and then RTE RNG . Come on , they are not only clogging up the FM band, put are seriously ****.

In Dublin, you can pick up around 15 Transmitters of RTE ****. This non sense needs to stop.

Also, The BAI need too cop on and save the radio industry it's going down hill nearly all are reporting losses, there 20% talk and news is a total load of bollox, clearly that 20% is serviced by Newstalk .

mikom

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

RTE radio is decent enough now tbf

It would want to be........... Marian finucane €570,000 a year for a 2hr show on Sat/Sun

Oranage2

ibarelycare wrote: »

Would absolutely thrill me to see smug overpaid bastards like Ryan Tubridy and Pat Kenny be forced to take a paycut. But you're right OP, more than likely the people at the bottom will suffer the most.

I'd be even more trilled if that over-smug, talantless, underweight, annoying idiot called Tubridy was "let go"

Bob the Builder

I think we should all just stay quiet and pay our TV license.

Now idiots, move along now taxpayers. Nothing to see here...

Bill2673

I'd be happy if they got rid of the TV station and kept the radio.

Whats the point of a TV station that shows reruns of Bridget Jones Diary over and over.

In all seriousness, 80% of whats on RTE you can get on any station, eg all this CSI stuff, or Top Gun on last night, or Eastenders, or Grey's Anatomy or whatever.

I'd say 20% is home produced and of that about half of it is filler, like that Brendan O'Connor chat show or that all-ireland talent show nonsense that was on last night.

Then there is the 10% of their programming that is actually somewhere between ok and very good. Struggling to think what that is, you might include stuff like Ear to the Ground or At Your Service or The Sunday Game. What I would suggest is that RTE just operate its TV maybe 6 hours a day, cut out all the filler and the expense of it, and just make decent Irish TV.

Max Power1

Goodbye, good riddance.

Dont let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya.

u140acro3xs7dm

mikom wrote: »

It would want to be........... Marian finucane €570,000 a year for a 2hr show on Sat/Sun

I really cant believe she gets away with this. If she earned 50k a year she would be grossly over paid. Her show is just a review of the week too, all she does is tell you stuff you already know. She epitomises everything that is wrong with Rte. With her whiny little voice. God I hate that woman. If I accidently turn on the radio and she is on it puts me straight in a bad mood.

ctrl-alt-delete

Article wrote:

An external financial review of the station's fiscal health was carried out to see if the 2009 pay cuts could be reversed.

So they wasted money trying to find out if there was anyway they could reverse recent enough pay cuts? Am I getting that right?

That is just absurd on so many levels.

No doubt the solution for them will be moving the comma and continue on blissfully

"RTE 2, years left blah blah blah" hold hands and rejoice.

Dyr

ah things will be grand, de gubment won't let their pet TV station go to the wall

up for anything

This is all my fault because I'm a tv sponger. The lowest of the low.

Lord Derpington

mikom wrote: »

Marian finucane €570,000 a year for a 2hr show on Sat/Sun

Holy FUCK.....

Wompa1

up for anything wrote: »

This is all my fault because I'm a tv sponger. The lowest of the low.

Enjoy hell my friend!

However, sources stressed the station would never be allowed to go broke.

Of course not, they'll just double the tv licence fee

bonerm

I wouldn't miss it if it hit the wall. It won't happen of course tho because the Government need their propaganda wing in place just to keep the public in check.

Don't watch RTE and resent having to pay a licence just for the privilege of having a tv. That’s the bitterest part of the joke , that I have to pay for something I don’t want and then have to hear about an array of useless cúnts such as Kenny, Tubridy et al getting rich off it.

Wompa1

bonerm wrote: »

I wouldn't miss it if it hit the wall. It won't happen of course tho because the Government need their propaganda wing in place just to keep the public in check.

Don't watch RTE and resent having to pay a licence just for the privilege of having a tv. That’s the bitterest part of the joke , that I have to pay for something I don’t want and then have to hear about an array of useless cúnts such as Kenny, Tubridy et al getting rich off it.

And sure what will we do about it? Everyone on here things petitions are crap, Protests fall to ****e...I think we'll just have to carry on being sheeple

RTE radio is very good there are some great documentaries etc on...as for the TV i like the news and a few other programs .. radio is way unrated i think its a much better medium than than television.

Dravokivich

Read a report earlier in the Metro that said "They can't operate at a loss..." as if money coming in isn't an issue....hmm... but they are digging into savings funds because they aren't bringing in enough money...

Anyhow... it's all well and good saying they are broadcasting shows you'd see on other channels such as CSI and Greys Anatomy... But not everyone has cable / digital / freesat so the national broadcaster would be the only channels avail for some...

KeRbDoG

msg11 wrote: »

Are you joking ?

I take it you are. 2FM has one of the worst , station imaging packages I have ever heard. And it's a national station.

Always worth noting that RTÉ 2fm do not receive any public funding (ref)

goose2005

ibarelycare wrote: »

Would absolutely thrill me to see smug overpaid bastards like Ryan Tubridy and Pat Kenny be forced to take a paycut. But you're right OP, more than likely the people at the bottom will suffer the most.

In RTE there isn't really anyone at the bottom, they're all overpaid and all related to each other.

Kimono-Girl

Dravokivich wrote: »

Anyhow... it's all well and good saying they are broadcasting shows you'd see on other channels such as CSI and Greys Anatomy... But not everyone has cable / digital / freesat so the national broadcaster would be the only channels avail for some...

that and if they got rid of those shows there would be nothing left to watch on it,

to be honest i only ever watch rte for shows like csi, grey's, home & away...etc all foreign and lately the rugby too, if it was all home grown stuff like Katherine lynch, and those new trte 'shows'....i wouldn't watch it at all,


honestly i can see the sports and international programmes being cut because they seem to genuinely believe people like some of their homemade ****e!

Loomis

They just need to sell the rights to air Fair City to international stations and they'll be sorted.

Nijmegen

KeRbDoG wrote: »

Always worth noting that RTÉ 2fm do not receive any public funding (ref)

It benefits greatly from public funding. In any business, an individual unit benefits from the whole organisation. The infrastructure, the clout, etc.

For example, when selling ads, RTE will do package deals across all its platforms. So for example, public funded shows with big audience help get money for 2FM shows with lower audience, in a package.

Dravokivich

Mr. Anderson wrote: »

They just need to sell the rights to air Fair City to international stations and they'll be sorted.

bring back glenroe!

bnt

The 2010 Annual Report isn't out yet, but a look at the 2009 report is interesting. From 2008 to 2009 their revenues dropped from €440m to €375m (down 15%) - but their operating costs dropped from €460m to €400m (down 13%). However, they still made a small surplus in 2008 due to roughly €10m in "finance income" (investments) and a €10m tax credit. No such luck in 2009: €27m deficit carried forward to 2010.

Even allowing for that, the 2009 balance sheet doesn't look that bad, after a quick read, and they seemed to be carrying a decent current asset balance. For the article to be accurate, for RTE to be under threat within two years, something's gone badly wrong on the revenue side, I think.

mailforkev

Good riddance to a good lot of them to be honest. I do see the need for a national broadcaster from a public service point of view but RTE as is currently stands is just not on the ball at all.

They do some things pretty well, current affairs/sport, but the commissioning dept. need their heads' checked. Fade Street and All Ireland Talent Show anyone?

Everyone knows what a closed shop it is, and some of the "star" salaries are nonsensical in any economy. They still haven't realised that a bad set costs as much to make as a good one too.

I haven't got a word of Irish but watch subtitled TG4 pretty much as much as RTE 1 or 2, Newstalk does me for radio news too.

Nijmegen

bnt wrote: »

Even allowing for that, the 2009 balance sheet doesn't look that bad, after a quick read, and they seemed to be carrying a decent current asset balance. For the article to be accurate, for RTE to be under threat within two years, something's gone badly wrong on the revenue side, I think.

Well, one Sunday newspaper had to go out of business just last week. The media spend in Ireland is in the toilet.

.....

Where in the f*ck is my TV license going then?

Say if RTÉ does go bust, does this mean we won't have to pay a TV license any more?

Elmo

The licence fee does not just go towards RTÉ. Indeed this year they will make up the cut that TG4 took from the government under the 4 year plan. (7% goes to the BAI which redistributes it to Independent Producers for any FTA channel e.g. TV3, BBC and C4).

It also should be made clear that RTÉ have also had to role out Digital services alone with little interest from private operators, in terms of TV they seem to be supporting TV3's digital role out. Their investment into Digital is costly.

Gijoe

RTE, as they stand at the moment are a joke. As some have mentioned previously, commissioning is laughable. having said that i would hate to see our national broadcaster go down the tube.

Maybe they should somehow split it clearly between public service channels (no advertising - maybe not even 24 hours) & commercial channels which could show all the crap they wanted. But the last thing we need at the moment is the national broadcaster privatised.

Or maybe they should concentrate on less programming but putting more money into creating better quality programmes that we could possibly export.

DoesNotCompute

Cap all salaries in RTE at 100,000.

Or better yet, privitise the lot, and show the likes of Joe Duffy, Ryan Tubridy, and Pat Kenny the door!

FlutterinBantam

RTE provide a good service in my opinion.


However, like a lot of things in this country, eg the Health Service, the Public service, it costs far too much to run.

Far far too much.

rednik

Goodbye RTE you are the weakest link.

Elmo

Gijoe wrote: »

Maybe they should somehow split it clearly between public service channels (no advertising - maybe not even 24 hours) & commercial channels which could show all the crap they wanted. But the last thing we need at the moment is the national broadcaster privatised.

Or maybe they should concentrate on less programming but putting more money into creating better quality programmes that we could possibly export.

I would agree with this no reason why RTÉ 1 could not just focus on Home Produced programming. They have had a few success in international sales such as Single Handed (which they now co-produce with ITV), but TV drama is expensive and it is also difficult to get distribution for European shows.

While RTÉ Two could just become a commercial service for RTÉ in the same way the BBC own 50% of Dave, Gold and the rest of the UKTV channels.

Children's TV would have to move to RTÉ 1.

Zombrex

Do people really want to privatize RTE? Do we really want another TV3? With constant CSI Miami and Family Guy re-runs showing 24/7?

abouttobebanned

skelliser wrote: »

Its a well known fact that RTE is a closed shop.
The only way you can get a job there is if your related to someone, Lucey Kenndy, have political pull, Ryan Tubridy or have been around for so long that you basically own the place Gay Byrne, Joe Duffy etc.

With a situation like that no wonder it is in the ****.

Privatise the lot of it, dont see why we have to finance these gob****es massive pay packets.

This post right here sums up what's wrong with boards.ie. You want to have a go at RTE and you don't care how you do it. On one hand it's people who only have a job cause of political pull but you also have a problem with someone who started out doing work experience and worked his way to the top.

Moan all you want about massive pay packets but basically you're just jealous because you're not receiving one. And if given the chance to earn one would you say "ah you know, that's too much money lads, especially in this day and age".

I'm not tubridy's biggest fan but I remember when he used to follow pat kenny around handing out free pens to people. He has worked hard and continues to work hard so deserves whatever he gets.

It may be cool to slate RTE but at least they make a lot of homegrown shows. It's criminal that they're under pressure when TV3 otherwise known as lowest common denominator telly continues to thrive with horrendous reality TV and virtually no home grown entertainment. It's horrible candy for the Facebook generation.

Elmo

Wicknight wrote: »

Do we really want another TV3? With constant CSI Miami and Family Guy re-runs showing 24/7?

In fairness to TV3 that is 3e.

dolphin city

abouttobebanned wrote: »

This post right here sums up what's wrong with boards.ie. You want to have a go at RTE and you don't care how you do it. On one hand it's people who only have a job cause of political pull but you also have a problem with someone who started out doing work experience and worked his way to the top.

Moan all you want about massive pay packets but basically you're just jealous because you're not receiving one. And if given the chance to earn one would you say "ah you know, that's too much money lads, especially in this day and age".

I'm not tubridy's biggest fan but I remember when he used to follow pat kenny around handing out free pens to people. He has worked hard and continues to work hard so deserves whatever he gets.

It may be cool to slate RTE but at least they make a lot of homegrown shows. It's criminal that they're under pressure when TV3 otherwise known as lowest common denominator telly continues to thrive with horrendous reality TV and virtually no home grown entertainment. It's horrible candy for the Facebook generation.

that's it - we're all jealous :rolleyes:



RTE will be no major loss - its getting worse as the weeks go by. the programmes are terrible.

but of course they won't let it go - they will probably raise the TV license to 500 Euro per year.

ibarelycare

abouttobebanned wrote: »

This post right here sums up what's wrong with boards.ie. You want to have a go at RTE and you don't care how you do it. On one hand it's people who only have a job cause of political pull but you also have a problem with someone who started out doing work experience and worked his way to the top.

Moan all you want about massive pay packets but basically you're just jealous because you're not receiving one. And if given the chance to earn one would you say "ah you know, that's too much money lads, especially in this day and age".

I'm not tubridy's biggest fan but I remember when he used to follow pat kenny around handing out free pens to people. He has worked hard and continues to work hard so deserves whatever he gets.

It may be cool to slate RTE but at least they make a lot of homegrown shows. It's criminal that they're under pressure when TV3 otherwise known as lowest common denominator telly continues to thrive with horrendous reality TV and virtually no home grown entertainment. It's horrible candy for the Facebook generation.

There's a difference. You can choose to have absolutely nothing to do with TV3. But we're forced to pay RTE for the privilege of viewing such amazing homegrown shows as Fade Street and Joe Duffy's Spirit Level.