Winter is coming for RTE - Dee Forbes hints at a bleak future.

Harry Palmr · 06-09-2019 06:19PM #1

https://www.thejournal.ie/rte-reassessing-everything-it-does-amid-unprecedented-financial-situation-4799084-Sep2019/

RTÉ STAFF HAVE been told the broadcaster’s financial situation is unlike anything it has seen before and that everything it does is being reassessed.
In a letter to staff, RTÉ Director General Dee Forbes said that although the decision by the Government to tender for TV licence collection services was welcome, the decision to defer implementation of a revised media charge system “means that the crisis in the funding of public service media will continue”.

No actual details until October (sorry!). It'll be interesting to see where the review focuses - there are plenty of potential strategies of which paying the talent less is actually the one with least effect (beyond making licence payers feel good for a moment).

How wide and deep will any axes fall - chop whole channels/stations? Ditch the orchestras? Tell the dept that saorview infrastructure should be the states business not RTE's? Reduce new in house commissions, pay less for third party commissions? Is there scope for a partnership with a bigger media company?

dubrov · 06-09-2019 07:33PM

They'll need to give Tubbs and Darcy a 10% pay bump.
They are contractors after all.

06-09-2019 07:37PM

What did Dee expect? Salaries are grossly inflated. Paying Marian Finucane over €300,000 per annum for 4 hours of hair salon gossip weekly indicates a loose grip on reality.

political analyst · 06-09-2019 07:38PM

Yeah, I heard that one before(!)

Rubberchikken · 06-09-2019 07:40PM

dump turbidy Darcy finucan duffy forbes etc , theyll save a fortune.

rte - yuck.

dubrov · 06-09-2019 07:40PM

...but BBC and ITV will poach all the talent if RTE don't pay them well

Tilikum17 · 06-09-2019 07:43PM

Deleted User wrote: »

What did Dee expect? Salaries are grossly inflated. Paying Marian Finucane over €300,000 per annum for 4 hours of hair salon gossip weekly indicates a loose grip on reality.

She’s on 7k a week herself.

NIMAN · 06-09-2019 07:44PM

Rte is like the ESB, a place with absolutely crazy average salaries across the board.

Harry Palmr · 06-09-2019 07:50PM

and like I said at the top - cutting salaries a bit will make feck all difference in a world where the orchestras consume several million between them ever year.

So rather than bang on about the easy stuff, any ideas?

dubrov · 06-09-2019 07:54PM

Harry Palmr wrote: »

and like I said at the top - cutting salaries a bit will make feck all difference in a world where the orchestras consume several million between them ever year.

So rather than bang on about the easy stuff, any ideas?

I think you underestimate the positive effect of cutting high profile salaries. The point is that it sends a message to the public that there is no serious effort being made to make cuts so why should the licence fee be increased.

NIMAN · 06-09-2019 07:56PM

Harry Palmr wrote: »

and like I said at the top - cutting salaries a bit will make feck all difference in a world where the orchestras consume several million between them ever year.

So rather than bang on about the easy stuff, any ideas?

Every little bit helps though. It will all add up.
Are you justifying some of the wages dished out to Rte talent?
In such a small market, they are paid far too much.

The sad thing about that piece is that they gave D'Arcy a €50k pay rise in one year. Then axed the show early.

Did they take the 50k back off him I wonder.

06-09-2019 07:58PM

[Deleted User] wrote: »

What did Dee expect? Salaries are grossly inflated. Paying Marian Finucane over €300,000 per annum for 4 hours of hair salon gossip weekly indicates a loose grip on reality.

There is any number of decent people who could do that job for 80,000 a year.

dubrov · 06-09-2019 08:06PM

NIMAN wrote: »

The sad thing about that piece is that they gave D'Arcy a €50k pay rise in one year. Then axed the show early.

Did they take the 50k back off him I wonder.

They recorded a deficit of nearly 20m the same year.
Says it all really.

06-09-2019 08:08PM

Harry Palmr wrote: »

and like I said at the top - cutting salaries a bit will make feck all difference in a world where the orchestras consume several million between them ever year.

So rather than bang on about the easy stuff, any ideas?

Id rather pay for 2 Orchestras or even 2 more Orchestras than a handful of over rated Stars
I dont even know why cutting an Orchestra is touted as a threat or a possibility, that Dee Forbes wan is living in another reality, delusional.

At least those people have talent and the outlay pays for a lot more of them, that RTE suggest it might get the axe shows it should not be under their remit, it should be under the remit of Arts/Culture/Heritage, if anything we should have a number of venues nationwide for Music which can be used for classical performances, the Orchestras should do tours of small venues, as Ive seen in parks in the UK, Denmark and then occasional large events.
Im not suggesting they should all be in formal wear.
They shouldnt have to be paid performances, just in the background of other events, wasnt there a bandstand renovated in Bray, do those things ever get used?

NIMAN · 06-09-2019 08:10PM

Yeah, its time they stopped performing as Jenny Greene's private band too.

bfa1509 · 06-09-2019 08:14PM

I bet they'll cut the television broadcast and move everything online. Probably get more ad revenue that way and they could also exploit free lance fame whors looking to expand their twitter fan base.

salmocab · 06-09-2019 08:15PM

Why owners of televisions pay for two orchestras is beyond me. I’ve no issue with them but if the state want to fund them then fund them. Too many channels, and wages out of whack with reality. Forcing people to pay for American sitcoms is a joke.

political analyst · 06-09-2019 08:21PM

salmocab wrote: »

Why owners of televisions pay for two orchestras is beyond me. I’ve no issue with them but if the state want to fund them then fund them. Too many channels, and wages out of whack with reality. Forcing people to pay for American sitcoms is a joke.

As far as I know, American imports are paid for with commercial revenue, not the licence fee.

salmocab · 06-09-2019 08:23PM

political analyst wrote: »

As far as I know, American imports are paid for with commercial revenue, not the licence fee.

I’m sure they claim that but ultimately it all goes into and out of the same pot.

06-09-2019 08:50PM

salmocab wrote: »

Why owners of televisions pay for two orchestras is beyond me. I’ve no issue with them but if the state want to fund them then fund them. Too many channels, and wages out of whack with reality. Forcing people to pay for American sitcoms is a joke.

Id be happy to see the Orchestras perform and have it on tv or online in performances to audiences, there doesnt seem to be a means to access that kind of thing easily, say as hearing Joe or Marian or that long streak of gaunt misery or baldy spout their nonsense

dhaughton99 · 06-09-2019 09:03PM

Shut down RTE 2 and 2FM. The only reason for them is to give Miriam’s kids a job for life.

lawred2 · 06-09-2019 09:05PM

[Deleted User] wrote: »

What did Dee expect? Salaries are grossly inflated. Paying Marian Finucane over €300,000 per annum for 4 hours of hair salon gossip weekly indicates a loose grip on reality.

Weekly?

More like 22 weeks a year

icdg · 06-09-2019 09:41PM

OK, as usual when a story about possible cutbacks about RTE appears in the media, we have a lot of posts on this thread taking swipes at various named individuals who are not here to defend themselves.

Cutbacks at RTE are a legitimate topic for discussion. Taking pot shots at individuals is not.

I’ll allow the thread to continue on the basis that things are discussed, not people.

mikeym · 06-09-2019 09:54PM

Salaries need to be cut for certain individuals who I wont name.

Scrap 2fm theres plenty of regional radio stations that are doing a better job than 2fm.

The live sport has got hammered over the years e.g. Champions League, Premier League Highlights, Six Nations. Maybe they need to bring them back?

Catching people that own a mobile phone to pay the new revamped charge wont be popular.

SPDUB · 06-09-2019 10:03PM

mikeym wrote: »

The live sport has got hammered over the years e.g. Champions League, Premier League Highlights, Six Nations. Maybe they need to bring them back?

That's one thing that needs to be cut even more if you want to save serious money . If the GAA wants large sums of money let Sky pay it .

hullaballoo · 06-09-2019 10:06PM

The problem in RTÉ is an unsustainable cost base that yes, is led by salaries but as Harry Palmr points out, axing the headliners would be small gains vs a huge budget.

It's the organisational bloating that is the real problem. Too many people on the payroll on too much money. Hundreds of admin staff filing their nails and on the same money as the one lad in the graphics dept busting his gut.

Like the HSE, it's chock full of useless people more than happy to steal a living while their colleagues in other depts work themselves to the bone.

It needs serious and I mean serious rationalisation in that regard before any further changes are made to the existing taxation.

KB22 · 06-09-2019 10:13PM

icdg wrote: »

OK, as usual when a story about possible cutbacks about RTE appears in the media, we have a lot of posts on this thread taking swipes at various named individuals who are not here to defend themselves.

Cutbacks at RTE are a legitimate topic for discussion. Taking pot shots at individuals is not.

I’ll allow the thread to continue on the basis that things are discussed, not people.

I think the media people mentioned, are well able to answer for themselves .I doubt they would as so many of them are very "sensitive" regarding salary. Very gracious of the moderator :- " I'll allow the thread to continue" etc. Reminiscent of MUSSOLINI, ADOLF,MUGABE,TRUMP,BORIS ? Ah well back of the class for me again.

STB. · 06-09-2019 10:21PM

SPDUB wrote: »

That's one thing that needs to be cut even more if you want to save serious money . If the GAA wants large sums of money let Sky pay it .

RTE shouldn't have to compete with a foreign subscription only company for games in the first instance. The job of the GAA is to promote the sport and get as many people watching it. That's means free to air. The GAA lost the run of themselves but that is a different discussion altogether.

Either way the GAA well pays for itself. Its 35k for a 30 second advert during the big GAA games. And no wonder, they get the biggest audience share of all programmes, by miles. 1.1million watched the All Ireland Football final a few weeks back. The same will watch the replay.

STB. · 06-09-2019 10:29PM

hullaballoo wrote: »

It's the organisational bloating that is the real problem. Too many people on the payroll on too much money. Hundreds of admin staff filing their nails and on the same money as the one lad in the graphics dept busting his gut.

It needs serious and I mean serious rationalisation in that regard before any further changes are made to the existing taxation.

Last time I checked they were seeking to shed 250 jobs through voluntary redundancies and retirements. They stuck 30 mill of the money they made from selling some of the Donnybrook land for this purpose. I wonder how many they have managed to shed.

Pa ElGrande · 06-09-2019 10:37PM

Transfer the orchestras to the department of arts heritage and the gaeltacht that's almost €10 million freed up.

Why isn't 2FM profitable? Heads should be rolling if it's not bringing in a surplus.

Lyric FM can be sold as a going concern. maybe Classic FM in the UK might be interested.

RTE need to switch to a subscription model for their internet services and go chase the Irish diaspora (untapped market)

Appoint an examiner to the organisation before it is too late.

Realistically their resources are spread too thin, they need to rationalise and concentrate on what they are good at (whatever that is I don't really consume their services unless I run across them by visiting a neighbours house.) With the exception of the news and weather the public has changed the way it consumes most media to on demand, filling up the airwaves with repeats or other filler is just wasting resources.

Suckit · 06-09-2019 10:47PM

Get rid of everybody in there who only got in through connections and are extremely unqualified, or just sh*t as as presenter/host.
That should free up 99% of their cash.

Winter is coming for RTE - Dee Forbes hints at a bleak future.

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