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Political meltdown at Westminster must be having an infectious effect on the nation's TV bosses this week. The BBC and regulator Ofcom, and ITV and Channel Five, have been bad-mouthing each other, as communications minister Lord Carter puts the last touches to his Digital Britain Report into the future of the media.
The heart of the row is: how should public-service broadcasting be funded - particularly news in the regions?
ITV says it's uneconomic to produce regional news; the BBC offers to share resources but won't hand over any of its £3.6 billion licence fee income to help; Ofcom is furious that the BBC has criticised the regulator's "fantasy" figures; and smaller commercial players such as Five fear ITV could gain unfair concessions.
The dispute has been simmering for months, as recession raises the heat, but it has boiled over as Carter prepares for publication on 16 June. It is understood he completed the draft as recently as yesterday, and it is circulating Whitehall departments for approval. Insiders remain hopeful it won't be derailed by the Government turmoil. Carter is looking at a raft of issues, including universal broadband and tackling online piracy. But arguably public-service broadcasting is the most emotive subject. These are established media heavyweights such as ITV and Channel 4, which are seeing advertising revenue dry up. The key points are:
The creation of a second public-service broadcaster with "Channel 4 at its heart" as an alternative to the BBC. Ministers want C4, which has a funding gap, and the BBC's commercial arm Worldwide to set up a joint venture.
Ensuring a "plurality" of news. BBC partnerships to support ITV local news services are on the agenda. Wider independently financed news consortia (IFNCs) to provide local news on "Channel 3" are possible. Some media chiefs are pushing the radical option of using a slice of licence fee cash.
An Office of Fair Trading review, due to be published along with Digital Britain, is looking at whether cross-media ownership rules can be eased so TV and press can collaborate. The Newspaper Publishers' Association also asked Carter to examine the growth of council-funded papers and internet search engines that benefit from news content they aggregate but do not create or invest in.
A C4-BBC Worldwide pact, if not a joint venture, looks the best bet.
Despite hostility from rivals such as BSkyB and Guardian Media Group, sources say the deal is on the cards.
The BBC appeared reluctant initially but, since it involves no licence-fee cash, this might be a least-worst option. For ministers, it would be a tangible achievement when plans for broadband and piracy look more like aspirations.
Plurality of news - to ensure a range of choices other than the BBC - is far more difficult to resolve. ITV and Five (and state-owned C4) all carry news, yet they receive no support while the BBC has a guaranteed income. Indeed ITN, the long-time news provider for ITV and C4, faces a perilous pension deficit.
Meanwhile, local papers, which have seen a dramatic plunge in revenue as advertising migrates to the web, also feel they are competing against the BBC's vast online news resources.
The BBC has scaled back some plans for local coverage as a result. But having seen off a Conservative attempt to block a £3 annual increase in the licence fee, BBC director-general Mark Thompson and Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons are in combative mood. Ofcom reckons it might cost £40-60 million a year to fund a basic regional news service for ITV - perhaps £80-100 million for a better service. Theoretically, the licence fee is an option as there could be £260 million, previously earmarked for digital switchover. The BBC says if there is an underspend, it should stay with licence-fee payers.
The BBC's decision to attack Ofcom's figures as "fantasy" - the Beeb reckons the regional news costs are half that - demonstrates the strength of feeling.
The Corporation is only offering to share facilities with ITV in the regions. The BBC thinks this "partnership" could produce annual cost savings of £20 million for a regional news provider for ITV, The commercial broadcaster puts the figure at just £7 million by 2016.
Ofcom chief Ed Richards says the BBC's partnership is not enough. It's worth remembering Richards' former boss and predecessor is Lord Carter.
ITV chief operating officer John Cresswell also described the BBC's view as "disappointing", adding: "The viewer will be entitled to know why a fraction of the £3.6 billion licence fee was not made available."
However, Five boss Dawn Airey is angry for other reasons, suggesting ITV should not earn advertising revenue for regional news on its channel if and when it no longer makes regional news itself. In an election week, after a month in which local media have played a crucial role in scrutinising MPs' expenses in individual constituencies, no one needs reminding of the importance of public-service news provision.
Over to you, Lord Carter.
