@FOWA - The BBC hindering innovation?

Submitted by mohamed on Fri, 02/23/2007 - 02:38.

Michael Arrington (TechCrunch) came out with guns blazing at a panel debate on why European startups were trailing behind their US counterparts. One of the reasons? The BBC.

His reasoning is that the BBC is getting involved in all sorts of markets outside of broadcasting and since they are publicly funded, they don't have to turn a profit. This then puts all sorts of negative pressure on startups who now have to compete with free (or publically funded) products.

Check out this video to see why Micheal Arrington thinks the bbc should be dissolved.

One of things Arrington pointed to was the CBBC "virtual world for kids" that the BBC is working on and how that announcement must have disrupted four or five startups.

I'd love to hear Ben Metcalfe's take on Arringtons comments.

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This argument has been going

Submitted by Nigel (not verified) on Fri, 02/23/2007 - 09:07.

This argument has been going on for years in London. I remember working for a music dot-com in the late 1990s who complained when the BBC started having band pages on their site.

Basically, the BBC has much more money than any other outfit in London, doesn't have to generate any revenue, so can have prettier pages, and attracts decent talent to the programmer pool, because everyone wants to work for the BBC. Plus, the UK population trusts the brand, which can be cross-promoted on TV at no cost.

Complaining about the BBC is the the equivalent of saying "I want every site to be as rubbish as mine, otherwise I have no chance of competing."

I know it sticks in the gullet of competitors, but BBC online is a Good Thing. No consumer complains that Google search is free and therefore stifling competition. No consumer complains that Linux is free and therefore damaging commercial software. No consumer complains that file-sharing offers free music, and is therefore shafting the record companies.

These are arguments only made by companies who are failing to meet customer demands. If free services were substandard, maybe there would be a place in the market for competitors, but in many cases, the free product is the best product.

[...] remark that the BBC is

Submitted by European start-up scene | :Ben Metcalfe Blog (not verified) on Fri, 03/02/2007 - 13:07.

[...] remark that the BBC is ‘hindering UK innovation’ and should be ‘dissolved’. Mohamed Nanabhay and others have been asking me for my views on [...]