4IP: New Channel 4 Fund

Public service startups could partner with C4

Matt Locke from David Wilcox on Vimeo.

Two years ago Channel 4 Education decided to move much of its £6 million a year budget for broadcasting off TV screens to web-based platforms , leading to partnerships with Bebo and MySpace, experiments with mobile phones and games consoles, and investment in the School of Everything social enterprise.
Channel 4 decided that in order to reach young people they had to cut broadcasting during school hours - where they would not be watching as they had previously - and instead go to the places online that young people used.
In taking that approach the broadcasters had to learn about the very different world of social media and the web. One of the key people involved has been Matt Locke, recruited a year ago from the BBC Innovation Labs, and how commissioning editor.
In this interview Matt - “a geek not a broadcaster” - suggests that Channel 4 education may offer some insights into the way that the £50 million 4IP fund may operate, as Channel 4 use TV commissioning funds to invest in other tools and platforms.
He talks about:

• the way that the web has changed the notion of clearly-defined public and private spaces to borderless personal and social spaces
• the importance for broadcasters and journalists of understanding the different “register” of these places - from message boards, to Facebook, or exchanges in multi-player games.
• how this means that the role of broadcasters in a cross-platform environment is not to push content down pipes, but to engage in conversations in many different places and levels.
• the need for broadcasters, who are good at reaching millions of people, to partner with smaller organisations who can carry conversations and actions forward, and develop a legacy beyond the programme

This opens up the potential for Channel 4 to operate as a funder of what might be called public sector start ups - small organisations that they can work with to help deliver their public service remit. Matt says he will be looking to meet just these sort of groups at the 2gether08 Festival.

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