The Great British Bake Off - a business case

[Jez]

I do like this show. It's a nice gentle thing that doesn't seem to need to create drama to be a success unlike a lot of the reality stuff.

I totally support the BBC not paying this stupid company over inflated demands. I'm not a fan of Mel and Sue really but I'm glad they made their stand and hope Hollywood and Berry do the same. Then come up with something that can remain on BBC

[Sly Boots]

Bake off has probably peaked anyway, how many times can you watch people making cakes?

The same amount of times you can watch apprentices running around London trying to sell stuff I would say.

Thing is, there isn't another show on like the Apprentice, and it's 10 episodes a year.

You can pretty much guarantee that no matter what time of day or day of the week, whenever you tune in at least one channel will be showing someone cooking.

[DjchunKfunK]

In the end the reason why this show has ended up on Channel 4 is directly because of the way the BBC has had its funding cut in the last five years or so. It can no longer afford to develop and make as many shows so it turns to companies like Love Productions and in turn has no say over the future of the series it helps create.

[Mantis]

They don't have the money to make their own shows but they could afford to offer £15m for a couple more seasons of Bake Off? I bet they could easily make it themselves for a smaller sum. Seems more like a lack of competence from the managers who commission its shows to me.

[Marty Fuffkin]

^ I agree.

It would be cheap as chips to make and the BBC would have no trouble finding a slot for it inbetween the repeats.

[DjchunKfunK]

It isn't about whether they could afford it now, but whether it was worth spending the money to totally fund production at the start. The BBC relies on production companies to help shoulder the risk on new shows so that if it doesn't pan out they haven't wasted a lot of money on it.

[Edwin]

Doesn't the BBC make Masterchef? Bake Off is just that with cakes, how card can it be?

[Nethlyn]

In the end the reason why this show has ended up on Channel 4 is directly because of the way the BBC has had its funding cut in the last five years or so.

The BBC should work towards making the licence fee an opt-in subscription for everything you get right now and then let everyone else detune and get BBC A and BBC B for the best of BBC1 and 2 but staggered in time (like Ripper Street now but still with BBC funding), with adverts and without a Freeview HD option. If people like BBC3 that much then stuff it stick that behind a paywall as well. They have until 2025 to just get on with
it and also not waste the free money they have coming in for the iTunes-style digital shop and other offshoots.

Didn't read the terms of the contract as to whether there will be one more year of Bake-Off on the Beeb or if it's over this year. Would've made more sense to part ways on friendly terms and give it a big sendoff next series inc BBC3 before it went to C4, there was none of this when the Paralympics and F1 changed channels and the Beeb didn't seem all that bothered about letting The Voice go.

[DjchunKfunK]

If the BBC became an opt-in subscription then that would be the end of the BBC.

[Achtung Englander]

it seems the format as it stands is now dead. With Hollywood going to CH4 and the Beeb check mated in not producing a similar show with Berry, Mel and Sue, due to copyright infringement, this season is the last as we know it

Greed has fucked up the most popular show on UK TV today.

I have a love/hate relationship with Alan Sugar, but you cannot fault his logic here and he stated what I originally wanted to get at. Love productions thought short term and risked a potentially more lucrative long term strategy

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37437907

As to regards the first interview with the finalist who suggested that maybe Nadiya should be a judge. That is plain stupid. A judge is supposed to be an expert. Winning a competition does not make you automatically qualify you to be an expert. It just makes you a winner of a competition.

Business lesson here - risk short term gains provided the return is higher than a return in the longer term. If CH4 have a Top Gear on their hands than they may regret doing this. At the end of the day the biggest loser could be the advertiser who now will have to spend even more money on the Bake Off time slot to get their commercial played and the viewer who now has to sit through all of that bullshit advertising

Tops - 5 / 6 million viewers with a loss of up to 60% of viewers

[Jez]

Totally agree there AE on the competition winner as a judge idea. That would be rubbish.

[katarn]

I've actually really got into this show now.

And it's probably going to be the last series before it changes into something completely different.