Funding for programme genres to be made public

For the first time, a list is to be made public of the amount of money granted to each genre of programme falling under Public Broadcasting Service's Extended Public Service Obligation (EPSO).

PBS receives Lm500,000 from the government for the EPSO, which goes to fund programmes that are not commercially viable including children's, educational and current affairs.

Culture Minister Francis Zammit Dimech said the list should be made public some time next month.

The list would not give the amount of money that every individual programme receives but only the sum given to each genre, of which there are 12, he said.

The biggest chunk of the Lm500,000 allocation goes to children's programmes, said the minister, rebutting accusations that Where's Everybody?, the producers of Xarabank, get a large cut.

Last week, during the first public consultation on what types of programmes PBS should produce under the EPSO, questions were raised as to why Xarabank was receiving such funding.

The programme, which falls under the current affairs genre, makes more money for PBS from advertising than it is paid by the station, and is considered to be a net contributor to it. However, its contribution is not enough to cover the fixed costs that PBS works out for that particular airtime. Funds from the EPSO, therefore, go towards covering the outstanding amount, sources from the industry said.

Xarabank has often suggested paying the station and taking the advertising revenue, as other programmes do, but PBS has never accepted this, they said.

Dr Zammit Dimech said that by the end of March, another statement of intent would be issued - a call to independent producers to submit their programme proposals under the EPSO, to be adjudicated by the editors' board of PBS.

The minister is responsible for the percentage and frequency of airtime for each genre but not for the choice of the actual programmes.