Sly Bailey: 'City TV not a viable proposition'

Trinity Mirror chief Sly Bailey has claimed that the government's plans for 'City TV' are not viable, HoldtheFrontPage reports today.
Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt yesterday announced he was dumping Labour's plans for Independently Funded News Consiortia and was instead opting for a network of smaller tv stations that could be owned by local newspaper groups. He also promised to review cross-media ownership rules for the regional press.
But Bailey said: "As part of one of the successful IFNC bidding consortia we’re naturally disappointed that the government has called time on these plans. We believed that the IFNCs' capacity to tap the talent and expertise of regional media companies to provide a viable alternative to the BBC’s local news made sense for everyone.
"We look forward to seeing the results of the independent commercial assessment of local television but it's worth noting at this point that we don't see 'City TV' as a viable proposition. Our research suggests that the costs are too high and the revenues too low to support a sustainable business model."