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Yorkshire to get own digital TV station
Greg Wright Deputy Business Editor YORKSHIRE is to get its own digital satellite television channel to promote the region's film and TV talent to potentially hundreds of millions of viewers.
The channel – called Propeller – will showcase the region's emerging talent, from film producers to software designers, across Europe through the Sky Digital platform.
It will also provide students in the region with the chance to access educational material and demonstrate their abilities in the world of digital media.
The station will be based at the East Coast Media Centre in Immingham, home to a digital interactive broadcasting training facility at Immage Studios.
The project, which has been set up thanks to a 2.9m investment from Yorkshire Forward, will create a dozen jobs.
Simon Couth, chief executive at Immage Studios, said he hoped to take on a total of 25-30 staff soon after the station opens.
He added: "This channel really will be a national and international signpost to the region. We are fast becoming the new home of digital broadcasting and we want this reputation to grow and grow. It will feature new quirky animations, provocative digital short films, challenging documentaries and powerful features...
"The amazing thing is that the programmes come from the pool of new film and television talent that is burgeoning from this region."
It is expected to start broadcasting in the autumn, initially for six hours a day.
Last year independent television producers from Yorkshire and the Humber created more hours of programming for the major networks than anywhere else in the UK and the region is home to a mass of media and digital talent.
Propeller will provide film and TV programme makers with an outlet to broadcast their work and the channel will work with regional film agency Screen Yorkshire to promote Yorkshire and the Humber's top film festivals.
Screen Yorkshire communications and marketing manager Jacky Dickins said: "The sky's the limit with something like this. It's going to be a great way for film-makers to get their work seen by a massive audience."
Small and medium-size firms in the media and digital industries will also be given the chance to work on the channel to promote their own skills and develop staff.
Susan Johnson, executive director of business at Yorkshire Forward, said: "We know this is an area with a potential for high growth and this new digital television channel will spearhead our efforts to maximise the potential we have here by supporting the development of new talent. But, importantly, the channel will promote the region as a world-class place for digital and media companies to do business."
The Immage Channel Company, the business managing the project, is now beginning to recruit the team to run the channel.
Scheduling and precise content for the channel will be confirmed after the team has been recruited, but Yorkshire Forward said it was looking for "a vibrant mix of innovative programming with some live content".
The channel will be launched in September at IBC, the World Media Trade Show in Amsterdam.
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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