MEDIA INFORMATION
Contact Ian Benson on 01546 830139 or e-mail to ibenson@ukfuturetv.com
PRESS RELEASES
06/08/08 

Newly launched this week is a new internet TV channel - UK FUTURE TV - all about the people, trends and technologies shaping tomorrow. The channel features experts, professionals, researchers, professors and entrepreneurs who describe their careers and give their predictions about future developments. It is aimed at a general audience whilst providing a unique resource for anyone making career, study or new business choices. The range of careers featured is a great deal wider than the police, doctors and chefs who predominate on mainstream TV. Imagine Big Brother if they put people in the house who were clever, knowledgeable and articulate. The site allows potential students from the UK and abroad to find out more about the work of universities and professions without having to spend a fortune on petrol, train or air fares. The channel has been launched with an initial 120 different 30 minute programmes across the categories of health, education, environment, society, enterprise, science and technology. All content is completely new in any medium and the channel expects to add around 300 new 30 minute programmes each year over the next 3 years. It will be funded for the first 3 years through a mix of philanthropy and frugality. Additional funding may come from advertising and sponsorship. Unlike other internet TV sites, such as iPlayer, users can surf through the programme catalogue whilst watching the channel at the same time. Filming so far has been carried out across the UK in Edinburgh, Cardiff, Durham, Liverpool, Warwick, Leicester, Oxford, Bath, Guildford and Brighton. Unusually for a TV venture it is based in Crinan, Argyll in rural Scotland. 
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS  
What exactly are you doing ?   Over the next 3 years we are aiming to assemble a collection of around 1,000 video interviews with academics, experts, professionals and entrepreneurs that will cover all the main university disciplines, professions, occupations and industries. This will then allow anyone wanting to find out what is going on in a particular field to come to our site and click on a 30 minute programme where real people describe their actual careers and experiences in those fields and give their predictions about the future development of that field.  
Who would want to watch ?   Anyone making career, career change or study decisions plus their relatives or advisers. People seeking to embark on research projects or entrepreneurial ventures. Members of the general public interested in finding out what is happening in the different fields that interest them or that impact on their lives. 
Surely all this information is available in text form on the web ?   In some cases yes although there are some astonishing gaps. There is an often quoted statistic that non verbal communication accounts for 60%, vocal sounds account for 30% and the words used account for only 10% of any given communication. What we are offering is an additional choice using online video. This does not detract from text sources however it might inspire someone to research through them.  
When did you start ?   We produced 25 pilot programmes in Spring 2007 to demonstrate the concept and refine procedures and technical requirements. Since Autumn 2007 we have been working full time to build the channel and are currently producing around 25 new programmes each month.       
Why are you doing this now ?   Over the last few years the cost of video cameras, editing software, computers and data storage has tumbled. A few thousand pounds now buys equipment that can produce higher quality video than even leading broadcasters were producing a short while ago. On the consumer side the last couple of years has seen a huge uptake of broadband throughout the UK and beyond. The average speed of connection has been increasing to the point where a significant proportion of the population can now access video over the internet. Internet TV is now a viable proposition.  
What if your channel goes bust ?  The first thing we did was to set up a fund to pay for our server costs "in perpetuity". All the programmes that we produce will always be available on the internet even if for some reason the channel ceased to make any new programmes. The second thing we did was budget the money we raised carefully over the next 3 years. We will be able to continue making around 300 new programmes each year for the next 3 years even if we do not raise another penny in funds.  
How will people find out about the channel ?   As the amount of content builds up so will our publicity efforts. We have prepared a detailed marketing plan covering both general audiences as well as target groups such as schools, colleges, business advisers, etc.  
What if nobody watches ?   We received over 20,000 hits to our site during our pre launch phase. That is likely to grow significantly now that the channel is fully launched and our publicity campaign is underway.  
Are there not thousands of channels and websites out there now ? Why another one ?   As anyone quickly realises when they get Freeview or Sky the majority of channels on digital are repeating already made programmes. Their arrival has not added many new programmes to the selection. On the internet much of the activity is on sites to store, search or promote existing material. We are producing content that is completely new in any medium so we are doing something quite different. We believe that distinctive, quality content will win out in the long term regardless of medium and competition for audience. 
If this is such a good idea why is no one else doing it ?   There are other great projects around. Two US based ones that stand out are www.fora.tv whose principal investor is William Randolph Hearst III. Another is watch.mit.edu from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  
Does anyone have the attention span to watch anything for 30 or 45 mins ?   We understand the point but we are trying to explain the subtleties and complexities of the subjects we cover. 45 mins might seem a long time to watch however 45 years doing a job you hate would probably seem longer! A growth area in recent years has been radio which people listen to whilst surfing the net. Although all our programmes are both video and audio it is quite possible after the first few minutes to carry on listening to the sound whilst flicking through e-mails or Facebook at the same time.  
Who has given interviews ?   So far we have conducted interviews with academics from the following universities : Edinburgh, Warwick, Durham, Leicester, Oxford Brookes, Bath, Surrey, Sussex, Cardiff, Liverpool Hope and Liverpool John Moores.
What about people who are not academics ?   We have already been to the Cambridge Science Park and intend to travel around the UK to interview professionals, experts, researchers and entrepreneurs in many different fields, industries and professions.
What do you hope to achieve ? We hope that a few more people can understand a little more of what really goes on in a complicated, changing and sometimes troubled world. We hope to inspire people to study, to find satisfying careers, to embark on research projects and launch new ventures.
What would the ultimate accolade be ?   Perhaps in 25 years time some future interviewer will sit down in front of a participant and ask as we do now "What inspired you to pursue this career ?" and they will reply "I was 14 and I watched a programme on your channel ……….."    
Who is paying for all this ? Our channel is paid for through philanthropy and frugality. Philanthropy in that we have raised funds from people with a little more money than they personally require. Our private benefactors believe that more could be done to explain the worlds of study, work and enterprise to people who are young, changing career, seeking to launch new ventures or who simply wish to understand their world more. A historical parallel would be the 3,000 Andrew Carnegie funded libraries however our project requires a great deal less money, masonry and paper. Frugality in that "better, faster, cheaper" innovation is the focus of everything we do. Our project would cost around £45 million pounds at typical BBC cost levels however through our innovative methods our costs are only a tiny fraction of that figure.
Who started it ? Our founder is Ian Benson. He has successfully launched 6 entirely different business ventures over a 26 year career. He is currently senior partner in Matrix Mergers specialising in a media mergers and acquisitions. We are not connected with UKTV, Virgin Media or BBC Worldwide.
What inspired the idea ? Ian Benson was asked to be a speaker on a NESTA course encouraging recent graduates to set up businesses. Afterwards he discussed with colleagues whether the estimated £1M cost of a course for 30 students was value for money. Asking the classic entrepreneurial question "Could you achieve more with less money ?" inspired UK FUTURE TV.  
Why is he doing this ?   Ian Benson answers "My father was a college professor. When I came to make career choices he just called up people he knew in various professions and arranged for me to go and talk to them. At the time I suppose I thought that was normal. Now that I am older I see that I had a huge privilege that few others are given. I have some spare time, energy, ideas and resources. This seems a very worthwhile project."