Birmingham local TV licence transferred to Kaleidoscope TV

Ofcom has agreed that the local TV licence for Birmingham will be transferred from Birmingham Local TV (BLTV), which fell into administration during the summer, to Kaleidoscope TV.

According to financial advisor Duff and Phelps, the deal represents a “notable dividend to BLTV’s creditors,” with Kaleidoscope TV now having until 28 February to begin broadcasting.

“I am delighted that after such a complex and intricate process, we have been able to agree that Ofcom will authorise a transfer request to Kaleidoscope TV. As well as being the most comprehensive programming proposal, the proposals from Kaleidoscope TV, represented the best dividend prospects to creditors of BLTV,” said Matt Ingram, one of the joint administrators from Duff and Phelps.

BLTV secured a licence to operate a TV service from regulator Ofcom in November 2012, following the initiative of former culture secretary Jeremy Hunt to award new digital-terrestrial licences to create a network of local services on the US model.

However, Birmingham’s City TV become the first of the UK’s new local TV services to collapse after BLTV called in administrators to try to find a buyer for its local TV licence in August.

A month after this, Ofcom issued a warning, saying that it is “very unlikely” that all the new local TV stations being licensed will succeed.