Contract Gain

RNS Number:3899S
Ten Alps Communications PLC
24 November 2003


For Immediate Release, 7:00am, 24th November 2003



Ten Alps Communications PLC - Government-funded TV channel contract


TV production company Brook Lapping Productions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
media group Ten Alps Communications plc ('Ten Alps'), has taken a 70% stake in a
joint venture consortium which has signed a major three-year contract to manage
and produce a digital television channel aimed at the UK teaching profession,
fully funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES).


Assuming the contract is able to be fully implemented over the period, the Ten
Alps directors believe it will make a very significant contribution to the
overall group revenues of Ten Alps from mid 2004 until early 2008.


Brook Lapping owns 70% of Education Digital, a joint venture consortium set up
to manage and produce the TV channel. The remaining shares are owned by Carlton
TV and the Institute of Education, University of London. The contract was won in
a competitive tender process involving TV broadcast and production companies,
and will include the production and subcontracting of a large volume of original
programming.


The channel will be branded "Teachers' TV" and is scheduled to be on-air at the
end of 2004. The full channel launch and subsequent implementation of the
contract is conditional both on a successful pilot (to be delivered March 2004)
and the award of a broadcasting licence. The contract also contains significant
performance conditions and financial guarantees from Ten Alps.


"This is a vindication of the great talents of the team at Brook Lapping, and a
real opportunity for us to offer a valuable service to teachers," said Nitil
Patel, finance director of Ten Alps, who will also serve on the board of the
consortium.


Bob Geldof, co-founder and non-executive director of Ten Alps, said: "The UK
government leads Europe in recognising digital TV's potential to communicate
detailed information to particular groups amongst its employees and the public.
Meanwhile in terms of the business development of Ten Alps, this is of course
one of the key moments."


Ten Alps Communciations PLC

Alex Connock - CEO                 Nitil Patel- FD
07900 886 529                      07990 578 356
Main Office: 0207 089 3686
www.tenalps.com


Binns & Co PR Ltd
Sam Allen/Jacqui Graves: 0207 786 9600


The full DfES press release is copied below.



TEACHERS' TV PREPARES FOR TEST - MILIBAND



Three of the best known names in television broadcasting, production and
education have joined forces to run a pilot for Teachers' TV. If successful, it
will be Europe's first dedicated TV channel for the school workforce.


After an intensive tendering process, the Department for Education and Skills
(DfES) has selected Educational Digital - a consortium made up of Brook Lapping
Productions, Carlton Communications and the Institute of Education, University
of London - to run the pilot early next year. If successful, a full launch will
go ahead in Autumn 2004.


Teachers' TV was first announced in April this year and aims to support the
whole school workforce by providing training and development, resources, and
insight into good practice. The channel is hoping to run for 18 hours a day on
Sky, Freeview and digital cable platforms NTL and Telewest.


Education Digital will be responsible for the day to day management of the
channel including programme commissioning, production, scheduling and financial
control.


School Standards Minister David Miliband said:


"I congratulate Education Digital on winning this tender and thank the other
excellent bidders. I am confident the pilot will develop quality programmes for
school workers. The consortium has an impressive broadcasting track record and a
real understanding of the needs and interests of the target audience.


"The proposal came out on top of a very strong field, offering the Department
real value for money with quality programming that would deliver the educational
benefits we stipulated.


"Teachers' TV is an innovative and exciting proposition for teachers. It will
provide unique support for people who work in schools and will bring useful
information together in one place to save time and add value.


"Research shows that teachers are likely to tune into the channel during work
planning and development time. Therefore it should help to cut down their
workload, as well as support them in raising standards - key aims of this
Government."


Brian Lapping, Chairman of Education Digital said:


"As a new form of public service broadcasting, Teachers' TV is an important
development in British television. Having been challenged to deliver Teachers'
TV, our focus is to ensure that it gives value to teachers and, more than that,
make it the teaching profession's own channel"


Programming for Teachers' TV will include professional development programmes
and lively and provocative general interest series. Examples include:


In "Against the Odds" teachers will tell the story of how their schools overcame
serious problems and crises.


Fly-on-the-wall classroom analysis will show how gifted teachers bring the
curriculum alive. It will also include advice on the best classroom resources
and hot tips on how to ease workload.


The latest education news will be reviewed each week.


Steve Hewlett, Carlton's Director of Programmes, said:


"Carlton is delighted to be part of the winning team for this exciting
initiative and we look forward to creating innovative programming for the first
channel of its kind."


Professor Geoff Whitty, Director of the Institute of Education, University of
London, said:


"The Institute of Education is very happy to be involved in this exciting new
project with two partners who are leaders in their fields. I am convinced that
Education Digital will make an important contribution to in-service education
for those working in schools.


The pilot for Teachers' TV is due to start in February 2004. It will include
tests of web, interactive TV and broadband content which would all feature in an
eventual channel launch. Content will be tested by a sample of the target
audience of primary and secondary school teachers, head teachers, school
governors and classroom assistants.


NOTES TO EDITORS


CHANNEL GOVERNANCE

The supplier will have full editorial control over Teachers' TV. The input of
the DfES will be limited to setting Educational Objectives for the channel which
the supplier will be expected to address in scheduling programming in the most
effective way. The Educational Objectives are derived from the Department's
strategy to 2006.


A Teachers' TV Board will be established in 2004 as the primary means of channel
governance, with a remit to monitor the performance of the channel supplier
including setting performance targets and the channel budget.


THE CONSORTIUM MEMBERS

Brook Lapping Productions has been an independent company, making award-winning
factual programmes, for 20 years. Its owner, Ten Alps Communications, is a
successful media company with radio production as well as television interests.
Carlton Communications has extensive experience of running terrestrial and
digital interactive channels. The Institute of Education, internationally
renowned for the quality of its educational training, plans with Teachers' TV to
launch distance-learning diplomas for teachers.


Key staff for Education Digital are as follows:


Chairman                          Brian Lapping
Chief Executive                   Nigel Dacre
Director of Programmes            Andrew Bethell


Brook Lapping Productions, based in London, is the lead partner in Education
Digital and is owned by media company Ten Alps Communications plc with five
offices around the UK. Brook Lapping has been making award-winning documentary
series for some twenty years, including "The Second Russian Revolution",
"Endgame in Ireland" and "The Fifty Years War: Israel and the Arabs" all of
which were transmitted on an international basis. In 2003 alone, Brook Lapping
has won key awards including documentary award given by the television news
journalists' annual conference News World; a gold medal from the New York Film
and Television Festival for its programme "I Met Adolf Eichmann"; the
international current affairs award of the Royal Television Society; the Harvey
Lee award of the Broadcasting Press Guild for its "distinguished and innovatory
contribution to television documentary" and the Alan Clarke award given by BAFTA
for its "outstanding creative contribution to television".


Carlton Communications brings scale and experience in running digital channels
as well as a range of managerial and financial skills. Carlton Productions has
award-winning departments spanning drama, documentaries, entertainment, factual
entertainment and children and young people's programming. Since the closure of
ITV Digital, Carlton has invested more heavily in ITV2 and in the ITV News
Channel. With the current planned merger of Carlton and Granada, Teachers' TV is
set to benefit from the streamlining of ITV channel operations and will remain
an important asset for Carlton and ITV. Carlton's experiences and skills learned
through ITV Digital can only help Teachers' TV to succeed.


The Institute of Education, University of London, was founded in 1902 and has an
international reputation for high quality research, teacher training, higher
degrees and consultancy in education. It is the largest graduate school of
education in the UK and is a world -class centre for educational enquiry.


The Institute has played a central role in policy-making serving a number of
Government bodies including the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy Group,
the Advisory Committee for the DfES' Children and Young People's Unit and the
Moser Committee on Adult Basic Skills. In addition, the Institute has also been
commissioned to undertake research and policy analysis for, amongst others, the
Department of Health, Ofsted and the Social Exclusion Unit.



KEY PERSONNEL BIOGRAPHIES


Brian Lapping (part time) Chairman of the Board of Education Digital.


Brian Lapping has been the Chief Executive of Brook Lapping Productions since
1988 - and has been the Executive Producer on a long list of award winning
documentaries. Earlier this year, Brian was awarded a BAFTA for his "outstanding
creative contribution to television".


Nigel Dacre (full time) Chief Executive of Education Digital.

Nigel Dacre, was the Editor of ITV News for 7 years until 2002 - a role which
included being the Editor of News at Ten, running the ITN News Channel and being
on the ITN Executive Committee


Andrew Bethell (full time) Director of Programmes of Education Digital.


Andrew Bethell, is the creative driving force behind the production company
Double Exposure - and has made a wide range of education programmes. Before that
he was a teacher at a London comprehensive school for 17 years. He is one of the
country's leading education broadcasters.



PRESS ENQUIRIES:                       Suzie Brady - 0207 925 5407

PUBLIC ENQUIRIES:                      0870 000 2288
                                       [e-mail]

NEWSDESK:                              020 7925 6789
                                       [e-mail]

OUT OF HOURS MEDIA CALLS:              07659 105 993

INTERNET ADDRESS :                     www.dfes.gov.uk
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