Agenda Index City of Vancouver

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: May 29, 1998
Author/Local: pnsja/7473
CC File No. 1151

TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Director of Communications
SUBJECT: city.vancouver Television Program Continuation
 

RECOMMENDATION

CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS

COUNCIL POLICY

There is no applicable Council policy. Council's earlier action in approving the pilot projects and draft Partnership Agreement is described under Background.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to:

BACKGROUND

On Dec 11, 1997, City Council resolved to cooperate with the Vancouver School Board to develop "a working relationship and draft a Partnership Agreement with Rogers Communications Inc. for communications technologies and programs in our mutual interest." A Memorandum of Understanding was approved along with funding for seven projects, including $36,700 for a series of six community television shows, subsequently called "city.vancouver." The seven projects are now at different stages in their development; the "city.vancouver" series was produced and had finished airing by mid-April. Because of its early completion and factors explained below, staff are reporting back to Council outside the framework of the rest of the agreement.

DISCUSSION

city.vancouver - The Television Show

The goal of the community television program was "To expand and complement the
City's existing communications methods to the public, and to foster a closer relationship between the City and the community by explaining important and timely issues."

"city.vancouver" is a fast-paced half-hour news magazine show with three-to-five- minute features on topics such as Leaky Condos, Emergency Preparedness, Dogs in Parks, Infrastructure; text highlights of Council, Park Board and School Board agendas and decisions; brief profiles and contact information for elected officials. Segments were strung together by a series of links shot on location that covered topics as diverse as the role of public art, the nature of Greenways, and historical aspects of Stanley Park. (See Appendix A for program contents.) Each show in the series aired four times over a two-week period, starting January 26 and ending April 15. Since then, the shows, with time sensitive material deleted, have been re-run in the same time spots (Mondays at 8:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 5 p.m.)

An Editorial Committee comprised of staff from various City departments and boards and the School Board has been involved in the project from the start. The committee hired the producer and host, and provided program ideas and advice throughout. The host of the show, Arlene Ami, is a Museums employee. On-camera interviews and reports were done by City staff, with professional production employees hired as needed by the producer, Gordon Inglis. The producer and host were recruited in mid-December and in six weeks had the first show on the air.

city.vancouver.bc.ca/dot - The Website

The companion website to the television show was developed by SFU Excite Labs with funding from Canadian Cable Labs. Visitors to the site -- which is still operational at www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/dot -- can view video clips from the programs and get more detailed information on the topics covered. Although the video and sound features are effectively available only to users with high-speed internet access, the website points the way to a future not too far away where television and Internet communications will become increasingly intertwined.

Evaluation

The criteria of success outlined in the December Council report included:

- audience response to show and website
- effectiveness of City/Rogers partnership
- opinion of City staff.

Results

Audience Response
It has not been possible to get an effective read on viewer response. Community stations are not included in the commercial viewer surveys (Nielsens). Rogers, knowledgeable in the kind of informal rating of community television audience size, observed a relatively high telephone response to the program.

Staff opinion is that more could be done to expand the audience of the show. Because of the tight timing required to make the January program schedule and start-up challenges, project staff were focussed on production, not promotion. The show was advertised in stand alone ads and trailers in all City ads as well as some Rogers promos. Staff feel that a longer run time, more appropriate times on the broadcast schedule, more promotion and additional viewing opportunities are needed to expand the audience.

Program Content and Format

The "city.vancouver" Editorial Committee and Rogers senior management staff feel that the project has been successful in producing a high-quality television show that is informative, entertaining and a worthwhile part of the City's communications strategy. A key element of the quality was the show's "look:" All six shows were shot on location around the city, avoiding the in-studio, talking-heads appearance that is typically associated with community television programs.

Program Cost

The cost of producing the pilot series of six shows was about $75,000 (cash and in-kind), well below the industry standard for a show of this quality. The City's contribution was $36,700 cash (49%), VSB $10,000 (13%) and Rogers 38%. At the other end of the scale, the companion website cost more than the six shows.

City/ Rogers Partnership

For the six show series, the City and VSB paid all direct costs with the exception of a salary top-up for the production assistant that was paid by Rogers. As well, the City contributed office space, phone, computer, research assistance, staff reporters and overall direction. Rogers contributed air time and most of the technical support (cameras, lights, van, and edit facilities). Private post-production facilities were used because of difficulties accessing the Rogers facilities.

EXTENSION OF PROJECT

Staff recommend that "city.vancouver" be continued for a further period of one year, enhanced with the City's own website to convey more complex information.

The program format would stay much the same as the first six shows with some improvements and refinements. During this next phase, considerably more effort would be put into promoting the show and expanding the audience through the following actions:

- more promotional ads for the show to be run on Rogers Community 4 and other specialty channels
- more cross promotions such as the City has been doing on all of our print ads
- repeat shows or segments during Council breaks (begun during the latter part of the show's run)
- have VHS copies of the shows available at libraries, schools and Rogers Video stores
- repackage some features, such as the one on Waterworks, as short videos

During the next phase of the project, more promotional ads and video news releases for City programs could be produced and provided to local television stations, as well as Rogers, to run as public service announcements. (The Keep Vancouver Spectacular promo was shown 22 times, including at prime viewing hours, over a two week period by Global TV alone. The donated value of Global's coverage was over $25,000.)

Rogers staff are enthusiastic about the program and wish to continue their involvement. They are prepared to contribute some additional technical and promotional support to the project, thus reducing the need to rent outside facilities. VSB staff are interested in continuing but Board approval is necessary. The potential of bringing in a new partner, the GVRD, isdiscussed below.

GVRD

One way of keeping the cost of the program down to the City and VSB is to bring in another partner. To this end, staff have approached the GVRD about participation. As a result, the GVRD's Communications Manager and the Community, Education and Culture Committee are prepared to recommend that the GVRD Board participate at a level equal to the City. In addition to spreading production cost, there are other advantages to bringing in the GVRD as a partner:

- many of the issues faced by the City are shared by the region: transportation, solid waste management, housing, environment.
- the show would reach a regional audience, thereby including many people who live outside Vancouver but who work in Vancouver or are interested in Vancouver issues.
- the GVRD content and segments on other cities' issues and programs would likewise be interesting to Vancouver viewers.
- also, there would many more opportunities to promote the show through GVRD publications, programs and advertising.

It is acknowledged that the City's share of program time would be reduced in such an expanded partnership.

Evaluation

Throughout the one-year project audience response to the show would be tracked and evaluated through telephone surveys, video loans, focus groups and other indicators. This information will be used in the evaluation which will be reported to Council at the end of the project.

Budget

The projected budget for one year would be $226,000. (Appendix B.) This would cover new programs from September to April, repackaged reruns for the summer season, and support for the City's website. The City's share is proposed at $70,000. (31% of total); GVRD: $70,000 (31%); Rogers $66,400 (27%) (in-kind contributions) and Vancouver School Board $25,000 (11%). The per show projected cost for the one year run is one-third higher than the six-show pilot to reflect actual costs, web-site support, increased promotion, tape duplication costs and evaluation.

Timing

There is an urgency to decisions about the program's future. Rogers fall programs start airing at the end of September. To meet this date and avoid the production strains that accompanied the rushed initial launch in January, it is critical for funding to be arranged in time for a late-July production start.

PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS

There are no long term staffing requirements. The producer and assistant are temporary contract. Existing City staff will be involved as part of their public information responsibilities and will have the opportunity to develop new communications skills.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

There are no financial commitments beyond the one-year extension. The project will augment the City's current communications initiatives and provide another forum for public education and information.

CONCLUSIONS

Staff recommend that the "city.vancouver" community television series, which was one of the pilot projects developed with Rogers Communications Inc., be continued for a further one-year period and that the GVRD be included as a partner along with the City, Vancouver School Board and Rogers. The use of television to provide information to the public is relatively new to the City. With over 90% of households in Vancouver having cable television access, this medium presents a considerable opportunity to extend our public information and communications activities. Through the six-show pilot series, staff have learned much about the effectively communicating through television. The one year extension will build on this experience.

* * * *

APPENDIX A

city.vancouver
Program Summary

SHOW ONE ( January 26, 28, February 2, 4)

Features

 Profiles

SHOW TWO (February 9, 11, 16, 18)

Features

Profiles

SHOW THREE (February 23, 25, March 2, 4)

Features

Profiles

SHOW FOUR (March 9, 11, 16, 18)

Features

Profiles

 SHOW FIVE (March 23, 25, 30, April 1)

Features

Profiles

SHOW SIX (April 6, 8, 13, 15)
Features

Profiles

* * * *

ag980623.htm

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