Market failure exists when the competitive outcome of markets is not
efficient from the point of view of the economy as a whole. This is
usually because the benefits that the market confers on individuals or
firms carrying out a particular activity diverge from the benefits to
society as a whole.
BBC TV chief Danny Cohen
has said that the public doesn’t want a “market failure” corporation
that is only permitted to make niche programmes to “fill the gaps” left
by rival broadcasters.
Cohen, making a pre-emptive strike against culture secretary John Whittingdale’s review of the size of the corporation, said the viewers love programming diversity.
“I believe we need a strong BBC
that offers a wide range of British-made programmes – dramas,
documentaries, news and entertainment,” said Cohen, in a comment piece
in the Radio Times.
“I don’t believe the public want a ‘market failure’ BBC that fills
the gaps by only making the kind of niche television that commercial TV
simply won’t make. They want a BBC that can compete with the very best
the world has to offer, driving up standards and delivering for them
night after night.”
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Information failure, consumer behaviour and prices
