Dear Ms McGavin

This is a brief comment by way of response to this consultation.

I do not watch television often, indeed, have never owned a set.  But I am an avid listener to radio, almost exclusively BBC channels ranging from Radio 1 to Radio Wales, and have used the BBC website as my homepage for at least four years.

I find it hard to imagine a public service broadcaster that does not offer digital services.  Broadcasting technology in the 21st century is vastly different from the early days of radio and television.  But the underlying ethos, and autonomy from commercial distortion, of the BBC transcends (indeed has often led) technology and needs to be secured well into the future.

The adage about not fixing that which is unbroken seems to apply in this case.  Indeed, I would go further and suggest empowering the BBC to continue at the forefront as one of the world's pre-eminent broadcasters.  And empowering includes providing adequate and secure income to enable the BBC to sustain its wide-ranging output in the face of the increasingly powerful, but narrowly focussed commercial players.

Yours sincerely

Andrew Malin

PS. For information:  I have neither direct nor indirect connections with the BBC or any other broadcaster.  I am simply a member of the listening public.