RTVA closes Canal Sur 2

The Andalusian public radio and television unit unifies its two channels into one in an operation that will not affect the workforce and would save 20 million euros.

Starting in October, Canal Sur 2 will begin to broadcast the same signal as the main channel of Andalusian public radio and television with subtitles, sign language and audio description of films.

The disappearance of Canal Sur 2 as an independent channel from the main broadcast was announced this Tuesday in a commission of the Andalusian Parliament by Pablo Carrasco, general director of Radio Television of Andalusia (RTVA).

Carrasco has indicated that this approach will mean a significant reduction in expenses, around 20 million when 2013 ends, without the workforce being affected. At the same time, a demand from groups of people with sensory disabilities will be met.

This initiative will mean the disappearance of programs that are currently on the programming grid of Canal Sur 2, although the main channel will continue to broadcast some of these spaces.

Since 2009, the contribution of the Junta de Andalucía has been reduced by 33% (from 180 million in 2009, to 122 in 2012), and advertising investment is practically a third of what it was then (commercial income of about 39 million per year). With these figures, according to Carrasco, it becomes difficult to sustain all the services provided by the Andalusian operator with radio, television, Internet, and accessible programming, and with a presence in the eight Andalusian provinces. “We intend to optimize the resources we have, not eliminate them,” said the general director of the RTVA.

As part of the austerity measures, Carrasco has announced the reduction of the salary bill of managers by 25 percent, the non-increase in the average number of workers, the reduction of programs contracted to internal production companies, the renegotiation of lease contracts, or the salary reduction for workers, in relation to the December extra pay and the elimination of supplements.