BBC admits keeping charity money

[bigandy]

The BBC is to broadcast an apology after admitting a subsidiary company kept £106,000 from premium-rate phone- ins that should have gone to charity.

A further £6,000 will be donated after viewers were accidentally told to ring in to vote in last year's UK Eurovision final when lines were closed.

The errors were discovered during an audit for the BBC Trust.

The money was being kept by call handler Audiocall, which is owned by commercial subsidiary BBC Worldwide.

The BBC said the sums that should have been paid to charity have now been repaid with interest, and that the sum represented only 1.3% of the funds raised for charity via premium-rate phone-ins.

Its director general, Mark Thompson, has been asked by the trust to consider disciplinary action against a small number of staff.

"We would like to apologise to viewers and to the charities for this serious error," the corporation said in a statement.

...continued

After all the palaver about phone in voting on TV here, and now this, I think they should ban any relationships between the phone and the TV...

 

[nick9191]

Ah well at least they righted their wrongs once they realised.

 

[remmy]

After all the palaver about phone in voting on TV here, and now this, I think they should ban any relationships between the phone and the TV...

Agree, no more boring singing competition shows or big brother

 

[bigandy]

Agree, no more boring singing competition shows or big brother

Ban reality tv!

 

[riscy]

People will stop giving to charity through tv phone ins if this kind of thing is shown to be widespread!

What is Aunty Beeb doing??

 

[iSamurai]

"£106,000 from premium-rate phone- ins..."
"...the sum represented only 1.3% of the funds raised for charity"


So... does this mean they actually raised nearly £1,000,000 in total??? woo... but still, 100k is a lot of money already...

Probably the employees decided to sneak out that 1.3%.

 

[Abstract]

So... does this mean they actually raised nearly £1,000,000 in total??? woo... but still, 100k is a lot of money already...

Check your maths.

 

[iSamurai]

Check your maths.

whoops, thought that number was a bit weird. I never got used to big numbers since my bank account is and will never have so many digits.

ya, anyway let me wake my brain up (1:42AM here):

£106,000 * 72.96 = £8,153,846.15