BBC Trust suspends online education service

The BBC Trust has announced that its online education service, BBC Jam, with be suspended from March 20.

The Trust's decision follows discussions with the government and the European Commission over allegations from some within the industry that the service is damaging their interests.

The Trust has requested BBC management to prepare fresh proposals for how the BBC should deliver the Charter obligation to promote formal education and learning, meeting the online needs of school age children.

Once completed, the Trust will subject BBC management's proposals to a full Public Value Test, including a market impact assessment by Ofcom.

Chitra Bharucha, Acting BBC Chairman, said: "Despite a rigorous approval process involving the BBC Governors, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and the European Commission resulting in extensive conditions on the service, BBC Jam has continued to attract complaints from the commercial sector about the parameters of its activities. Recently complaints were made to the European Commission alleging the service had not compiled with its conditions of consent.

"The Trust's duty is to act in the interests of the public. Whilst we are not currently in a position to determine whether the BBC is non-compliant, as alleged by the industry to the EC, we cannot ignore the allegations facing the BBC right now and the ongoing prospect of challenge if action is not taken.

"Overall, we have concluded that the best approach is to suspend the service in full now and request BBC management to prepare fresh proposals for how the BBC meets it public purpose of promoting formal education in the context of school age children.

"We regret the need to suspend BBC Jam during this process and apologise to its users, the BBC staff who have worked on the service to date, suppliers and the independent production companies affected by this decision."

BBC Jam offers a free interactive online learning service for 5 to 16-year-olds of all abilities, reflecting the school curricula in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The service was being rolled out incrementally and had approval to run until September 30, 2008.

The £150 million project has 170,000 users.

Around 190 staff at the BBC work on the project, as well as staff at other independent production companies who are contracted to the project. It is not known at this stage what will happen to those jobs.

(KMcA)