PRESS CABLE SERVICE

Otago Witness, Issue 2905, 17 November 1909, Page 25

PRESS CABLE SERVICE

♦ • MELBOURNE, November 9. Mr Locksley, manager of the Pacific Cable Board, giving evidence before the Senate Committee on the Australian press cable service, said there was no agreement with the Australian Association, as to the number of cables to be sent over his Hires. The Canadian lines were being strengthened, but what really was wanted was a direct land line. The Canadian Government had offered a free iright of way. An extra £6000 worth of business would enable the Pacific Cable Board- to reduce its rates, and the press would" proportionately benefit. t The Pacific cable was getting only 23 per t»nt. of the directly competitive traffic." If the Pacific cable got the full traffic it would pay handsomely ; if it got 50 per cent, it would I have a surplus. j The Pacific Cable Board should have ! two cables across the Atlantic in order to be free of the other companies. The'i cost would be £1,500,000. As the Pacific cable was owned in part by the Australian Government, the latter should bake steos to push its business — and tnat might apply- to the tramsmission of press cables. November 10. Mr Mackinnon, of tEe Argus, gave evidence ' before the Senate Committee on the Australian press cable service. H« detailed the arrangement with Reuters for supplying cables to country newspapers. Theifc never had been any restriction against country papers getting news through Reuters. The reason why more papers were not receiving cables was due to the fact that Jh-ey could not afford to pay th© land . line rates. The reason the majority of. the cables came over the Eastern Extension. Lines 'was attributable solely to commercial reasons. By using the Pacific route the risk was run. of having the ■ service aeld up. Mr ,Mac- | kmnon declined, on .the ground that it would be giving away part of their business, to divulge the rates paid by subscribers who received copies of the cables from the Australian Cable Association. On being asked if the Legislature had given the press certain valuable concessions, the witness said be supposed -they got concessions because they were such good customers. He declared that the Australian Cable Association was not -making a lot of money through its sub- I scribers. The only advantage the mem- ! Sera got thereby was that it lowered the j proportional cost of the cables to themselves. Senator Pearce asked Mt Mackinnon the annual amount expended on the service. Mt Mackinnon replied fhat in 1906 it was £13,467. in 1907 £14,915. in 1908 £14,609, and for the first half of the current year £8790. Senator Pearce asked if they supplied \ any other country. ) Mr Mackinnon replied that New Zealand i was supplied through its pres>s reprpsentative in Sydney, Hit he did not know what be did with the cables. He declined to slate what the New Zealand Association paid. Senator Pearce : I think it is your duty. Mr Mackinnon: It is as much our private business as are our messages from Sydney and Brisbane. November 11. In giving evidence before the Senate Committee on the cable service, Sir Robert I Scott, Secretary of the Post Office, said | he would not advise a further reduction ' >n the price of cables. A reduction would ; mean increased business, but it would only ! put more money into the pockets of the newspaper proprietors. If the public were to benefit by a reduction he would j advise it. The Pacific Cable Board , should have a cable across the Atlantic. He thought that the Commonwealth should identify itself more closely with the Pacific cable. He would not suggest an alteration in. the press rates on land lines. The country was losing by the present rate. The committee has obtained leave to sit in Sydney, where it wishes to examine at last- four witnesses. It will be more economical for the committee to visit Sydney than to bring the witnesses to Melbourne. November 12. Giving evidence before the Cables Com- I mittee, Mr Brookes (local superintendent j of the Eastern Extension Company) said , that the experience of his company was . that business aid not respond to a reduc- ; tion in rafcos below a certain point. He \ had had experience in New Zealand in | connection with the company's cable. The ; press business to New Zealand had *de,creased by over 30,000 words between 1900 and 1909. The newspapers found that local news was more acceptable than cable news from abioad. November 13. Mr Bamford, supporting an amendment j

+o the Electoral Bill in favour of prohibiting newspapers comimentiag on elections between nomination and polling day, declared that previously the press stood for all that was good, and was a redresser of wrongs ; but the press had now descended from that high pedestal, and was actually crawling in the gutter. All the papers were on the Ministerial side. The Labour party- was like an Bst man going into the ring to fight one weighing 12st.