Listening to Jeremy Darroch on Today this morning, he struck a chord with his description of commercial reality as BSkyB faces the "brutal accountability to customers". Asked for his views on the Ross/Brand affair he wisely declined to comment, instead offering his withering comment, most effectively condemning the lack of accountability of the BBC, and confirmed with masterful understatement by the announcement of an increase in Sky customer numbers and profit. Darroch laid bare the fact that political or quangocratic accountability is a poor substitute for the need to give customers what they want. Sky get it. The BBC never will.
UPDATE: Interesting to note Nic Howell at New Media Age making a similar point:
A phrase that Sky executives are fond of using about their company is "permission to entertain". The slogan says a lot about the way the media giant operates.
First, entertainment underpins Sky's content strategy, which is rooted in satellite but is now going great guns online, especially since Andy Jonesco came on board.
But what's also relevant about the phrase is that Sky is a subscription business. Twelve times a year it faces a moment of truth when customers receive their bill and ask themselves whether Sky gave good value that month.
