THE plug has been pulled on Kent TV. The controversial pioneer of internet broadcasting ran out of cash after the county council refused to pour more money into the pilot scheme.

Ten staff - including editor John McGhie of Whitstable - face the dole as the dream of local TV turned into a nightmare.

The only winner appears to be Faversham's Live Aid hero Bob Geldof whose company Ten Alps Digital has been paid at least £1.6 million.

The service, based at the former TVS television studios in Maidstone, will be turned off on March 31 although top-level talks are taking place to see if some of the content can be salvaged.

Mr McGhie said: "Obviously I am very disappointed. This is a big blow to all the staff. My priority at the moment is to see what I can do for them. I can't say anymore."

The decision to close the station was announced on Tuesday after the Ten Alps team had already won a bidding war to carry on for another four years.

But an insider admitted: "It was almost a relief when I heard the news. Accountants had trimmed everything to the bone and then beyond. I don't think any of us could have carried on."

KCC leader Paul Carter said: "Kent TV proved itself a brave and bold innovation which provided a source of practical, useful information for residents and particularly appealed to younger viewers.

"But in difficult times our spending has to be prioritised."

The station, launched in September 2007, had hoped to augment council sponsorship with adverts but the recession put paid to that.

Interactive 10-part teen soap Hollywould, penned by former EastEnders scriptwriter Julie Wassmer from Whitstable, was launched at a cost of £20,000 in a last-ditch bid to win online ratings. But it failed to save the station.

Earlier this month Cllr Carter admitted the station had not been dynamic enough.

He said: "It has not delivered on expectation. I would like it to be more dynamic. That is not to say it has been a failure because it hasn't, but it hasn't grown into the state I would like it to be right now.

"The concept of Kent TV, and the use of video-streaming is right. It is a medium of the future. But if we are going to fund it we must make cuts elsewhere.

"There is already far too much bumph which no-one reads. Kent TV can't produce stuff which people aren't going to watch. It needs to be interesting and engaging."

The decision to shut down the station followed an independent review.

Roger Gough, Cabinet Member for Corporate Support Services and Performance Management, said: "This was not a decision we took lightly. We listened to feedback from many sources.

"We carried out an independent review and took all the available data into account."

But he added: "We intend to continue to develop digital media to connect with the people of Kent."

* Who says what

Peter Williams, independent TV producer from Boughton and founder member of the United For Local Television campaign group: "I don't think this is bad news for local TV.

"The Kent TV model was flawed in a number of regards, not least because it was not perceived to be an independent voice. But there is an increasing political awareness of the value of local TV. The Conservative Party recognises it can plug some of the gaps left when ITV was relieved of having to provide local programming."

Geoff Miles, boss of The Maidstone Studios: "This is a real shame. What Kent TV achieved in two years was sensational. It was a pilot, which in the TV industry is where you make mistakes, learn and grow.

"It never reached its full potential but what it did from scratch was formidable. What is certain is that broadband is the future and Kent has led the way."

Julian Brazier, Conservative MP for Whitstable and Canterbury: "The county council did not have any choice. It is critically short of money. It wants to protect core services and keep council tax down. I can't comment on the standard of the programmes because I didn't really watch it enough."