The notion was that any broadcaster, including those in the independent sector, could apply for the funds. This was viewed by some as a sop to the independents, who regularly complain at RTE's dominance of the broadcast media.

But who got the money when the first 11m was doled out from the fund? Why, RTE and TG4, both of which are funded in part by the other 95% of the licence fee. TG4 got 5.8m while RTE picked up 3.5m.

TV3 initially indicated that it would boycott the fund, but eventually submitted several applications, none of which was successful.

The only non-state backed TV productions to receive funding were two shows from sports channel operator Setanta.

In radio, on the other hand, a host of independent stations got funding from the scheme, and only one RTE application was successful.

With both community and commercial stations receiving cash from the Sound & Vision fund, the contrast with the television sector is stark.

The fund is generating 8m per year and there's still 14m in the pot after last week's hand-outs. Surely, next time around, TV3 should be able to generate at least one proposal that might actually cross the finishing line.