About Us -

InChannels Network was set up in 2023 by a number of media industry veterans who recognised that something needed to be done to facilitate local journalism, local commerce and local democracy.

The team used an existing platform developed by one of their number and launched inReading and inCeiriog, covering very different communities and demographics to learn what worked in local media in the 21st century - and what doesn't.

The thesis behind the platform was simple: if you depend on Big Internet (namely Meta and Google) for both audience and advertising revenue, then your business is devalued and dependent on them.

Added to this was the 'circular flow of income' argument whereby local businesses are, ineffect, paying a tax to US shareholders to market to their local community. local businesses pay rent and rates and Amazon benefits.

A key realisation was that distribution has fragmented - content cannot live on a single master publication, but rather needs to be distributed across a wide range of third party platforms and outlets which are constantly shifting and changing. Publish once, distribute everywhere.

With the advent of AI the team decided that the existing paltform was not adequate and that a new platform should be developed to capitalise on the new capabilities that AI introduced. So, ICN started developing bLocal in April 2025. inReading was ported onto the new platform in May 2026 and immediately saw its traffic increase eightfold, excluding bots.

Now we are gearing up to launch https://bLocal.ai to help bring back a flourishing local media sector in the UK and beyond.

What Has Failed ?

Our team has been involved with successful and failed local media initiatives in the UK over the past forty years and more - from the launch of Metro in London and Golwg 360 in Wales to Jeremy Hunt's local TV initiative of the 2000s and in the closure of local media titles across the country.

It is our contention that it isn't journalism that has failed - it's the commercial and distribution models that support journalism.

This is what our new https://bLocal.ai platform specifically addresses.

Simon Edgley

formerly spent his career as Regional Managing Director with Reach plc / Trinity Mirror, running their business in the South East, Midlands, Wales, North East and Devon & Cornwall. He contributed to the leadership and development of one of the United Kingdom’s largest newspaper and digital publishing groups and played a significant role in guiding the organisation through major industry transformation, including the shift from traditional print publishing to digital-first journalism. Over thirty nine years, Simon influenced editorial and commercial outcomes and supported the company’s growth across regional media with a sustained contribution to audience engagement and the continued relevance of trusted journalism.

Gary McNish

has extensive experience in the publishing industry across most media channels. He currently runs his own Media and Marketing consultancy business GaryMc Associates. Before setting up his own business he had MD roles at two of the largest regional publishing groups , Newsquest and Trinity Mirror and was also a Director of Mediaforce, the largest Independently owned media operation in the UK

Mike Anderson

is an executive coach, entrepreneur, former CEO, corporate board member and author of Serious Fun in Business: A Human Algorithm (out now). Over a 40-year career he has helped lead and build businesses through major transitions - from Fleet Street and the launch of Metro, to mobile transformation through Chelsea Apps Factory, to today's AI-led leadership challenge. He now coaches founders, CEOs and senior leaders on how to lead with judgement, pace, energy and humanity in a fast-changing world.

Damian Ryan

leads Ryan Capital Partners, an advisory firm for the media and technology sectors. Together with a specialist team, Ryan leads sellside mandates for stakeholders in the sector. In the last three years he has successfully led deals with a cumulative enterprise value in excess of £200m. Previously Ryan was a media entrepreneur who built several companies in the fledgling digital sector including the first specialist digital marketing agency, ICAN. Since 2009 Ryan has authored and published the best-selling series of books "Understanding Digital Marketing". He has received several awards, including the Golden Spider Award for Digital Excellence in 2019.

Iolo Jones

has degrees in Radio Film & Television and Education Technology. He worked in TV and media before establishing his first multimedia company in 1995. He went on to establish and lead several companies involved in web integration, video over IP, rights management and multimedia working for many of the world's largest companies. He took streaming media pioneer Narrowstep public on NASDAQ in 2005. Iolo conceived and founded Wales' largest Welsh language website, Golwg360 and was on the Course Board of the media-orientated Ravensbourne University for a decade.

Paddy Halfhide

is a Marketing Director based in the Greater Reading Area. He is the Director of Simple Creative Marketing Ltd, which specializes in assisting companies to maximize their return on investment and marketing impact. Paddy was the Marketing Director at Nirvana Spa for 11 years, where he was responsible for web design, creative and business strategy. He advises a wide range of local businesses including a leading regional estate agent, electronics retailer, local pubs and restaurants.

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