The Information Retrieval Television (IRTV) system was a unique experimental media program initiated in several Ottawa, Canada schools in the fall of 1968. The program allowed teachers to select televised audiovisual programs for their classes at any time. This arrangement freed them from having to adapt to broadcast schedules or to the rigidities of existing film distribution methods. The IRTV system was tested for nearly three years and detailed records of the costs of the system were systematically kept. This report shows the type of consideration that must be taken into account by administrators and planners when organizing an efficient media system. Comprehensive in scope, the report concluded that it is unlikely that IRTV can ever be cost-efficient until it becomes a self-contained mode of instruction in some part of the learning environment. Though the conclusions about IRTV were not favorable, the methodology used to develop a cost-effective rationale should be of lasting value. (MC)