Licence Fee - Is it worth it?

Former_MSE_Archna

Poll Title: Poll Started 18 April: The TV licence fee costs £131.50 a year (for any home with a colour TV) and pays for the BBC - that's TV, radio, regional programmes and BBC online. Is it worth it? Which of these is nearest to your view

K. No. It's another tax, why should the BBC be so special
17.6% (896 Votes)
E. Yes. All of the above
16.5% (841 Votes)
A. Yes. The BBC consistently produces quality output
10.3% (527 Votes)
I. No. I pay for Sky already, it's ridiculous
9.6% (492 Votes)
L. No. All of the above
9.1% (465 Votes)
H. No. The BBC does nothing for me, I'd stop using it to save £131.50
8.7% (445 Votes)
G. No. It's too costly, halve the price and its budget
8.2% (421 Votes)
C. Yes. Public service broadcasting as a concept is important
7.3% (375 Votes)
J. No. Only BBC online is good, and I'd happily see it have ads
2.9% (152 Votes)
D. Yes. It's a good buffer against government and tabloid power
2.6% (137 Votes)
B. Yes. Mainly due to BBC radio though
2.6% (136 Votes)
M. No. Other reason
2.5% (131 Votes)
F. Yes. Other reason
1.2% (65 Votes)

Total Votes: 5084

Overall that's 59% saying no and 41% saying yes

riomhaire

Hey all,

This is a bit late I think so I doubt anyone will notice it!!

I just thought I'd add that the annual licence fee for RTÉ (our state broadcaster here in the Republic of Ireland) is €155, which is approx. £105. Regardless of this fee, however, we are bombarded with the full complement of advertising - that is, an ad break every 15 mins on the TV and even moreso on the radio. My Scottish girlfriend has always commented on how she cannot get over how long our ads are here, given she isn't at all used to ads in the first place!

On top of this we have only three RTÉ radio stations: RTÉ 1 is crusty, staid, middle-of-the-road programming; RTÉ 2 is inane, loud, teeny pop; and TG4 is the Gaelic language station. This contrasts hugely with the variety of choice you have in the UK - on a recent trip to Northern Ireland (my first) I was delighted with the variety of choice you have with your radio stations, and am contantly amazed at how the Beeb manage to regionalise their TV and radio services. This is all on top of the many more digital radio stations the Beeb supplies on the net and TV stations on digital.

So, yeah, for a few pounds less we get only 3 TV stations (one of which is in Irish Gaelic) and 3 radio stations (one, again, in Irish Gaelic) supplied by a broadcaster that has produced virtually no indigenous programmes, ever. So if, like 90% of this country, you can't speak Irish fluently, you get two national TV stations and two radio stations for €155/£105. And there are loads of ads. And that's it, really.

So whatever your view on the Beeb, they're a damn sight better than what's on offer across the water!

pmd

Bit late - been away - but: my main objection to the licence fee is the unfairness of it. One person on benefits, until pension age, pays as much as a household of 5 adults with a set in each room including the kitchen. We got rid of the poll tax: this is worse. For an MP, the £2.50/week is a cheap cup of coffee. For someone getting by on benefits of £50/week, it's really big money. Just not fair! So I voted M, but perhaps it's included in K. I'd prefer the BBC to be subsidised out of ordinary income tax. Instead of detector vans, spend the saved money on closing some of the loopholes which allow the filthy rich to get away from paying tax as the PAYE masses do!

Pam

karenj

I don’t agree with the TV licence. I hardly watched BBC as there was not much worth watching. ITV definitely has better more drama programmes – and not all repeats! The BBC is too much southern biased – i.e. watch the news and it is all about London and its suburbs and the dreaded Eastenders;, ITV covers much more regions. I don’t listen to BBC stations – I listen to local stations, mainly in Manchester. What does annoy me about the BBC now is the silly bits in between programmes that are almost advertisements….. people dancing, singing and what is coming on next! Where has that all come from???

Like a mobile phone, pay as you go, you pay for what you get and top up when it’s empty. My vote would go to scrap the licence – no other country pays it and the BBC aren’t the best in the world, whatever anyone says. I have certainly seen better on satellite (not SKY I might add because they’re a rip off also as regards films and football!).

My vote would be definitely scrap the fee and do pay as you go - let's see how much the government would make then (probably not much!!).

5limJim

karenj wrote:

I don’t agree with the TV licence. I hardly watched BBC as there was not much worth watching. ITV definitely has better more drama programmes – and not all repeats! The BBC is too much southern biased – i.e. watch the news and it is all about London and its suburbs and the dreaded Eastenders;, ITV covers much more regions. I don’t listen to BBC stations – I listen to local stations, mainly in Manchester. What does annoy me about the BBC now is the silly bits in between programmes that are almost advertisements….. people dancing, singing and what is coming on next! Where has that all come from???

Like a mobile phone, pay as you go, you pay for what you get and top up when it’s empty. My vote would go to scrap the licence – no other country pays it and the BBC aren’t the best in the world, whatever anyone says. I have certainly seen better on satellite (not SKY I might add because they’re a rip off also as regards films and football!).

My vote would be definitely scrap the fee and do pay as you go - let's see how much the government would make then (probably not much!!).

Might I ask what you have seen better on satellite than what the BBC offers, and I dont think the government makes any money from the licence fee.

ITV is wiping out any trace of regional identity, and I cant recall a drama I watched on there for ages. Soaps I dont bother with on any channels. But what other broadcaster is providing multiple radio stations (including regional varities) covering completely different genres. I might not like Jazz, opera, or anything like that yet I can listen to it advert free via BBC if I choose to, plus a fully comprehensive website (Obviously the 2nd best website in the world after the MSE). While ITV roll out the biggest insult to british televison ever being the filling of the late night schedules with 'Quiz' tv, or should that be rip-off tv.

For all the services the BBC provides, ad-free, I personally find it good value for money... But hey, thats the best thing we're all entitled to our opinions, 1 person may like it, another might not!!

westie666

djcj wrote:

I'd like to understand why the BBC, as a publicly funded body, does not have to disclose DJ etc. salaries?

This is in the pipeline, the BBC have been asked to release this information. apparently there is a bit of worry about how much programmers @ Eastenders and the like are being paid

easy322000

There's some good points here, the best being that the BBC is a service that hopefully appeals to everybody in some way.

The BBC is more than just telly, and the licence fee covers many outlets.

Can those that say 'I never watch the BBC' honestly say hand on heart that they never watch ANY BBC channels, nor any BBC programmes on other platforms (like the Discovery channel) or listen to BBC radio or occasionally look at BBC online?

Thanks to Mrs Thatcher's 'me' generation, the notion that one should pay something for the greater good has become an alien concept. I don't smoke, but I still pay national insurance contributions to fund the NHS to pay for operations on those that do. But if I'm run over by a bus, I'll be repaired for 'free', also unlike our American cousins.
That's the swings and roundabouts of a 'tax'..

Taken over a whole year, the BBC represents incredible value for money. There is simply no other service in the world to match it. And it is incredibly shortsighted to view it as a burden. One simply has to be a little more broadminded and holistic about it. Sometimes not having a choice can be a good thing - if you let kids eat what they like, they'd choose ice cream every day - the point of the BBC is that it tries very hard to produce something that will appeal to everyone. Not an easy task.

The FA Cup...Planet Earth...Doctor Who...Little Britain...CBeebies...Terry Wogan...Life on Mars...

ollyshaw

5limJim wrote:

For all the services the BBC provides, ad-free, I personally find it good value for money...

Add free?! They have loads of promotions for their latest shows

5limJim wrote:

But hey, thats the best thing we're all entitled to our opinions, 1 person may like it, another might not!!

Yeah but we all HAVE to pay for the licence fee!

Olly

Paul_Herring

ollyshaw wrote:

Yeah but we all HAVE to pay for the licence fee!

Speak for yourself. I don't have to pay for it.

easy322000

Yes there are ads for other shows, and there are more than many people would like.
Unfortunately they are a side effect of increased competition.

Research has shown that people 'zap' away to other channels as soon as credits roll, so the trails are immediate and frequent to keep you watching (in theory).
Not only that - but the Beeb has a duty to promote it's other programming, otherwise it gets criticised for wasting licence fees on little used services.

It's kind of damned if it does, and damned if it doesn't..

But this site doesn't take advertising on a point of priniciple, and neither should the BBC.