Watch TV Legally without a licence

fermi

From www.tvlicensing.co.uk

Do I need a TV Licence if I only watch programmes online?

It makes no difference how you watch TV - whether it's on your laptop, PC or mobile phone or through a digital box, DVD recorder or TV set - if you use any device to watch or record television programmes at the same time (or virtually the same time) as they're being shown on TV, the law requires you to be covered by a TV Licence. This type of TV is often described as "live" TV or simulcasting.

Examples of websites that allow you to watch television programmes as they are being shown on TV are:

BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/playlive/)
ITV (http://www.itv.com/)
Sky (http://skyplayer.sky.com/vod/page/default/home.do)

There are a number of other websites that also offer this service. If you use any of these websites you will need to be covered by a TV Licence.

You do not need to be covered by a TV licence:

• If you are using these websites to watch television programmes that are not being shown on TV at the same time. This is often described as a "catch up" service.
• To view video clips on the internet, as long as what you are viewing is not being shown on TV at the same time as you are viewing it.

seven-day-weekend

sgl1965 wrote: »

The BBC website does not mention the capacity to view programmes via the net , it simply states to watch live programmes you need a licence therefore if they are NOT LIVE you don't need one.

So jamespir went to prison why exactly?

JoJoB

Why not just pay the licence? It's not that much and it's nice to have a couple of channels not funded by tedious advertisements, surely?

ekkygirl

If you had no telly and only watched on computer the licencing peeps would not be interested. iTs only if you have a telly and claim not to watch it or claim that you only watch pre receorded stuff that it becomes a problem . Its a tv licence, not a compuer licence so if you have no tv I would think no tv licence would be necessary.

Swan_2

ekkygirl wrote: »

If you had no telly and only watched on computer the licencing peeps would not be interested. iTs only if you have a telly and claim not to watch it or claim that you only watch pre receorded stuff that it becomes a problem . Its a tv licence, not a compuer licence so if you have no tv I would think no tv licence would be necessary.

no, they definitely would be interested, you still need a licence if you're watching or recording programmes on a laptop or pc, as they're being broadcast
it is perfectly legal to watch catch-up on your laptop/pc without a licence

the licence applies to any means of receiving, see the quote below from the TVLA site
I imagine it's only called a TV licence because at the time they were introduced, a telly was the only way of receiving broadcasts

jamespir wrote: »

which is misleading because the tv license people state you do :rolleyes:

It is a criminal offence to watch 'live' television without a TV licence or to posses or control a device which you know or we reasonably believe could be used to watch 'live' TV without a TV licence. You could be prosecuted and fined up to £1000 (plus be ordered to pay legal costs) for these offences.

where does this information come from? do you have a link?
EDIT ... it's been posted below, no wonder there's so much confusion about whether you need a licence or not

jamespir wrote: »

according to the police or the judge who had me locked up for ten days you have to have a licence if you have a computer and a broadband connection or a tv and a dvd player even if you dont watch you still need a license otherwose we could all just record tele and watch it later

you do not need a licence for a computer & broadband connection
you can have as many tellys, PCs, laptops & other kinds of receiving equipment as you like, perfectly legally without a licence, it's what you do with it that counts
the following is from the TVLA website ...


'Do I need a TV Licence?
You must be covered by a valid TV Licence if you watch or record television programmes as they're being shown on TV. It makes no difference what equipment you use - whether it’s a laptop, PC, mobile phone, digital box, DVD recorder or a TV set - you still need a licence.

You do not need a TV Licence to view video clips on the internet, as long as what you are viewing is not being shown on TV at the same time as you are viewing it.'



the onus is on the licensing authority to prove that you're using your equipment illegally & they have no right of entry to your home

JoJoB wrote: »

Why not just pay the licence? It's not that much and it's nice to have a couple of channels not funded by tedious advertisements, surely?

if someone genuinely isn't watching 'live' telly, why pay for something you don't need to?

please note, I'm not advocating licence-dodging, I do have a licence, but only because my son lives with me & he likes to watch telly
I don't, & when I lived alone, I had no licence as my telly was only used for DVDs & gaming, this was with the full knowledge of TVLA & it was never a problem

Ebany

Also, from the iPlayer FAQ:

Do I need a TV licence to watch programmes on BBC iPlayer?

Catch-up

You do not need a television licence to catch-up on television programmes in BBC iPlayer, only when you watch or record at the same time (or virtually the same time) as it is being broadcast or otherwise distributed to the public. In BBC iPlayer, this is through the Watch Live simulcast option.

Live online (simulcasting)

Anyone in the UK watching or recording television as it's being broadcast or simulcast on any device - including mobiles, laptops and PCs - must, by law, be covered by a valid TV licence.

A 'live' TV programme is a programme, which is watched or recorded at the same time (or virtually the same time) as it is being broadcast or otherwise distributed to members of the public. As a general rule, if a person is watching a programme on a computer or other device at the same time as it is being shown on TV then the programme is 'live'. This is sometimes known as simulcasting.

The majority of UK households will already be covered by an existing television licence for their main TV set.

What will happen if I don't have a TV licence?

It is a criminal offence to watch 'live' television without a TV licence or to posses or control a device which you know or reasonably believe will be used to watch 'live' TV without a TV licence. You could be prosecuted and fined up to £1000 (plus be ordered to pay legal costs) for these offences.

sgl1965

The reason I started this thread is because I was so fed up with the BBC. I cannot receive Freeview where I live, or Channel 5 (yes, I know it's not BBC but you still need a licence to watch it) but I was expected to pay for a licence which funds programmes I cannot see. Also I love cycling and the BBC's Tour De France coverage was rubbish. So I wrote to them explaining why I was giving up my licence and said if they could make Freeview available where I live I might consider having a licence again but until then I will just watch everything on iplayer, for free. They said they would send someone around to make sure I did not have a tele, that was a year ago and I am still waiting.......
I don't honestly know if my computer is capable of receiving live tele, how would I know?

Swan_2

Ebany wrote: »

Also, from the iPlayer FAQ: <snip>

<snip>It is a criminal offence to watch 'live' television without a TV licence or to posses or control a device which you know or reasonably believe will be used to watch 'live' TV without a TV licence. You could be prosecuted and fined up to £1000 (plus be ordered to pay legal costs) for these offences.

thanks for that, I wondered where the info in post #9 came from

the section in bold is very ambiguous, no wonder people get confused about whether or not they need a licence just to own a TV

Swan_2

sgl1965 wrote: »

The reason I started this thread is because I was so fed up with the BBC. I cannot receive Freeview where I live, or Channel 5 (yes, I know it's not BBC but you still need a licence to watch it) but I was expected to pay for a licence which funds programmes I cannot see. Also I love cycling and the BBC's Tour De France coverage was rubbish. So I wrote to them explaining why I was giving up my licence and said if they could make Freeview available where I live I might consider having a licence again but until then I will just watch everything on iplayer, for free. They said they would send someone around to make sure I did not have a tele, that was a year ago and I am still waiting.......
I don't honestly know if my computer is capable of receiving live tele, how would I know?

no wonder you're fed up!

I don't know about streaming live broadcasts on your pc (it sounds like it might be an ideal solution to your reception problem) but I'm sure there'll be someone along soon who can help

when I didn't have a licence they said they'd send someone round, but in those 2 & a bit years no-one ever showed up, but at least I wasn't getting the letters any more

roddydogs

Here we go again "I dont need a license as i dont wathc live TV" yeh, right we believe you.