TV Licence

marleyboy

Agreed, but the BBC is just as terrible with the likes of Strictly and certainly not worth the licence fee paid, I cannot think of any new material the BBC has offered, unless were all Dr Who fans.

I begrudgingly pay the fee for the comfort of channel hopping the hundreds of likewise dribble on the screen, the BBC being no better than the rest. Yet the rest are subsidized by commercials, whereas the BBC (whom we pay for with a licence) cannot even keep their own presenters from jumping ship, when they are offered four to five times the wages the BBC offer them from those far less savoury channels, who can for some reason, easily afford the extra.

moonrakerz

marleyboy wrote: »

Yet the rest are subsidized by commercials, whereas the BBC (whom we pay for with a licence) cannot even keep their own presenters from jumping ship, when they are offered four to five times the wages the BBC offer them from those far less savoury channels, who can for some reason, easily afford the extra.

Of course, what the commercial companies cost to run is unknown to the public - who actually pay for this as well through everything they buy. How much on your Focus for all the Ford adverts ?

Quite honestly, if ITV are willing to pay millions to people like Chiles and Bleakey - good, they can have them ! At last the BBC are starting to see sense.

lucylucky

marleyboy wrote: »

I guess that depends whether or not your spell checker is in US or UK mode, but as I did not realize I was in a spell checking competition I didn't think it relevant to the thread, therefore all you need to learn in grammar, is there is no "," before the word "and".

My apologies I did not realise you were outside the UK.
License and Licence mean different things in UK English.
And understanding grammar allows one to bend and break rules where appropriate.;)

lucylucky

I wonder if Frank Lampard will be seeking video evidence to prove that he has scored with Ms Bleakey?
Such a video would perhaps boost the ratings of any programme.

marleyboy

moonrakerz wrote: »

Of course, what the commercial companies cost to run is unknown to the public - who actually pay for this as well through everything they buy. How much on your Focus for all the Ford adverts ?

Quite honestly, if ITV are willing to pay millions to people like Chiles and Bleakey - good, they can have them ! At last the BBC are starting to see sense.

How did you know I owned a Focus :eek:

True, the public do not know how much the commercials cost, but as it is they who are paying for the programmes and not the public, I can accept the dribble its paying for, as well as being prepared to endure the irritating "go compare" commercials that break into them, (thats why we have a "mute" button).

But the BBC is a different story, I cannot say I watch anything on the BBC much, but what programmes I do watch, I would be happy to endure commercial breaks if it meant I no longer had to pay the licence fee to watch them.

There was a time BBC offered a bounty of programmes - keeping up appearances, one foot in the grave, only fools n horses, the list is endless. But I cannot say anything I have seen in the past few years has been even remotely worth the fee. At least which a commercial break would not hinder the viewing of.

I pay my licence fee, but begrudgingly, do I think the likes of Johnathon Ross or Chris Moyles are worth the money the BBC pay them? - not one jot, but we have no say in who they pay or how much they pay them, we just pay for them. I don't see that as making any sense at all.

I seriously do not think my Focus would cost me any less were it not advertised on the television, they still advertise on billboards, magazines, radio and newspapers, but I would have to admit it was not a commercial that made me go out and buy a focus, should a television commercial raise the cost anymore for it, I would more likely have not bought it.

If they invented a box that could disable ALL BBC channels from radio to television, I would not miss it one bit, to me its just a few less channels to hop through, out of the 100+ channels I already pay for on my V+.

marleyboy

Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt stresses support for BBC but says changing viewing habits could make annual charge obsolete

The government intends to discuss whether a TV licence fee is the right way to fund the BBC as early as next year, five years before the end of its charter.

Jeremy Hunt, the culture secretary, told Media Guardian that the coalition is “committed to the principle that the BBC should have a ringfenced pot of money over a multi-year period” and stressed his support for the BBC and its independence.

However, he believes changing viewing habits, with an increasing number of people watching TV content online, will make the annual charge for television ownership obsolete sooner rather than later. “We also recognise, as technology changes, we may need to adapt the way it’s collected. It is not going to be possible to have a tax every time anyone buys a computer.”

Keen to avoid making any pronouncements on the BBC before its charter renewal period, Hunt, who criticised the pay of corporation executives when in opposition, said the public wanted “value for money” from the corporation. “All I can do is advocate changes at the BBC while respecting editorial independence upon which the success of the BBC rests. I can’t do anything that requires the BBC to pay certain people certain amounts.”

In his review of the industry commissioned by the Tories in opposition, former BBC director general, Greg Dyke, is understood to have backed scrapping the licence fee in favour of direct taxation. This was rejected by Labour as well as some members of Dyke’s own review team.

Hunt, however, said that the report was never finished. “I hope Greg will deliver that report,” he said. “I never saw sight of it before the election and I shall look forward to reading it.”

moonrakerz

marleyboy wrote: »

But the BBC is a different story, I cannot say I watch anything on the BBC much, but what programmes I do watch, I would be happy to endure commercial breaks if it meant I no longer had to pay the licence fee to watch them.

There was a time BBC offered a bounty of programmes - keeping up appearances, one foot in the grave, only fools n horses, the list is endless. But I cannot say anything I have seen in the past few years has been even remotely worth the fee.

Everyone to their own taste - I rarely watch ITV, the last time I did got a "free" advert instead of a goal - but, in retrospect, the advert was better than the football !

There is plenty about the BBC that I dislike, (Woss !!!!!!!!!!!- but others like him, so I've heard), political bias, more adverts at times than ITV.

To be truthful, I am absolutely amazed, stunned, gobsmacked, hornswaggled, flabbergasted, astonished, confounded, etc, etc, etc............ that week after week, dross like "Eastenders" and "Coronation St" top the most watch TV programmes list !! :D


I totally agree that the Licence is an outmoded way of funding the BBC. Pay it from general taxation - and say, "that's it ! live within it !"

unholyangel

moonrakerz wrote: »

To be truthful, I am absolutely amazed, stunned, gobsmacked, hornswaggled, flabbergasted, astonished, confounded, etc, etc, etc............ that week after week, dross like "Eastenders" and "Coronation St" top the most watch TV programmes list !! :D

I dont like a lot of UK telly (not saying american tv is better just........more polished maybe? or a wider variety?) but i do actually watch Eastenders faithfully. Have done the past 6 months or so.

Mainly because i'm one of those people that will read a 800 page book that i hated from page 1 JUST to find out what happens next/at the end.

Unfortunately, with Eastenders........there is no end

marleyboy

moonrakerz wrote: »

To be truthful, I am absolutely amazed, stunned, gobsmacked, hornswaggled, flabbergasted, astonished, confounded, etc, etc, etc............ that week after week, dross like "Eastenders" and "Coronation St" top the most watch TV programmes list !! :D

Spoken like a true poet. :T:T

Bring back Angus Deacon on Have I Got New For You BBC, and all will be forgiven :cool:

jimbms

We find the TV license fiasco quite funny here on the Isle of Man, whenever they come over to check if people have them their arrival is known as soon as they board the boat and before they land everyone knows about it, they are usually here for a limited time and have no legal powers unless you let them in or admit you don't have a license, hence people just refuse entry or to talk to them, the police here will not back them up as UK laws don't stand here and they are a contractor not an offcial agency, the first question they usualy get asked at a door is to produce their work permit or waver of one which they never have so the houholder can refuse to even deal with them. A lot wouldn't mind paying a fee but we don't get all the BBC services and until recently the BBC online used to even block anyone with a .im ip address. so they can go whistle, the only people who seem to pay the fee here are comeovers who don't know better.