Is the licence fee worth it? Poll discussion

miss_ellie

We should have the choice whether to receive BBC programs and pay the licence fee.

ArthurSecond

My wife and I gave up watching TV over 10 years ago rather than just moan about the license fee. As long as people just complain about it and still pay, the BBC just keep raking it in. I would have switched to cable TV but it appears a license fee is required for that service since it is impossible to have a package which does not include the BBC. Instead, we have a video monitor and a DVD player so we can still watch documentaries and films but don't need to pay the BBC to make programmes we don't want to watch.
In a digital age it is easy to charge the consumer to watch on a programme by programme basis and from a choice which is global rather than the limited output the BBC provide. If you look at what's available on a global basis, you quickly see that the BBC are no more world class than British Airways is the world's favourite airline. The reason the BBC resist this model is that they have got used to the income and can make any old rubbish without being held to account. Too many people tend to watch something just because it's on. When we have caught a glimpse of BBC TV over the years we've noticed that the quality of programmes has really been dumbed down and there is a general increase in bad language and violence which I don't think is paralleled by real life (at least not among any people I know). There's also a strong news bias particularly on Middle East issues which are so often over simplified. Practically every TV and radio station get their news via Reuters which explains why even small local radio stations carry the same stories as the larger regional ones. If you really want to know what's going on, check out the internet and compare and consider what is being said rather than just passively receiving news bytes. I have several friends who have also given up TV and not one of us regrets it. Not having a TV is simply great value for money.

Daeheryn

Unfortunately because of the remoteness of where I live, there is no option but to shell out for Sky. There is no freeview signal, and no analogue signal either. Having to pay an extra £135 when the only things I watch on the BBC are Doctor Who and Still Game is really annoying! I don't even listen to their radio channels.

I'd happily not get any BBC channels/content/radio etc if it meant I didn't have to pay the fee.

michael_iain_elliott

theuglyone wrote: »

I have to say that I am not adverse to paying a TV Licence fee. However, I am DISGUSTED by the fact that they assume that every house has a TV. We did not for several years and got continually harrassed and even after an inspector visited to check up on us we still got letters which were downright rude! I am totally disgusted by the system.

Why do they not just assume everyone has a car and automatically charge everyone for road tax?

Sam

Do what I did (I live in Student Halls so they are always bugging us) - take the first letter you get, rip it up, stick a Post-It on it saying "No TV at this address, please stop communication" and post it back to them in their own prepay envelope.

Did that in August last and haven't heard a dickie bird from them since. It does smack of state-funded thuggery though, the way they harrass you about it all.

trking

I agree with many of the comments above - the News & Current Affairs and documentary departments, and, dare I say it, Today on Radio 4, seem to have trouble presenting reasoned and neutral stories; they need looking at along with the review the BBC is starting to do into the phone-in and similar scandals. Funnily enough it's the more off beat channels such as BBC3 and 4 and the digital radio stations like 1 Extra that seem to be doing OK so I guess their needs to be some rationalisation and new controllers to set standards. Oh, and ADVERTS AND LESS CHANNELS so we don't have to pay the licence fee/tax.

ollyshaw

I think this would be a better system.

Pay for local radio
Pay for bbc.co.uk
Pay for news services

All others optional.

Even BBC1 being optional would be great as it is the largest proportion of the fee.

Olly

aMIGA_dUDE

AndyMan wrote: »

Don’t get me going on the BBC, first the BBC is biased to the South, especially London. Even the weather forecasts are all about the south. And why are all the BBC channels based in London? Why not have BBC 2 permanently in Birmingham or Manchester. If London was blown up, we wouldn’t have any BBC channels except for a few local radio stations.

Is BBC so biased? This commen complaint but half the UK population is in south of England. So saying that that makes the BBC in fact biased towards the North as they cover this area way to much. I stands to reasion that where more people live is going to have more news happing in that area. It not BBC fault that lot people live in South of England.

aMIGA_dUDE

There seams to be some misunderstanding on when you need a TV licence. Lets explain the in's and out's quickly:-

You do not need TV licence if:-
1) You own a TV and use it not to watch broadcasts.
2) You own a video and use it not to record/watch broadcasts.
3) You own a DVD / Blue-Ray and use it view them.
4) You own a playstation/wii/xbox and use it.

You do need TV licence if:-
1) You watch a TV broadcast in UK, it doesn't matter where comes from ie France, Germany etc you have to pay TV Tax.
2) You make a recording (Video/DVD recorder/Computer) of a broadcast in the UK.
3) You watch or recoded programs on computer with Freeview.

Also TV licensing do not have any right of entry. You have let them in (invite). They can not be invited in by miners or people who are not residents of that property. The only way they can get entry without you letting them in is with a court warrant and they will get one if don't let in. If they make entry without you letting them in or without a court warrant then they are breaking the law, just call the police, also there evidence will be unmissable in court.

If they keep coming around and drive you nuts. I have know them to come around 4 times on the same day then call the centre and inform them you have enough of there actions and view it as harassment. If keeps going then call the police on a non-emergence phone number for your area a make complete as a crime.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_United_Kingdom#Legal_issues

mrharrylime

To those who want to shut the BBC down, I have but two terrifying words -

Crazy frog

Do you really want your viewing and concentration ruined by those commercials?

New Zealand recently got rid of its TV licence system and they now have to suffer 8 minutes programme, 4 minutes adverts, 8 minutes programme, 4 minutes adverts FOR EVER. It will never come back, think on.

Murdoch is not having a penny out of me. £400 for old repeats is an utter rip-off. The BBC is pretty good value in comparison.

GamePlayer

impy78 wrote: »

The BBC has not forced anyone to go out and buy a TV to the best of my knowledge.

No, but if you don't pay for the BBC you can't watch anything else either.

The question is not about value for money, it is about having a choice whether I buy a service or not.

I can choose to pay for sky or choose to not watch it.
I have to pay for the BBC even if I don't want their product.