TV Licence for NowTV?

20SmthngSver

I've just moved into my first home. I have a TV and pay for Netflix. I have a two month free trial of Amazon Prime. These are my only two services.

TV is not plugged into the aerial socket and I don't want to get a TV Licence. I'm happy to stream.

I saw NowTV do an Entertainment Pass which includes about 10 channels to watch. Is this streamed? Do you need a TV Licence to watch NowTV on their 1 month subscriptions? Such as Sky Enterainment or Sky Cinema?

Neil_Jones

Now TV is streaming live channels, but catch up/on demand is available too.

The answer to your question is detailed here:
https://help.nowtv.com/article/do-i-need-a-tv-licence-to-watch-now-tv

20SmthngSver

Thanks.

So I deduce that Now TV offers both live and on demand services. I'm assuming from what that link says, that if you watch the on demand programmes or films on the Entertainment or Cinema pass (I guess it has an on demand section?), you don't require a TV Licence?

phoenix1837

Yes, you will need to have a TV license if you take the entertainment pass as you will have access to live TV, regardless of whether you intend to watch it. Movies pass also will mean you can watch movies live or on-demand so again TV licence needed.

[Deleted User]

phoenix1837 wrote: »

Yes, you will need to have a TV license if you take the entertainment pass as you will have access to live TV, regardless of whether you intend to watch it.

Not true. A licence is only needed if the live channels are watched.

phoenix1837

Deleted_User wrote: »

Not true. A licence is only needed if the live channels are watched.

But there is no way to 'detune' these live channels so they will always be available to watch , very grey area.

onomatopoeia99

phoenix1837 wrote: »

Yes, you will need to have a TV license if you take the entertainment pass as you will have access to live TV, regardless of whether you intend to watch it.

The requirement for a licence is not determined by having access to live TV, it's determined by watching it. Everyone with a smartphone or a home broadband connection has access to streamed live TV, but having those things does not require a TV licence in the UK.

[Deleted User]

phoenix1837 wrote: »

But there is no way to 'detune' these live channels so they will always be available to watch , very grey area.

That's not the OPs problem. They're choosing not to watch them.

A very black and white area.

Cornucopia

20SmthngSver wrote: »

Thanks.

So I deduce that Now TV offers both live and on demand services. I'm assuming from what that link says, that if you watch the on demand programmes or films on the Entertainment or Cinema pass (I guess it has an on demand section?), you don't require a TV Licence?

Yes, this is correct and definitively so based on the law and TV Licensing's approach to enforcement.

20SmthngSver

So does Now TV facilitate a Live section to choose from and an On Demand section to choose from? I'd choose not to watch live.

Cornucopia

20SmthngSver wrote: »

So does Now TV facilitate a Live section to choose from and an On Demand section to choose from? I'd choose not to watch live.

Effectively, yes.

Now TV is conceived mainly as a video-on-demand service, and the menus focus on this content. To access the "live" channels you have to go down through the menu system to seek them out. There is a top level menu for "TV guide" though, which relates to the live services.

Now TV hardware comes pre-installed with BBC iPlayer. This can be removed and I'd suggest anyone who does not have a TV Licence should remove it.