TV Licence

Jaybee_16

Bit of a sidestep here, but if you previously had a TV licence make sure you cancel the direct debit.

Had a TV licence for years paid by direct debit until I moved home and no longer needed one. Completed the forms, ignored the threatening letters and all quiet until about 6-9 months later I noticed a strange payment on my bank statement. Called the bank who told me it was TV Licensing who had decided to restart the direct debit deductions.
Banks refunded and cancelled the mandate, so just be aware.

Shomri

Can someone please tell me when the law changed requiring UK residents to have a TV licence for ALL live broadcasting/streaming as opposed to just the BBC? The whole licence thing is a BBC thing isn't it?

Cornucopia

The TV Licence hasn't ever been "BBC Only" since 1955, when ITV started.   Ever since then, it has always applied to TV broadcasts, where they are sent via traditional broadcast technology.   When streaming started, the Licence began covering live streaming versions of TV broadcasts.

In 2016, this expanded to cover all BBC TV from iPlayer.

"All live streaming" has never been the scope of the Licence - it's always only been live streamed TV broadcasts.   TVL have somewhat blurred that (e.g. by quibbling about the meaning of 'TV broadcast'), but AFAIK it remains the legal scope of the Licence.

oldernonethewiser

There has been a licence required to watch live TV since 1946.

I guess the biggest recent change was to include the need to have a licence to use the BBC iPlayer.

mongoose2009

the fact that they dont just encrypt the freeview signal is a easy tell

its in the protocol to do that

no they keep the TVL as the MSM is just the propaganda arm of the GVT/BLOB no matter

what party is in suppose "power"

so the TVL will never be ended as they want to keep the normies need to be told what to think

luckily people under 30 dont really watch live TV

its why they are shutting down opposing voices under the guise of "hate speech"

oldernonethewiser

What is/are "normies"?

Do I need a new tinfoil hat?

Cornucopia

oldernonethewiser said:

... Do I need a new tinfoil hat?

I think that might affect your TV reception.

silverwhistle

Definitely, that extra strength stuff, double folded.

It was good of them to also use the word 'blob', as that is normally used by right-wing politicians against anybody sensible such as teachers, the judiciary, any non right wing press, medics, lefty lawyers, activists of any sort and any other potential opponents that won't just let them do any old crap, or disagree with them in any way.

Cornucopia

silverwhistle said:

Definitely, that extra strength stuff, double folded.

It was good of them to also use the word 'blob', as that is normally used by right-wing politicians against anybody sensible such as teachers, the judiciary, any non right wing press, medics, lefty lawyers, activists of any sort and any other potential opponents that won't just let them do any old crap, or disagree with them in any way.

Unfortunately, they lost me at the notion of encrypting Freeview, which is a sufficiently complicated question as to equate to the simplified response: not practical for most purposes.  

I can see an ad-funded version of channels for Freeview with a subscription version on other platforms, but that's about as good as the technology would be able to support.

wild666

Philclairem said:

I know this has been asked a thousand times, but I had a letter saying we were being investigated despite using the declaration to say we don't watch live TV etc. 

My partner checked tge TV licence website and now it states you need a licence if 

"If you live stream the latest series"

No we have just watched the lastest TV series of the fall of the house of usher. 
Now, technically speaking
1 its a new series and
2 it's streaming 
via netflix. 

I'm sure tv licencing justbwant to scare people into buying a licence but they could at least define the requirements clearly?

I think some people are going to be scared into buying a TV licence even if they watch Netflix or other on demand streaming services, except iPlayer. Anyone buying a licence because of this could get up to two years payments refunded if they have bought a licence by the TVL site saying they need a licence for streaming on demand content when the only on demand content that requires a licence to be paid is streaming on demand from the iPlayer.
There are story's in the papers that the BBC have run out of money so they are having to cancel new content. I think the BBC might ask that all content streamed requires a licence from 2028.
This could cause some trouble, especially for the BBC, if they go to an online service and a licence is required to stream any content. It could be that it will cause protests like the Poll tax in the 80's. Many will not pay like with the Poll tax protester didn't and on demand streaming services will not want a tax on streaming content as it could cut the number of subscribers to these services.