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BBC: New powers
Comments
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Unfortunately the newspaper articles are misleading. A lot of people have not read beyond the headlines and think this is ONLY about Netflix and Amazon.
In fact this proposal will affect ALL on-demand streaming services, not just the paid ones, like Netflix, it will also include free ones like ITVX, All4, My5 etc.
In effect they'll be rolling the rules back thirty years when everything you watch on TV will need a licence.
And how will they do this? By simply removing the current exemption for on-demand streaming from the legislation. They've already partly done this in 2016 when they extended the TV Licence to cover BBC iPlayer (previously exempt). They'll simply tweak the law again. The government Green Paper published in December 2025 already hints that "expanding the scope of the licence" is their preferred option rather than creating a new tax or adding it to existing taxes.
It will bring in more money, because many people will grumble but will (albeit reluctantly) pay up because the law requires them to.
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Yes… except that there is no specific/explicit exception written into the legislation regarding commercial streaming. It simply falls outside the current licence scope.
The devil will be in the detail and we would need to see that before surmising opportunities for workarounds or civil disobedience.
Where are you getting your details from - it would be good to see the official wording.
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Will these new potential powers/legislation scope enable a member of an Enforcement Team to enter a property ?
Mortgage free
Vocational freedom has arrived0 -
Unlikely, I'd say.
(*) Sales Team.
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Unfortunately I don't have access to official documents, I'm relying on what I've heard and read in the public domain. See this extract from the December 2025 Green Paper l, the basis for ongoing discussion of the TV licence.....note the passing reference to "reviewing the scope" of the licence.....and the dismissal of new taxes......
This isn't new idea, see this from the 2015 government proposal to amend the licence to cover all "non-linear" programmes......
In the end it's my speculation, based on what I've seen in the public domain, and what I believe would be the easiest way to get extra revenue for the BBC, with the least hassle for the government.
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Thanks. The problem with these things is that putting them in a report is easy. The practical details of implementation, and in particular avoiding unforeseen consequences is a fair bit harder.
The 2015 stuff was addressed by adding the iPlayer (BBC content) into the Licence scope.
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I think the days of people paying up because the law requires them to are long gone when it comes to BBC licence fee, same as the rumoured adding it on to your Netflix / Prime / Council Tax account.
The sooner the BBC has to earn / raise its own revenue through adverts or subscription the better
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I don't pay the licence fee because I don't use the service, if the BBC has evidence that people are using the service illegally there are lots of tried and tested technologies available to prevent that.
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You don't watch any live TV?
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No, nor anything on iplayer
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