TV Licence article Discussion

cw18

The property I'm going to is actually Freesat, and they're on Five US (or whatever they call it now)

No idea what PSB1 or 3 multiplexes are


In any case, that property is licenced - so paying it's "bit" to Beeb and I can legally use.

phoenix_w

cw18 wrote: »

The property I'm going to is actually Freesat

Freesat's EPG is also partially funded by the beeb :-) Only way of getting live broadcasting where the EPG isn't sponsored by them is Sky or cable!

Five has it's own transponder so no need to worry about the beeb funding that!

cw18

thought Freesat was Sky - the box is plugged into a satellite dish

phoenix_w

cw18 wrote: »

thought Freesat was Sky - the box is plugged into a satellite dish

Sky is a commercial broadcaster operating on satellites at 28.2 deg E. It provides it's own EPG which you can only access with equipment made/approved by Sky.

Freesat is a free-to-air broadcaster (joint venture between BBC & ITV) operating on the same satellites as Sky providing it's own EPG.

You should know which platform you're on by looking at the menus in the receiver you're using.

The physical transponder showing Channel 5 is probably the same for both platforms, but you can't easily find where it is and what's on it without the EPG!

Cornucopia

phoenix_w wrote: »

The problem is that people are idiots that don't know what they want. If you have them the option of "saving 140 quid a year if they don't watch strictly" they'd probably jump at the chance without thinking of the consequences.

Ah yes, people are idiots and they need to be told what they want. I've never really understood this argument. We "allow" everyone to vote for the Government, and yet the same electorate is not capable of taking a rational decision about the BBC?

If the beeb had to start charging they'd have to charge a boatload because the economies of scale aren't there, or they'd have to go full on commercial and produce the same ratings grabbing bilge on all outlets.

15 years ago, you might have had a point. (I don't accept "boatload", whatever that means. Sky/VM are not good comparators because they include hardware, where the LF does not).

Whilst the BBC has at least 13m paying households (about 50%) it still has £2bn+ of funding, based on the current LF - which is a lot of money by any estimate. (It's about twice the programme budget of C4 Group, for example).

It's only then that people would bemoan the lack of commercially unviable niche programming they used to enjoy,

I think you're overstating this. I don't think it would be the same group bemoaning loss of rail archive material from BBC Four, and loss of Strictly.

If I've understood your argument, you want to stop the philistine masses from spoiling the "beautiful" BBC. You can't have that argument both ways - if the masses are philistines, then they generally aren't going to miss niche programming.

The other problem with the "niche" argument is that not all niches are as well-served as others. The classical arts are very much dominated by Sky Arts, not BBC Four, for example. Modern World-class drama is dominated by Sky Atlantic and Netflix, not BBC Two.

So in fact, it is the commercial specialists that are making most of the running in particular niche areas. The BBC is left looking bland and safe, as it necessarily has to be all things to all people.

get upset because the only vaguely impartial news website had become a carbon copy of the daily mail

Why would BBC News website become like the Daily Mail? And why pick the vilified Mail, as opposed to The Times or The Independent?

I think the beeb's remit makes it special and worth protecting, I think of it as a public service - I don't currently make use of many services I pay for through the various ways I'm taxed, yet I'm glad the vast majority of them are there and don't mind that I have to do my bit.

I think the mood music is going very much in the opposite direction. The BBC is not special or important like the NHS, and the future of the NHS is open to speculation anyway.

The BBC's own culture and attitudes are working against in this respect, although I accept that there is an element of catch-22 between seeking popular funding and providing populist content. However, the BBC tendency to want to pursue that magic Saturday-night ratings-buster as part of the justification of a vast media empire is a dead argument. Netflix, particularly, shows that in the modern media environment, you can build a successful business on single shows, as long as they are intelligent and well-made. The BBC cattle-trough approach is at odds with that, and I expect that it is the BBC that is going to have to change, not Netflix.

The times have changed, not just technically, but culturally, too. Whether it suits our tastes (as older people) or not, younger people are not big BBC fans. There are 4 or 5 key programmes that young people are still seeking out, but they are not consuming hours and hours of BBC TV on linear broadcast platforms. E4 has a vastly bigger audience for the 16-34 age group than BBC Three - and that's predominantly for low-cost, repetitive US imports. (In other words, the audience are opting away from the niche nuggets of the BBC in favour of a much more basic product).

the_ghost_2

I've just got rid of Virgin and replaced it with Amazon firestick. I only use my TV for Amazon Prime. Do I need a TV licence if I watch Sky News live news feed via their app?

Cornucopia

Yes...........

-taff

Being as this thread is 71 pages long and I did search for it but it's not in here, Martins current guide to TV Licences is wrong.

You do not need to fill out a declaration form, you merely need to stop paying it. And you do not have to have an inspection to show you have't got one.

This is always worth a look

http://www.bbctvlicence.com/

dekay267

I decided to rent out my house and tour Uk in my caravan for a couple of years. No family, no ties. Contacted TV licencing to get a licence to watch TV in my caravan (legally required) but they wouldn't let me have a licence without a permanent UK address. Wouldn't accept a PO Box nor my Bank, nor my email address; but they did, (helpfully?), offer to fine me up to £1,000 if I watched without a licence. Duh!

nqtraderman

Wouldn't it be a nice if MSE uploaded a correctly worded letter so anyone wishing to revoke their TV licence could print it out and send it to TVL informing them accordingly knowing that it had been checked and approved by MSE staff ?

Would be nice if it also included

1. a notice to withdraw Implied Right of Access to TVL staff and their sub/contractors
2. to put TVL on notice that receipt of more than 1 letter per year from TVL will be considered harassment
3. and finally to request a refund of monies owing on the TV licence from the date of this letter

Then its a uniform, consistent response to TVL.