'Do you believe in the BBC licence fee?' poll discussion

Kamen_Rider_W · 5 August 2010 at 7:18PM

I watch TV streamed from Japan over the internet and haven't needed a license for it, I phoned up to ask about this and the TV license people said there must be at least 1 second delay from wherever it's being broadcast. That was a while ago however and I do now have a license, so check first if you're planning to stream overseas TV online ...

kcm_2 · 8 August 2010 at 1:59PM

lucylucky wrote: »

It looks as though ITV is about to go for the worst of both worlds

Pay TV and commercials http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-10848396

And here we go. I won't say who's idea it was or who owns a stake in ITV because I'll get had a go at for thinking it's a conspiracy again

They've been meeting about this for ages now, was only a matter of time. To be fair though I don't care much ITV is its own worst enemy! I'd not pay for it.

square-eyes · 24 September 2010 at 8:58AM

sharnad wrote: »

I would prefer to have the adverts and not pay

I think you are a bit naive to think that you don't pay if TV is supported by ads. The cost of the adverts gets added to all the commodities advertised. It just moves the cost to you from a lump sum to lots of little bits on every product.
We all pay in the end.

miles797674 · 17 December 2011 at 6:45AM

The BBC, The Best Broadcaster In The World...Back It!

Over the years, and up to the present day, the BBC has delivered a rich diet of quality, unbiased material from News & Current Affairs / Investigative Journalism to Children’s, from Sitcoms to Dramas, from Documentaries to popular TV Talent Shows, from Sport to Natural History and much, much more...not bettered by any other broadcasting / production powerhouse...all for just 40p a day! Diversity, high quality, education, innovation, entertainment, information, original productions, pluralism, accessibility and the inclusion of minorities is at the heart of what the BBC does, and in my view, does very well.

The BBC is one of the few British exports to be universally recognised as world class. That's why BBC programmes from The Blue Planet to the Dickens adaptations are snapped up around the globe. They may not be watching Bleak House in Burma or Iran, but they are relying on BBC News for an independent, truthful, trustworthy view of the world.
With the dominance of right-wing media in this country, including Murdoch's outfit, the BBC is needed in its current form now more than ever, not to counter the right wing, but to provide a totally unbiased, trustworthy and reliable service. This service should remain available to all via the TV Licence Fee.

The current funding method allows the BBC to...
• retain independence from both commercial and political pressures
• provide TV that is not driven by commercial and political pressures
• maintain a higher quality of programming compared to it's
commercial rivals
• encourage better programming on the commercial channels
• provide programming free from frequent and lengthy interruptions for advertisements, competitions and sponsorship break bumpers

Murdoch wants to destroy the BBC as we know it – a tragedy for the UK, a tragedy for the world. It mustn’t be allowed to happen! For me, unlike Murdoch and his mates, the BBC follows an agenda set not by profit and loss, but organised according to its principles of providing a quality service for all. It provides a service for the public good.

The BBC is important to our national life and one of our cultural jewels which mustn’t be taken for granted. Too destroy it would amount to cultural vandalism.

The UK has many things to be proud of...one of them is the brilliant BBC.

Spark · 2 January 2012 at 10:00PM

I personally think that the BBC now is overrated. The programs were a lot better many years ago.
If I had the choice, I would choose to not have the BBC channels because there aren't enough programs that I like that would justify the exorbitant fee you are forced to pay.
I hope with digital they will be forced to implement a subscription system, or something that will give us the choice of whether we want to pay to receive the BBC channels or not.

GSMAnon · 14 January 2012 at 8:01PM

I hate adverts, but at the end of the day I can mute it and leave the room for 5 minutes while they're on (lots of 5 minute breaks to do something productive!), and many people now have the facility of pausing the TV when they come on, waiting 5 minutes, then fast-forwarding through them. Not a big deal.

So even for somebody like myself, who honestly can't stand adverts, I don't see the value of paying the licence fee to keep the BBC free of adverts. I suppose they want to keep themselves 'balanced' and not promote any particular product, but I don't think anybody would accuse the BBC of being biased during the adverts. Unless they were allowing political party broadcasts from one party but not another or something, then I don't see how it can be made into an ethical issue.

And then it's obviously ludicrous to ask people who don't watch the BBC but do watch other commercially-funded TV stations to fund the BBC. As somebody above said it's like only letting somebody buy the Herald if they first purchase the Guardian.

Scrap the tax, bring in the adverts, and if people like me hate them, then we can find our own way of avoiding them for free.

GSMAnon · 14 January 2012 at 8:03PM

square-eyes wrote: »

I think you are a bit naive to think that you don't pay if TV is supported by ads. The cost of the adverts gets added to all the commodities advertised. It just moves the cost to you from a lump sum to lots of little bits on every product.
We all pay in the end.

Nobody is forced to buy all of the products... everybody is forced to pay the licence fee. That's the difference.

I don't HAVE to buy a brand new Dyson just because its advertised, and on many occasions I buy brands and products that simply don't have commercial advertising campaigns.

Whereas I HAVE to buy a TV licence whether I want to watch the BBC or not.

steve_luton · 18 January 2012 at 12:05AM

Don't agree with it and haven't paid it (legally) for years now! Dates back to when they became the Blair Broadcasting Corporation - I figured that if the Labour Party (or any other party) wanted to pump their lies and rubbish into my house they should pay for the privilege.

peter_the_piper · 29 January 2012 at 1:10PM

I can't see why I should deprive myself of the excellent progs the Beeb churns out just because Blair et al put their point over, after all that is what the "change" channel button is for.
in order of quality of progs
Beeb
ITV1
Channel 4
Channel 5
Most everyone else
Sky.

Mr_Mumble · 31 January 2012 at 1:54AM

peter_the_piper wrote: »

I can't see why I should deprive myself of the excellent progs the Beeb churns out just because Blair et al put their point over, after all that is what the "change" channel button is for.

You're missing the point that changing the channel doesn't stop the government's 'right' to imprison you for not paying a ridiculous poll tax.

in order of quality of progs
Beeb
ITV1
Channel 4
Channel 5
Most everyone else
Sky.

Opinions are like.... if the BBC and BBC supporters were so secure in their belief of its quality programming then why not allow the proletariat decide by paying for it with their own money? Subscription without advertising works with high quality programming: look at HBO. The most critically acclaimed BBC output (Attenborough, Sherlock, Top Gear) is also its most lucrative.

'Do you believe in the BBC licence fee?' poll discussion

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