To think the TV License should be scrapped

109 replies

Hedgehogbrown · 18/10/2025 19:09

Hear me out. I love the BBC, grew up on it, and want it preserved forever. The Television License is such an outdated and inefficient way to pay for the BBC though. Most young people don't have a TV, they have computers and they don't see why they should get a TV License, regardless of the law. They don't have a TV License. Most Millennials I know don't pay their TV License. When you are poor it is another stressful expense.

How much does it cost them to try to enforce? It seems so old fashioned and wasteful. In Australia they have a state run channel but it is paid for through general taxation. If the government grew some balls and taxed all the Tech Bros who are trying to destroy the world, they can ring fence some of that taxation for the BBC. The BBC is actually good at making money, it exports it's stuff around the world. Their profits can go to the Treasury. No more paying for people to go round in vans trying to catch people out for not having a license like it's the 1970s.

I think it would be such a vote winner for people to not have to pay this.

OP posts:

Lonelycrab · 18/10/2025 19:34

Although I’m not a license payer (watch zero live tv whatsoever on any platform and don’t access iplayer) I think it would be sad to see the demise of the BBC which is what essentially a lot of the political posturing around this conversation is based on. They are, or at least try to be neutral, unlike absolute muck like Geebeebies.

The license fee equates to around £12 pcm. This is too much for what I want it for.
I do however have a Disney sub at £5 pcm (non live) as that’s better vfm and has lots of stuff I want to watch.

I think too the notion that anything live must require a license is a bit strange. No one watches via a physical transmitter anymore and you can bet that a lot of the live online content providers see absolutely nothing in terms of money for providing their streams, which are all obviously online. Why does the BBC or the broadcasting network (physical transmitters) get to keep all this money for not providing anything? It’s all being streamed from all over the world.

I wish the BBC would move into the 21st century- they might find a lot more people willing to pay if they made it a tiered system; ie basic gets you this, a bit more gets you iplayer etc.

Tiredofwhataboutery · 18/10/2025 19:31

I just cancelled my licence. The only thing I’ve watched this year was sewing bee and it’s all gotten so samey I can’t be bothered. I do think the commercial arm makes money, if they do make something decent I’ll catch it on Netflix/ prime/ Disney eventually. I’ll just cycle between subscriptions and take out stuff for a month or two.

tipsyraven · 18/10/2025 19:26

I’m happy to pay for it for radio alone.

EasternStandard · 18/10/2025 19:23

Possibly but not through taxation. Make it more of a choice.

DoAWheelie · 18/10/2025 19:22

I'd rather it got lumped into council tax or something. Since every household would be paying rather than just some, the price per house could drop quite a bit without changing funds available to the BBC.

Mealy82 · 18/10/2025 19:21

The TV detector vans are a good example of BBC waste - the BBC admitted in a document in 2013 that they're just for show, they don't actually detect anything, but apparently there is still a fleet of them in existence, used by Capita and funded by the licence payer.

I grew up loving the BBC but it's been awful for years now. Presenters are overpaid and often deviants, output in my opinion abysmal. Scrap the licence and let it rely on subscription and advertising money like everyone else - we'd quickly see its programs get far better

ContraryCurrentBun · 18/10/2025 19:19

It used to be amazing, we rarely watch it now.

Needmorelego · 18/10/2025 19:16

HermioneWeasley · 18/10/2025 19:12

It should be a subscription service

It kind of is really.
It's a subscription for BBC channels plus iPlayer and for watching "live" ITV/Channel 4/Channel 5/Sky etc.
If you don't watch any BBC and only watch ITV etc via catch up channels online then you don't need a license.

HermioneWeasley · 18/10/2025 19:12

It should be a subscription service

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