Do you pay your TV licence?

[Britishsummertime22]

Obviously I do but just curious, if you're eligible e.g. watch live tv, do you?

If they didn’t constantly push the narrative on it the no it wouldn’t be worth a mention but they do.

As I vehemently disagree with kids being encouraged to not be okay with their healthy bodies and steered onto a medical pathway for life, it’s not my money paying to endorse that.

Predictable response though.

Why don't you notify them that you don't require a license and they'll stop? That's what I did and I haven't had a single letter...

We don't watch live TV so I've given it up.

You may not need a licence to listen to BBC Sounds, but how do you think the content that goes on Sounds is funded…? I only listen to old stuff like Cabin Pressure and Paul Temple which was paid for years ago so I just listen on Spotify. I don't lie awake at night worrying that Jeremy Bowen or some random drag queen might have to take a pay cut. I loathe a lot of BBC radio anyway - the Archers, radio drama, From Our Own Correspondent, Moral Maze, Mark Steel - all dreadful and dated. Some of the comedy series are nice though (Fags Mags & Bags)

I’m sure they’re not but at least those other services don’t threaten to send me or my family to prison, not yet anyway.

You feel you get good value then you’ll keep paying, I didn’t so I stopped. They should be operating on the same playing field as others though.

Razor sharp critique. Either that or you’ve been watching BBC again. Poor you.

Yep, hardly watch any "live" TV but do watch a fair bit on Iplayer.

Of course.

My DC are older now but I would've paid the licence fee for CBeebies alone.

Yes we pay but I really begrudge doing so.

I would cancel it but the DC sometimes watch live tv and it's not worth the risk.

Edit to add- Its such a scam, threatening people with fines/prosecution and all the latest talks of having to pay if you only use netflix is just money-grabbing. You can have 5 tvs in one household, but 3 students in a shared house all need individual licenses.

@RachelNoire You seem to have missed the fundamental point that if you watch live TV or iPlayer then it is the law that you must pay for a licence.
Whether you agree with that or not is completely irrelevant. It's also irrelevant whether you approve of the funding model for the BBC.
You cannot choose whether laws apply to you or not.

@Hortus i haven’t missed any fundamental point, I don’t watch live tv or have iplayer.

Of course it’s relevant whether i agree with it or not, they want people’s money and their tactics are pretty aggressive, the whole funding model is fucked in this day and age. They know that too. I choose not to pay them a penny. Same as a lot of people now choosing to do the same. I only wish I’d cancelled it sooner.

No. I cancelled my direct debit last year. I should have done it sooner.

I will not pay money to an organisation that covered up Saville's crimes.

Would that somehow force the BBC to stop producing complete tripe?

Don't pay the licence because the BBC produces nothing that interests me.

The only thing I watch is Youtube, sometimes on a TV screen, sometimes on PC. If my partner is over then we sometimes sit and watch a movie on Netflix or something, but no, it's not uncommon for my TV to never be switched on for weeks on end between visits. At one point I went 5 years without even owning a TV, and only actually bought one after I moved home so we could watch the occasional movie or Netflix Doc, but if I was single I reckon I probably wouldn't have bothered, so while it's true enough that I "watch screens", for years I didn't actually "watch TV" and still barely ever do.

Yes. Lots of good drama on BBC.

God no. Saw the light about 15 years ago.

Quite happy with Netflix, Prime and the catch up apps - ITVX, channel4, 5 etc.

What if you want to watch sports?

Also 13 quid is nowhere near the most expensive. Disney is 14. DAZN 20. TNT Sport about the same. Sky Sports 30 or so.

Yes, although I think in this day and age it should be abolished.

No never have never will.

No, because I'm in the USA. I would happily if I could though. It's an absolute bargain and I think most people in the UK don't realize what they have.

We do. I think we should stop tbh. We don't watch live tv at all. We watch v little actually.

No, I certainly don't. I occasionally watch the odd thing on iPlayer, maybe once every few months. I watch even less live TV. I'm not giving the BBC a huge amount of money for that.

They send me letters and I put them straight in the bin. Same as I've done all my life.

I don't care what the law is. I will break any minor law that I don't consider to be just.

Nearly everyone I know has never paid. The generation below me certainly won't pay. They need to pay for the BBC through general taxation. Maybe taxation of social media companies who pay fuck all. It just doesn't make sense any more because nearly all young people watch streaming services through their computer. I think the BBC should be funded, this is just a shit way to fund it and expensive to enforce.

I haven't had a TV since 2014 and even after signing the declaration I get regularly hounded. Letters saying someone is coming on a certain date. Postcards asking if I will be in put through the door as though someone has been. It's disgusting the amount they spend on this harassment as they are not getting anything from me they are spending licence payers money doing nothing but hounding people in a way that nobody else is allowed to do.
They could spend that money on the programmes.

How do you watch or listen to the news if you don't have live TV? Can you still watch ITV / CH4 / sky news as they arent BBC funded? Or do they count as live TV? (It's early so I'm probably being thick here).

Nope haven't for years