to think the tv licence should be made subscription only, especially in light off all the scandals at the BBC?

[ophelia275]

I know there are a lot of people who think the tv tax licence is good value for money but I think people should have a choice and I really think it is time it should be a subscription service and those that want to watch BBC/other channels funded by the licence, can choose to subscribe to it, rather than everyone being forced to pay £145 a year. I don't watch much BBC etc and would be happy to forgo it altogether.

There is definitely the technology for BBC/other channels to be scrambled so that those that are not paying the tax subscription cannot receive endless repeats of Only Fools and Horses its programs. I feel this particularly strongly now with all the corruption ("celebrities" being paid in such a way to avoid tax) and complicity in sexual abuse (Jimmy Saville). I don't want to be forced to pay towards these kind of things. If the BBC is so great then it will naturally attract lots of subscribers and stand up on its own two feet. If not, oh well, such is life.

[Bluestocking]

Totally agree with bluegrass. Although I don't watch telly, I do listen to the radio a lot, and R4 alone is worth 40p per day of my money.

[Pagwatch]

I agree with Bluegrass too.

The BBC is fucking amazing.

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

I'd pay it just for Radio 4 as well. Especially now you can use Iplayer for it and listen to specific programmes at specific times. I don't watch much Beeb, but what they do have some fantastic programming and it is great not not have adverts. I would hate not to have had CBeebies when the DCs were little.

[WilsonFrickett]

Oh I forgot about Cbeebies. On that basis alone YABU.

[DontmindifIdo]

You do know that the licence fee doesn't just go to the bbc don't you? Itv, channel 4 and channel 5 also get a chunk of it.

When you look at the total amount you get for your money, it's not a bad deal...

[50smellsofshite]

I don't watch anything on BBC and would love to opt out. Where do I sign?

[CakeBump]

Get rid of your telly. There's fuck all decent on and you don't need a licence to listen to Radio 4, which is (almost) the only good thing the BBC does.

Anything else you can watch on DVD or iplayer.

[ZeldaUpNorth]

I pay £140 (or whatever it is) for Doctor Who. Its the only thing I watch on bbc, kids dont even watch cbeebies anymore. I think thats gone downhill.

[MoomieAndFreddie]

YANBU it PISSES me off big time having to pay this tax

[MrsKeithRichards]

It's not just about tv it's the tie in work, the follow up packs sent to schools and libraries etc. The BBC is worth the money.

[ophelia275]

But Bluegrass and AndiMac. Those are value judgements. Just because you think BBC is good value doesn't mean that everyone does. Why should everyone have to pay for the licence because a few people think the BBC is good quality. I liked Sky when we had it but I realised it was my choice to pay the subscription and I would disagree with others being forced to have it.

I don't think the BBC is comparable in any way to the police or NHS although knowing the overblown sense of importance of a lot of BBC "employees" I wouldn't be surprised if they do. Both the police and NHS are essential services but nobody would die if the BBC disappeared (except possibly some overpaid luvvies).

[CakeBump]

If you watch TV, you have to pay the licence.

If you don't want to pay the licence, get rid of your TV.

I can't see the problem....

[ChaoticismyLife]

The problem is I watch channels other than the BBC/Channel 4/Channel 5. Yes, I pay for those channels but that is my choice. I want the same choice wrt the BBC.

[ihearsounds]

Just to clarify it's not as simple as you watch tv you pay the license. You can have a tv without the need of a license if you do not watch live tv, ie not connected to an aerial/dish/cable. However, if say you don't own a tv, but your pc/laptop/phone/tablet/ps3 etc is capable of getting live tv, which most are, you need a license.

So, to make this comparable. Is it fair that simply because you have a laptop in your house, that is connected to the net, you have to pay out the fee? Even though you do not access any live tv content, or even visit the beeb sites?

[Iggly]

I'd pay for the bbc just to avoid jeffing adverts.

However the bbc does a great service and losing it would be shite.

[CakeBump]

that's not true, ihear.

You don't need a licence for a pc/laptop/whatever unless you have bought an add-on for it (it is some sort of transmitter I think) which enables you to watch live tv.

[sashh]

The BBC is so sexist in its programming I think every woman should get at least 1/3 off.

[OutragedAtThePriceOfFreddos]

I'm torn on this one.

On one hand, the quality of some of the BBC programmes is excellent, and I love their educational website and I like that its not bombarded with advertising or influenced by some rich twat at the top the way Sky is. On the other there should be a choice, and I hate the way that the TV licence is sold as a TV licence and not what it it actually is which is BBC tax. I find it very sneaky and underhand the way that the actual licence says nothing about the BBC and what you are actually paying for. It likens itself to much to road tax and pretends its a government thing, which it isn't and shouldn't be.

I also dislike the way the big influential BBC runs Comic Relief and Children in Need and because of the fact that the organisation is so big they have a lot of power of the charity market which is very unfair on smaller, equally as worthy charities. I don't support either of those charities and I resent that I am forced to if I want to watch telly.

[ophelia275]

Cakebump - that is the whole point of the question! Why should you still need a licence to watch tv? The licence pays for very specific channels. In this day and age technology could be used to scramble those channels and those that want them could pay for them. Instead we have an antiquated system whereby everyone is forced to pay for certain channels even if they don't watch them. How would you feel if you were forced to pay for Sky, under threat of court action, because some people think it has good quality shows.

I don't begrudge people for thinking that the BBC is brilliant or loving BBC programmes, but I don't feel the same way and I begrudge the fact that I am FORCED to pay the tv licence which pays for the BBC and other specific channels/services when a subscription service would suit those that want to watch BBC shows but would not force all those that don't want to, to have to pay.

Why is there such a problem with those that want to watch the BBC paying a subscription so that only they can receive BBC/other licence funded shows/radio? Why can't the consumer have a choice?

[CakeBump]

Because in practice, what you suggest would be unworkable and unenforceable.

If you have that much of a problem with it, ditch the TV. Its all shit anyway.

[ChaoticismyLife]

All those who want to watch the BBC can pay for it. All those who don't should be able to opt out.

[Wowserz129]

I think it ridiculous that paying £145 a year is necessary! I never watch BBC channels. In fact I hardly watch tv at all, most of the stuff I watch is on sky channels.

[AndiMac]

BBC in general doesn't have big budgets. Sure, the flashy shows on prime time TV might, but not the departments working behind the scenes. By taking away a source of income by making it an opt-in system, the ability to produce something to rival the other main media channel, Sky, would be severely limited.

Do you know that all the news on radio that on "independent" stations is all provided by Sky News? Other than the BBC channels.

That's not a value judgement, that's a fact. And I would prefer that all my news wasn't controlled by one source.

[ihearsounds]

Cake, have a look on the tv license website. They clearly say you need a license You need to be covered by a valid TV Licence if you watch or record TV as it's being broadcast. This includes the use of devices such as a computer, laptop, mobile phone or DVD/video recorder.
You do not need any transmitter to watch live tv on a pc etc. If this was the case, sky for example wouldn't be able to advertise sky go as able to watch live content tablet etc.
Even the Iplayer has a live bit.

[confusedpixie]

Don't have a TV then? It's easy to live without once you get used to it! I prefer not having a TV now, it means that my evenings aren't spent sitting in front of one because it's there that's what MN is for