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.

If they didn't have to pay the licence fee, then maybe they could spend it on something else (or Sky/ Virgin)

I'm a bit torn on this one. On one hand YANBU in principle because the licence fee seems anachronistic (I'm not commenting on criminal or questionable activities by presenters) but otoh, the BBC has a service remit to provide certain types of programming that commercial stations don't. As a result, there is a wider choice.

In fact, picturing a world in which the only TV available was Dog The Bounty Hunter on subscription (shudder), I suppose I'm saying YABU. But I'm glad the BBC has been prevented from increasing the fee every year for a while because it's bloody expensive.

Regardless of the moral arguments about stealth taxes choice etc, the BBC produces by far the best and most popular content. It still gets the highest viewing figures even now.

I'm a practical person, I'm more interests in the ends than the means. The BBC produces great stuff (not just tele, but radio, a good website, several symphony orchestras and probably other stuff too) and for that reason alone it should remain as it is.

If it ain't broke....

Viewing figures by channel [http://www.barb.co.uk/report/weekly-viewing]

oops.

www.barb.co.uk/report/weekly-viewing

Tell you what the license fee has been justified in this house after Andrew Marr's history of the world thing.

It's shit like that BBC do well. Sure you get stuff on History and Discovery but they are over dramatic with naff voice overs and cheap graphics.