TV License. Who pays it?

[Tulipsroses]

Judging by the variety and quality of the streaming services I always ask my self where are the people that actually pay for TV license? I have never paid non of my friends pay. It is obvious that BBC have lost this game and is sticking to the licence fees as a lifebuoy.

I am not a fan of the attitude that it's okay to break the law because you don't think you're going to get caught.

I do and think it's great value for money too.

We always pay

We have three TVs in the house, though there is no broadcast feed coming into the house. We play DVDs for movies and TV series boxsets. A TV Licensing oaf can come pay a visit and have a look if they wish.

I pay it.
I don't agree with older people being forced to pay it though. Maybe they wouldn't have brought that back if so many people didn't swerve paying it!

It's really not a generational thing. I watch programmes on the BBC that I can't get elsewhere. There are lots from Match of the Day to Masterchef Professionals to Panorama.

I haven't paid in about 8 years- I generally don't watch live TV and don't remember when I last did although might pop it on over the Xmas holidays or watch masked singer in the new year or something.

Is it a generational choice, people that are used to black and white tv and two channels on them are still the ones that pay for the license.

Given the number of people who pay I very much doubt it.
Pretty much everyone I know watches something on the bbc or iPlayer regularly and we're 30's and 40's

Also the vans are a myth and you can only be fined if you admit it and or let them in your home and they find you watching tv. No one is going to jail these days there isn't space in the prisons for that

You just need to tell them you don't need one and the letters stop for 2 years. After the 2 years you repeat

That's a bit sweeping! No way am I a youngster, yet when I started watching TV as a kid, there were 4 channels (plus Channel 5 when I was a teenager) and they were all in colour, plus we had a VHS machine. A lot of the programmes from 'Netflix, Amazon, Disney, YouTube' are rubbish and often very US-centred. The licence funds programming without adverts. Having said that, I do love Channel 4 News. I still miss Jon Snow. Note: UK spelling: license (verb), licence (noun).

It’s got nothing do to with how brave you are, you muppet.

It’s whether you value it as a public service broadcaster and as a news gathering service. I do think public service broadcasting is important - the govt wanted to privatise C4 - not because C4 costs anyone anything, but because it has a public service remit. The license fee will eventually go in favour of advertising of course.

Please everyone! LICENCE FEE. Collected by TV LICENSING.

I pay cause it's cheaper than the £1000 fine and I don't want a criminal record!

I pay it. My mum refuses to pay but she doesn't watch live tv. Just Netflix. She's not a hypocrite though and isn't stealing like the poster here.

Totally agree, brave indeed! 🤣

I want to support the programmes that the BBC create, they're unsurpassed around the world and no I don't remember black and white TV.

Everyone I know pays it, you're a little bunch of rebels you and your 'uni' friends, go you 💪

I cancelled two years ago. Only watched the news before. I dismantled the indoor Ariel, removed any TV player apps and tv stations. Instead I watch netflix with ads for £4.99 a month or Amazon prime. The rest of the family only used YouTube anyway. I contacted TV licence people, then did the online forms. No problems. The saved money is now for the Den plan Dentist as no NHS near me. Not missing the news as I read a paper instead.

Nope
It's only £3.25 a week doesn't sit well with me,
We don't even have a tv in the lounge. The kids have Xbox's they watch Netflix etc on

Is it a generational choice, people that are used to black and white tv and two channels on them are still the ones that pay for the license

Ah MN ageism jibes, how I've missed you lately.

It was three channels, actually. And I haven't watched black and white since the mid 1970s.

It's not a generational choice ffs. I was born long after black and white tv and I still pay.

I do. I would hate to see the end of the BBC - it is a huge asset to the UK. Public service broadcasting is massively important and the government’s efforts to undermine it only serve to make me value it more. It certainly isn’t perfect though.

I use iPlayer, watch the news and read it online, Strictly, Radio 4, local radio, big national events, BBC bitesize for the kids.

I'm far too young for black and white TV and two channels OP, I think Disney+ is full of shit, but fill your boots.
I pay my licence because I watch the BBC frequently and listen to radio 4 daily, I don't believe that it isn't theft if you don't get caught.
If you don't watch it don't pay for it, that's reasonable, but the majority of people still do.

I pay because I watch BBC both live and on iPlayer. Hardly difficult to understand, surely?

Eastenders, Dr Who, Strictly, Great British Sewing Bee.....

I pay it. Wouldn't occur to me not to.

I loved CBeebies back in the day. Quality programmes for littlies. I love many of the radio channels. I love Line of Duty, Happy Valley etc. The BBC makes excellent study guides for GCSE students - DD listens to a podcast every day.
Their journalists are (generally) excellent and sufficiently respected to have access to news stories that other channels might not have.
It strives for diversity, although there's a long way to go.

The BBC has faults. Its lack of bias is questionable. It mis-spends dreadfully. But overall I think it's value for money,

I visit the BBC news website daily. Look up the local weather there. Check out the football tables there. I wouldn’t want to be without their awesome wildlife/Planet Earth series, Match of the Day, World Cup finals, the Olympics, so many things. It is a British institution, a reliable service provider, part of our culture and the fabric of this country. Trusted and relied upon around the world too. We should all invest in it a little. Unless you’re just one of life’s takers. Go you OP..