[UK] Should the BBC licence fee be scrapped?

[Ryme]

Yeah, I'm not sure that a survey which reveals that people trust journalists at The Guardian and The Times - both of which have very clear but opposite bias - most to tell the truth is the best of example of the BBC being untrustworthy. It is quite obvious from the survey that opinions of various news outlets are split along political lines and that people are more likely to trust outlets that agree with their own political outlook. It is also worth noting the timing of the survey - Dec '19 - and how it coincided with a particularly polarising period in British politics - the 2019 GE, prorogation of parliament, the culmination of over 3 years of remain/leave political conflict, etc.

I'm not saying they're untrustworthy but the public perceives them as so, the reasoning for why is less important than the result on the topic of whether or not the public should then be asked to financially support them.

The BBC exists to serve the public, if they're failing that why allow them to continue?

The timing is fair, I think more data is required.

The BBC is not mandatory, there are plenty of platforms - Netflix, Prime Video, Disney, Youtube, Ratuken, etc - available that do not require a TV licence to watch.

I mean, sure, but this is a game of semantics that leads to nowhere. If you want to watch broadcast TV in the UK, you have to pay towards the BBC regardless of whether you want to or not. That's fairly mandatory; imagine if to watch Netflix you had to pay towards Disney+.

[Pann]

I'm not saying they're untrustworthy but the public perceives them as so, the reasoning for why is less important than the result on the topic of whether or not the public should then be asked to financially support them.

The BBC exists to serve the public, if they're failing that why allow them to continue?

The timing is fair, I think more data is required.

I would argue that BBC and its news output is ever more important in a world where politicians brand those who disagree with them as enemies of the people or democracy and misinformation campaigns are a daily occurrence on social media. Your argument - unless I'm missing your point - seems to hinge on the premise that people should only have to fund news that they agree with which seems like a dangerous path to tread to me.

I fail to see how unbiased reporting is failing the public. When the public does not trust unbiased or non-partisan news the answer is more unbiased reporting not to get rid of it all together.

I mean, sure, but this is a game of semantics that leads to nowhere. If you want to watch broadcast TV in the UK, you have to pay towards the BBC regardless of whether you want to or not. That's fairly mandatory; imagine if to watch Netflix you had to pay towards Disney+.

If you want to watch live TV (or use the iplayer) you have to pay for a TV licence and in return we get the BBC which produces some world class programs that seems, to me at least, like a better deal than many of the taxes or licences we have to pay for.

If you do not want to watch BBC programs and are not fussed about watching live broadcasts then you are still able to watch programs from other networks without paying for a licence.

The licence fee will not go away even the BBC are no longer the beneficiary, it might be rolled into some other form of tax or called something else but people will not be better off.

[Monster Hunter]

Yeah, I'm not sure that a survey which reveals that people trust journalists at The Guardian and The Times - both of which have very clear but opposite bias - most to tell the truth is the best of example of the BBC being untrustworthy. It is quite obvious from the survey that opinions of various news outlets are split along political lines and that people are more likely to trust outlets that agree with their own political outlook. It is also worth noting the timing of the survey - Dec '19 - and how it coincided with a particularly polarising period in British politics - the 2019 GE, prorogation of parliament, the culmination of over 3 years of remain/leave political conflict, etc.

The BBC is not mandatory, there are plenty of platforms - Netflix, Prime Video, Disney, Youtube, Ratuken, etc - available that do not require a TV licence to watch.

if you have a t.v that is able to receive BBC broadcast services, you have to pay the license.

usual way round it is to cut / remove your antenna.

but even then, its only a matter of time before the BBC sets a bunch of the contracted knuckle dragging goon's squads out to your address to try and intimidate there way into your house to "check", usually coming out with some strange excuses how your sliced to bits cable can still provide your t.v with a signal leading to a lengthy court battle all over some posh cunt in whitehall wanting my money for "the privilege" of having a screen for an xbox.

i don't hate public news channels, i don't hate public ownership where its apt, i specifically hate the BBC not for any political reason, but specifically because of how they act and how they have acted in the past. i wish every BBC employee only the worst in life.

they are immoral, bureaucratic scum, the lowest order of human life.

[Pann]

if you have a t.v that is able to receive BBC broadcast services, you have to pay the license.

usual way round it is to cut / remove your antenna.

but even then, its only a matter of time before the BBC sets a bunch of the contracted knuckle dragging goon's squads out to your address to try and intimidate there way into your house to "check", usually coming out with some strange excuses how your sliced to bits cable can still provide your t.v with a signal leading to a lengthy court battle all over some posh cunt in whitehall wanting my money for "the privilege" of having a screen for an xbox.

i don't hate public news channels, i don't hate public ownership where its apt, i specifically hate the BBC not for any political reason, but specifically because of how they act and how they have acted in the past. i wish every BBC employee only the worst in life.

they are immoral, bureaucratic scum, the lowest order of human life.

No you don't. If you do not watch live broadcasts then there is no requirement to pay for the licence fee.

Yeah, that's not true. They will send out a letter (usually they do this yearly) stating that the premises does not have a TV licence - in my experience it is a simple case of phoning them and informing that no licence is required.

The BBC or their collection agency do not have the power to enter your address without permission so simply don't let them in if you want to be difficult and they cannot take you court without evidence that you are watching live TV, obviously if they can see that you're watching the latest episode of Eastenders through your window then they do not need to enter your house to gather the needed evidence. Again in my experience if they do bother to attend it is simple process of showing them the TV is not connected to an aerial and it is not tuned in to receive any channels, once they have seen this you will hear no more from them.

If as you claim the cable from the aerial was cut and the only use for your TV is with an X-Box then there is simply no case to answer but based on your previous comments in an earlier thread about the BBC charging your 96 year old blind Gran who would be exempt from paying (and most probably still be exempt when the new rules come into force) it seems you don't have much luck with them.

[Yadryonych]

People still watch TV?

You must have missed the moment when BBC went online.

Also you must have missed the fact that

A single TV Licence covers all of the following in a single property:

• TV sets
• computers
• laptops
• tablets
• mobile phones
• any other device that can receive a TV signal

[Unholyground]

BBC means a lot of different things on the internet lmao.

[LeGin Tufnel]

The BBC exists to serve the public, if they're failing that why allow them to continue?

But who says they're "failing the public", though? Can you back this up?

Are you talking solely about journalism? Or are you also referring to output including award-winning drama, documentary, sports coverage, radio, digital services etc.?

I'm going to assume you're talking about journalism so:

Sorry if I'm not too impressed by the opinions of e.g., a) hard eurosceptics who get upset every time Emily Maitlis opens her mouth or b) Corbyinstas who get upset every time Laura Kuenssburg opens her mouth.

They can't see beyond their own bias. And, yes, they probably account for c. 50% of the population.

[AeneasBK]

No you don't. If you do not watch live broadcasts then there is no requirement to pay for the licence fee.

They obviously do things very differently in the corner of the UK Monster Hunter is from.

[ParanoiD84]

People still watch TV?

Cant remember last time i did i just use it to stream from my pc or use my ps4. Tv shows these days are just meh and its commercial after commercial non stop i rather stream them online on my or from my pc with no breaks.

Last kingdom was amazing though but yeah streamed that shit online seeing as only 2 seasons are on netflix here i pretty much had no choice they forced me to stream it online having me hooked after the first 2 seasons

[LeGin Tufnel]

Tv shows these days are just meh and its commercial after commercial non stop.

Yes. So, maybe it'd be worth considering paying an annual fee that (along with other benefits) allows you to watch content without commercial breaks?

[ParanoiD84]

Yes. So, maybe it'd be worth considering paying an annual fee that (along with other benefits) allows you to watch content without commercial breaks?

We get the usual free channels included in the rent here but they are all shit but i have used hbo, prime and netflix in the past and now have prime, should have used prime instead of netflix when i watched last kingdom lol atleast they have all seasons. Still use alot of free streaming sites for things not included on prime in this case.

Sucks they changed the tv licence here btw before you could say you had no tv to avoid paying as many did, now it's included in the taxes. Probably good anyways i can see tons of people taking advantage of that before as it was easy.

[Monster Hunter]

No you don't. If you do not watch live broadcasts then there is no requirement to pay for the licence fee.

Yeah, that's not true. They will send out a letter (usually they do this yearly) stating that the premises does not have a TV licence - in my experience it is a simple case of phoning them and informing that no licence is required.

The BBC or their collection agency do not have the power to enter your address without permission so simply don't let them in if you want to be difficult and they cannot take you court without evidence that you are watching live TV, obviously if they can see that you're watching the latest episode of Eastenders through your window then they do not need to enter your house to gather the needed evidence. Again in my experience if they do bother to attend it is simple process of showing them the TV is not connected to an aerial and it is not tuned in to receive any channels, once they have seen this you will hear no more from them.

If as you claim the cable from the aerial was cut and the only use for your TV is with an X-Box then there is simply no case to answer but based on your previous comments in an earlier thread about the BBC charging your 96 year old blind Gran who would be exempt from paying (and most probably still be exempt when the new rules come into force) it seems you don't have much luck with them.

as far as it goes atm come the change over they will be charging her for the privilege of listening to eastender's

disgusting immoral filthy paedophile hiding organisation.

[Pann]

as far as it goes atm come the change over they will be charging her for the privilege of listening to eastender's

disgusting immoral filthy paedophile hiding organisation.

No, they won't. People who are registered blind are automatically entitled to a 50% reduction in the licence fee (, people who live in care homes or sheltered accommodation are also entitled to concessions) and those who are over 75 and in receipt of pension credits will continue to benefit from a a free licence.

If your Gran needs any help applying for a free licence she or a friend or family member can ring 0300 790 6117. I would however suggest that she gets someone [anyone] other than you to make the call.

[LeGin Tufnel]

as far as it goes atm come the change over they will be charging her for the privilege of listening to eastender's

disgusting immoral filthy paedophile hiding organisation.

It’s been sciontificaly proven there are more peedoes at ITV.

[Monster Hunter]

It’s been sciontificaly proven there are more peedoes at ITV.

ITV has little Pedo's,

The BBC combined there Pedo's into one mega Pedo, this was there attempt to create the ultimate Pedo and thus secure a steady stream of kids panties straight to the old lords the are in charge of the trust,

but still, BBC is pretty fucking disgusting morally.

- - - Updated - - -

No, they won't. People who are registered blind are automatically entitled to a 50% reduction in the licence fee (, people who live in care homes or sheltered accommodation are also entitled to concessions) and those who are over 75 and in receipt of pension credits will continue to benefit from a a free licence.

If your Gran needs any help applying for a free licence she or a friend or family member can ring 0300 790 6117. I would however suggest that she gets someone [anyone] other than you to make the call.

so good of them to offer for 50% what should be free. god knows how much caviar and kiddie rent boys they will have to cut back on at the next Christmas party to cover that cost.

[Pann]

so good of them to offer for 50% what should be free. god knows how much caviar and kiddie rent boys they will have to cut back on at the next Christmas party to cover that cost.

Television, like most things, costs money to produce so I am not sure why you believe that it should be free however depending on your Gran's circumstances it may well still be free for her. If she rings the number my previous post they will be able to guide her through the process.

Your story has gone from the BBC are charging your Gran full price when she would not have to pay a penny to she will have to pay full price when government support ends despite being entitled to at least a 50% reduction to yeah, well, it should be free, when you add in the tale about having to court battles for using an X-Box (which appears to have been forgotten about at the first challenge) and the false claim that a TV capable of receiving a BBC signal requires a licence it is becoming increasingly difficult to believe that these grievances are real and not manufactured or exaggerated in an effort to justify your irrational feelings towards the BBC.

You may have had a bad experience with the BBC and a genuine reason to dislike them but seriously life's too short to get this worked up about a company, there is no need to pay for the BBC so simply don't use their services and move on.

[Yriel]

I fail to see how unbiased reporting is failing the public. When the public does not trust unbiased or non-partisan news the answer is more unbiased reporting not to get rid of it all together.

In my experience "unbiased" usually just means "aligns with my worldview".

[Pann]

In my experience "unbiased" usually just means "aligns with my worldview".

Well thanks for that. And just how this fit in with the context of the BBC's news output?

[Flarelaine]

I don't like the thought of BBC being completely at the mercy of the government.

I live in a country where critical reporting is limited to a few holdout news portals. TV, radio and everything is print is already owned by government stooges or has learned to toe the line.

[dribbles]

Here's a novel idea. How about those that love and support the BBC pay for it and those that don't, don't have to pay for it.

If I play WOW I don't ask those who don't to pay my sub.

Roll on 2027 when the license fee will be scrapped.