TV Licences - UK

[spidge]

Just saw here on the news that your TV licences will rise to 150 pounds per year by 2012.

What are these funds used for?

Is it to finance the BBC?

The Australian government finances our equivalent "The ABC" as we have not paid TV licences since Moses was in short pants.

[Kyt]

In theory, the BBC cannot raise any money through commercial means that is not directly linked with its programming, and at the same time it's remit is continually scrutinised by the governement and pressure groups. So, it becomes a situation of the country wanting its cake and eating it.

However, the main complaint over the request by the BBC for more money is the way that the money is seen to be spent. As an ex-BBC employee, I can certainly agree with some of these complaints - it's still a bloated organisation that is often mismanaged and too many people start working for the BBC believeing that they'll end up as presenters/writers/directors etc. In many ways, it is comparable with the way that parts of the NHS is mismanaged (too many cooks etc).

[Kitty]

I'd rather see adverts on the beeb than pay the license fee. not that i watch that much of the BBC anyway. *grumble, mutter etc etc etc*

[the_historian]

I think the TV tax should be scrapped. They abolished the radio receiver licence in 1960, so why are we still legally required to have a licence for all the hundreds of OTHER tv channels besides the BBC? You can listen to radio stations on digital tv now, for God's sake!
You are supposed to deemed innocent until proven guilty, but in the case of tv licences, it's the other way round! YOU have to prove you don't watch tv/aren't capable of picking up tv signals before the authorities will believe you don't require to have a licence. Ever tried it?
The BBC should have it's subsidy scrapped and be forced to be competitive. Doesn't the Human Rights Act contain a section stating everyone's right to be able to freely pick up broadcasts without a government putting restrictions in the way? I'd dearly love to see that test case!

[Peter Clare]

Just received my renewal reminder for 2007 - £131.50

[sapper]

Much as I can understand the dislike of paying the TV licence, Any one that has watched American TV will be only too pleased to pay up if they had seen the alternative. For It is.....TERRIBLE.
For anyone brought up on the BBC would never be able to watch as the adverts are every few minutes.
Then we come to the oddity of Sky TV.. where the British pay out huge sum to watch adverts....Seriously You that watch Sky are paying through the nose to watch a long series of advertising...Odd!
Much as the sum may sound a bit too much, in competition with Sky it is the best bargain ever.
Sapper

[von Poop]

I'm certainly with you on that Sapper.
Our national 'home' channel may be slipping here and there but it still seems of a generally higher quality than many other countries. Shame that the extended ad breaks that make some 1/2 hour programs unwatchable are working their way onto Terrestrial TV... And I wish they wouldn't crank up the volume so much for the adverts!

[Kyt]

Originally Posted by Von Poop

Our national 'home' channel may be slipping here and there but it still seems of a generally higher quality than many other countries.

That's what I mean about the country wanting its cake etc - if you want a decent service (any service) you have to pay for it. Maybe the management needs re-examining but I wouldn't want BBC3 and 4 to change (who else would have an entire season on folk music - which, by the way, was brilliant).

[von Poop]

Funny you should say that as that Peggy Seeger programme and 'coast' were two that I was thinking about as examples that could never be made by commercial TV.

[Kyt]

Originally Posted by Von Poop

Funny you should say that as that Peggy Seeger programme and 'coast' were two that I was thinking about as examples that could never be made by commercial TV.

Nor would they go to so much trouble on their websites:

BBC - BBC Four - Folk Britannia