BBC licence fee poll.

[schmunk]

KrissKross said:

chris watton said:

KrissKross said:

You don't have to pay it.

I recorded game of Thrones at two this morning. I do not watch any BBC content, but because I recorded this programme, on another service I pay for, I have to pay the BBC licence fee, don't I?

Unless you are watching live broadcasts no. I filled in a form to state such and sent back to the BBC they have not hassled me since, 2+ years.

Officially - yes you do, but you would not if you instead streamed it from 'Sky On Demand' or whatever it's called (or NowTV?).

http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/faqs/FAQ104

[KrissKross]

Price for me is irrelevant, its the principal fact that they are biased in their reporting that frustrates me, they are the UK's CNN.

[chris watton]

arfursleep said:

If you don't use any of the service then don't pay. It's not hard as a few people on here have already pointed out.

I'm happy to pay for the service it provides my family for 40p a day.

In comparison;

I've just made a coffee that cost me more than that (2 x 25p Nespresso capsules if anyone cares).

Took family to the flicks last night to watch a film - £45 for 4 of us for 1 3/4 hour entertainment or 112 days of BBC. The latter is definitely better value in my opinion.

I don't think anyone is telling you not to pay for a service if you enjoy it. Some people, me included, do not use the BBC service at all, so even at 40p a day, it's a waste. Like all other TV/streaming services, it would be nice to have the choice whether to pay or not. I can cancel my other subscriptions anytime without fear of receiving letters through the door. the BBC should be the same.

Our local cinema is £2.50 per ticket.....

[Funk]

chris watton said:

arfursleep said:

If you don't use any of the service then don't pay. It's not hard as a few people on here have already pointed out.

I'm happy to pay for the service it provides my family for 40p a day.

In comparison;

I've just made a coffee that cost me more than that (2 x 25p Nespresso capsules if anyone cares).

Took family to the flicks last night to watch a film - £45 for 4 of us for 1 3/4 hour entertainment or 112 days of BBC. The latter is definitely better value in my opinion.

I don't think anyone is telling you not to pay for a service if you enjoy it. Some people, me included, do not use the BBC service at all, so even at 40p a day, it's a waste. Like all other TV/streaming services, it would be nice to have the choice whether to pay or not. I can cancel my other subscriptions anytime without fear of receiving letters through the door. the BBC should be the same.

Our local cinema is £2.50 per ticket.....

As mentioned, I've saved over £1k. It's an archaic and outdated system and needs to go subscription asap. The issue is that they know that most people would opt out (hence why when Freeview was rolled out it was designed in such a way that there was no option for a subscription model).

[KrissKross]

Funk said:

It's an archaic and outdated system and needs to go subscription asap.

I cannot see how they can last another 10 years or so, my teenagers don't have a TV, they don't want them and they never watch "normal TV", everything they do is streamed or watched through PC or other devices. Most of their friends are the same.

[chris watton]

KrissKross said:

Funk said:

It's an archaic and outdated system and needs to go subscription asap.

I cannot see how they can last another 10 years or so, my teenagers don't have a TV, they don't want them and they never watch "normal TV", everything they do is streamed or watched through PC or other devices. Most of their friends are the same.

Same here, our kids (now in their early 20's) never watch terrestrial TV, much less BBC content. It is irrelevant to them, as it is to me (age 50). I get why public sector employees, left-leaning activists etc. like it, as it seems (from what I have read), they are catered for perfectly, but it's not for me, and hasn't been for me for a long time. There are much better choices (for me and, clearly the younger generation) out there to chose from for which I am happy to pay for, and happy to stop paying if I feel I am no longer getting VFM.

I do buy the odd box set, however, Night Manager being one of them - I will never have a problem paying for what I like.

[Funk]

chris watton said:

KrissKross said:

Funk said:

It's an archaic and outdated system and needs to go subscription asap.

I cannot see how they can last another 10 years or so, my teenagers don't have a TV, they don't want them and they never watch "normal TV", everything they do is streamed or watched through PC or other devices. Most of their friends are the same.

Same here, our kids (now in their early 20's) never watch terrestrial TV, much less BBC content. It is irrelevant to them, as it is to me (age 50). I get why public sector employees, left-leaning activists etc. like it, as it seems (from what I have read), they are catered for perfectly, but it's not for me, and hasn't been for me for a long time. There are much better choices (for me and, clearly the younger generation) out there to chose from for which I am happy to pay for, and happy to stop paying if I feel I am no longer getting VFM.

I do buy the odd box set, however, Night Manager being one of them - I will never have a problem paying for what I like.

I'm happy to pay for stuff on an as-required basis - I recently purchased Planet Earth II on 4K BluRay.

[arfursleep]

chris watton said:

I don't think anyone is telling you not to pay for a service if you enjoy it. Some people, me included, do not use the BBC service at all, so even at 40p a day, it's a waste. Like all other TV/streaming services, it would be nice to have the choice whether to pay or not. I can cancel my other subscriptions anytime without fear of receiving letters through the door. the BBC should be the same.

Our local cinema is £2.50 per ticket.....

I agree completely that they shouldn't be hounding you for the fee if you don't use the service.

That's bloody cheap for a cinema! Cheapest local to me is £6 but the screen is not much bigger than my telly...

[anonymous-user]

arfursleep said:

If you don't use any of the service then don't pay. It's not hard as a few people on here have already pointed out.

I'm happy to pay for the service it provides my family for 40p a day.

In comparison;

I've just made a coffee that cost me more than that (2 x 25p Nespresso capsules if anyone cares).

Took family to the flicks last night to watch a film - £45 for 4 of us for 1 3/4 hour "entertainment" (15mins ads, 10mins trailers) or 112 days of BBC. The latter is definitely better value in my opinion.

ETC - film time

Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 17th July 11:03

No problem with that. I do assume though, that you weren't forced to buy that coffee, just because you like a cup of tea every now and then? Or buy those cinema tickets because you watch the odd DVD?

Make the licence fee voluntary, you can keep paying and watching those channels, those who don't want to won't need to pay.

[oyster]

I pay many tens of thousands of pounds tax a year. Mostly for stuff I never use.
Why does that seem to bother so many people less than the cost of an meal for a TV Licence?

Also, I can never understand why PH seems to have such a noisy anti-BBC / Anti licence fee compared to the nation in general.

[fatjon]

I don't so much object to paying the licence fee as I object to not having the full BBC library to choose from in exchange. I seems to me that what I payed for over the years should all, so far as can be achieved, be on the IPlayer.

The South East centric attitudes, biased reporting and PC crap do irk me somewhat though.

[fido]

oyster said:

Also, I can never understand why PH seems to have such a noisy anti-BBC / Anti licence fee compared to the nation in general.

The Question Time thread might give you a clue as to why PH isn't keen on paying towards it.

[dazwalsh]

If the beeb wasn't so left wing I would be a bit more supportive as from time to time they do create some decent TV, im talking the likes of planet earth and some decent dramas.

The dwindling coverage of all sports leaves a sour taste in my mouth though and I resent paying it now.

Edited by dazwalsh on Monday 17th July 13:52

[chow pan toon]

oyster said:

I pay many tens of thousands of pounds tax a year. Mostly for stuff I never use.
Why does that seem to bother so many people less than the cost of an meal for a TV Licence?

Also, I can never understand why PH seems to have such a noisy anti-BBC / Anti licence fee compared to the nation in general.

Because lefty illiberals™

[chris watton]

oyster said:

I pay many tens of thousands of pounds tax a year. Mostly for stuff I never use.
Why does that seem to bother so many people less than the cost of an meal for a TV Licence?

Also, I can never understand why PH seems to have such a noisy anti-BBC / Anti licence fee compared to the nation in general.

How do you know 'The nation in general' like the BBC, twitter, similar minded social media groups, loaded opinion polls, what?

I do not care that much, TBH, it is nothing, but the fact of the matter is that hardly anyone I know watches it. Very few watch any terrestrial TV at all, never mind live broadcasts. I suspect many who still like it (aside from the political/ideological side), are the older generation, who are used to it and put it on more out of habit than anything else.

I may be wrong, so apologies if I am, but I'd wager you work in or around the public sector and are left-leaning, thus you cannot see a problem with the material the BBC produces, especially in the 'News and Current Affairs' side. If that is the case, I can fully understand why you like it, whereas I do not, and, given the choice, would opt out of paying the fee unless they addressed the political and ideological balancing issues they plainly have.

[technodup]

oyster said:

I pay many tens of thousands of pounds tax a year. Mostly for stuff I never use.
Why does that seem to bother so many people less than the cost of an meal for a TV Licence?

It bothers me that my taxes go to fund things which I never use. Social services, housing benefit, drugs counsellors yadda yadda.

Meanwhile some scumbag on one of those police shows I saw recently, who'd had a window put in by an axe, was in the back of the police car on the phone to her 'key worker'. Several officers required to get her down the cop shop, the inside of which she's very familiar with. Of course she's on methadone, so needs the doctor. Oh and naturally the council had to board up/replace the window. Leaving aside the £100 or whatever junkies get to buy smack with just how many thousands of pounds are being spent on these folk, who contribute absolutely fk all back in (and in all likelihood never will)?

As for the TV tax I couldn't give a toss. Not paid it in a decade. Sadly I don't have the same option with other taxes.

[Hosenbugler]

I've not watched live broadcast TV for at least 18 months now, but still get the threatening letters from the "License" enforcers.

Basically, I wasn;t watching the BBC output mainly due to the vast majority of it being bland and boring. Some of the alledged "drama" programmes being nothing but thinly veiled leftard PC propaganda. Even Doctor Who had got PC plot lines when I stopped watching it around 5 years ago, sounds like its got worse, which surprises me not.

The only BBC output I consume these days is Radio's 2 and 3. You even get the PC mantra on there. Although it has to be said, Radio 2 is getting listened to less and less by self as its just becoming more and more boring celeb interviews, crass.

On the other hand, I've been an Amazon Prime subscriber for a couple of years, and that £79 is very well spent, and a considerable saving on the BBC's £145 . Prime, and Freeview play and the other streaming channels provide more interesting output than I have time to watch.

The BBC really needs to be a subs based service , make them stand on their own feet, perhaps then they will make a lot more stuff that people actually want to see , not what they try to dictate they should. Heck, I meet even use the service again, and even pay them for the privilidge.

Untill that happens though, I can only see , Prime, Freeview play, Netflix, Now TV et al.

[anonymous-user]

KrissKross said:

You don't have to pay it.

I gathered that, but how do you stop the threatening letters and Capita Goons at the door threatening all sorts? The last time I cancelled it, it was easier just to pay to get rid of the goons, as Capita seem to assume if you declare you don't need a TV licence that you are lying.


Would be so much easier if SKY Tv allowed me to delete the BBCs offerings. I don't subscribe to the sky movies service so they are not available, same for the BBC would be great.

I could understand the need for a national broadcaster during WWII, but these days with the likes of Sky and Netflix they are irrelevant.

[schmunk]

Vandenberg said:

KrissKross said:

You don't have to pay it.

I gathered that, but how do you stop the threatening letters and Capita Goons at the door threatening all sorts? The last time I cancelled it, it was easier just to pay to get rid of the goons, as Capita seem to assume if you declare you don't need a TV licence that you are lying.


Would be so much easier if SKY Tv allowed me to delete the BBCs offerings. I don't subscribe to the sky movies service so they are not available, same for the BBC would be great.

I could understand the need for a national broadcaster during WWII, but these days with the likes of Sky and Netflix they are irrelevant.

You do realise that you need a TV license to watch live broadcasts on Sky, even channels other than the BBC, don't you...?

[Blue Cat]

I ilke the BBC for the simple reason they do different programmes which don't need to find a huge audience but are little gems

Like this for example - http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b049mtxw/the-...

Because they don't need to 'earn money' they can take more risks or take time to built a drama. How many times have people on here complained because a new US series was binned because it didn't find the audience it needed fast enough.

Also they have just started their proms coverage which again is unique to them.

They are so much more than BBC1, sport and news