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Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirius (Post 35938714)

Not at all, if i don't use it how can i be surprised.

Anyway my point is i should have a choice and not be forced to pay because i own a TV. If i only watch SKY sports for instance and none of the BBC's products why should i have to pay a tax to the BBC when they had no input in the making of Sky's sports programs ???

Same reason you’re forced to pay for services you don’t use via your council tax. Parliament has ruled that the BBC services, provided in the way that they are, are useful and desirable to the national life.

You may choose to use a private school or a private health club but you still pay council tax, which funds the local leisure centre and the local school.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris (Post 35938721)

No, Chris, it's not the same. It is important for the economy and the services we expect to receive that the whole population is educated, just as you could say it is in the public interest that facilities are provided to encourage the population to be active and healthy. And so on.

But the BBC - this is just entertainment! Why should I be required to fund your entertainment?

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris (Post 35938721)

Totally wrong to compare the way you have. Useful and desirable to national life? How???

Spending by any council can and has been challenged and changed by the local community the council serves.

The BBC is a service provider. Unlike any other service provider you are forced to pay for it. You cannot be cut off for not paying for the service you use but you still have to pay.

Again unlike any other service provider you cannot move to another if you can get a better deal.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

This thread is not about the BBC, or its licence, get back to the topic please.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirius (Post 35938714)

Do you use any BBC apps on your phone? Listen to any BBC radio? Use the BBC website at all? Follow any of its weather or news reports? . Watch any of the many cable channels that are repeating BBC output ?

Maybe you don't, but the vast majority do use the BBC in some way.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr K (Post 35938772)

None all.

BTW any channel showing showing any content licensed by the BBC has to pay for it.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

I think that what this thread shows is that people are much more fired up about the BBC and its financing than whether ITV will disappear from our Virgin Media platform!

ITV should be worried!

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by OLD BOY (Post 35938815)

I think that what this thread shows is that people are much more fired up about the BBC and its financing than whether ITV will disappear from our Virgin Media platform!

ITV should be worried!

ITV is an irrelevance. The BBC would go down market and the same way if the licence fee went.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr K (Post 35938970)

ITV is an irrelevance. The BBC would go down market and the same way if the licence fee went.

No, it wouldn’t, or they would lose a lot of potential subscribers. To hold on to as many as possible, they could not dumb down from where they are now.

I don’t agree that ITV is an irrelevance, but I don’t support their push to make VM pay for carrying the channel. I would miss it if it went, but not that much.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr K (Post 35938205)

So to stand on its own 2 feet that would mean the BBC advertising and an end to programming that doesn't make a profit?? It would just become ITV/Sky or any of the other rubbish channels, of which we have hundreds. More down market reality TV, less quality drama and documentaries.
It's not just 2 channels either it's several channels, plus it's radio, local and national, and the website. All provided without advertising, it would be hard to totally avoid using it. It comes out at about £12 a month, compared to Sky/VM it's a bargain, many of their channels are just repeating BBC content.

BBC local radio was awful in the main, it's why they done away with most of its output apart from breakfast and drive shows and their national stations have been overtaken imo, I don't even listen to radio 4 anymore

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnathome (Post 35938285)

I have to pay over £12 a month for the BBC, the only things I've watched in the last 3 months are Blue Planet and Detectorists.

If the BBC was a subscription service i would have stopped paying long ago, certainly at that price a month.

That's two things more than me, I only watch tv on a Wednesday and that is purely so I get some value from having to pay the tax and it's never the BBC I watch, I used to like BBC3 but they did away with that

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr K (Post 35938398)

£12 a month to produce mostly original content, advert free plus all the extra service s the BBC provides is a steal.
Sky/VM charge 3 times plus that amount, for advert infested and imported crap. The little content they do produce is usually of inferior quality.
We need a state broadcaster, it's output is unique as its not influenced by profit/advertisers, it really would be a case of you'd miss it when its gone.

I prefer to look at it as the BBC is stealing from me

Quote:

Originally Posted by japitts (Post 35938713)

Yep, agreed. I know that BBC bashing is quite fashionable these days, and there's a lot more competition - but take away everything they provide and I suspect a few people would be rather surprised.

Yes I'd be pleasantly surprised by the extra 12 quid a month

---------- Post added at 08:45 ---------- Previous post was at 08:43 ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris (Post 35938721)

Those are essential services, the BBC is not, you could make an argument that it used to be but that argument was lost about 10 years ago at the latest, probably even earlier

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

The BBC probably have to pay for the rights to broadcast sports programs - especially live events - as do others like Sky & BT etc.
They also have to pay writers, producers, actors, cameramen, sound engineers etc etc to make the programs they air, and that's not even touching upon the research, travel, accommodation needed for those rather excellent nature programs they provide.
You may watch the news for 30 minutes, but there's a lot more than 30 minutes of work goes into it.

The BBC don't 'do' adverts so rely on their income from the license fee or by selling their programs to other companies.

ITV have the same costs, but generated by advertising and selling their programs to other broadcasters.

If I made something (or had the rights to something) and another company wanted to use it, I'd be a fool to let them have it for nothing. I would either sell or hire that product to others . . . and if they didn't like that arrangement, well feel free to make your own :p:

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carth (Post 35939208)

I'm sure they pay for content, although sport can't cost much because Wimbledon apart there is very little on.

They could make a lot of savings - paying 1.5 million for Lineker to front football highlights is a massive waste as is paying a fortune to have 2 newsreaders plus a weather person, a sports person and a business person on breakfast news. Why so many? Because they don't care how much they spend as it is given to them rather than earns.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

The point everyone is missing is simple. If ITV pulled out of VM. there are other platforms that ITV is shown on.

Re: ITV threaten to blackout on Virgin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arthurgray50@blu (Post 35939320)

The point everyone is missing is simple. If ITV pulled out of VM. there are other platforms that ITV is shown on.

What about the loss of revenue for ITV, which relies heavily on advertising and thus needs audience share to be set at maximum?

It's true that ITV can be viewed through an aerial but not everyone has one, and also many who do have no means of recording these programmes.

There is always TV Player, but who can be bothered with that?