BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Well, it looks as though it is finally happening. The new Conservative Government is so angry with the Beeb over left wing bias by BBC interviewers and the flagship Radio 4 'Today' programme that it has indicated it is now prepared to consider scrapping the licence fee.

I suspect that this will be difficult (but not impossible) to achieve, mainly because anyone with older TV sets will not be able to 'unlock' the channels with a subscription, which appears to be the favoured means of achieving this change. The same problem is not presented for customers with a Sky, VM, BT or Talk Talk TV subscription or those with access to Freeview Play, etc. So this move will not be popular with pensioners, many of whom will not be able to afford to buy new equipment.

Radio will be a bigger problem, as most radio users will be able to continue to have free access to all their favourite radio stations, whether they subscribe or not.

I am an advocate of scrapping the licence fee to replace the current licence fee model, but I was not expecting this to be accomplished until the 2030s. I cannot see how they can implement this over the short term without upsetting rather a lot of people.

Does anyone have any ideas as to how this problem will be overcome?

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Ads.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Ha ha! Yes, might not go down well, apart from on Radio 1!

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

The licence fee runs until 2027 and the fee itself to come up in 2022. I think most people, including the BBC, do expect the model to change in 2027.

Until then I think this is more about positioning and PR from the Government than any practical proposals they might have. Not doing the Andrew Neil interview, boycotting Today and only going to 'friendly' outlets is a more distributing trend but it's one we're seeing across politics these days.

---------- Post added at 19:21 ---------- Previous post was at 19:16 ----------

The BBC would run fine with ads but it'll ITV, Channel 4 and the rest that will worry about the BBC entering that market.

The most likely scenario is the BBC has a hybrid subscription model whereby some content is locked behind a paywall of sorts but the Government gives them money to air some of that programming for free on standard television and radio. Additionally they'll continue to provide public service broadcasting and news as part of that remit. The BBC has been increasingly aggressive about BBC Worldwide in their attempt to draw in revenue from abroad too which might allow them to survive without ads in the U.K.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Quite a few of the big projects are co-produced(ie funded) with others.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

It it does become a subscription, folks could end up paying considerably more. Compare the licence fee against what Sky or Virgin charge annually.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Only those who want it.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Well it you want quality original British drama that's the envy of the world, go for the BBC. If you want imported US crap and repeats go for Sky/VM.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

I go for neither.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

I would have thought a left leaning liberal such as yourself would have gladly seen off a universal tax such as the licence fee.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

How much is actually fully made by the BBC?

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

You thought wrong then (and it isn't universal, no TV, then no fee). However the fact the fee is widespread is why its so cheap (£13 a month) compared to other providers, and it produces more original programming.

There isn't a profit motive with the BBC, anything made goes back into programming, unlike commercial channels where if it doesn't make money, it's not made. That's why it's output unique and high quality, it has a public service remit. It goes beyond TV with national and local radio and ad free website. Mess with it and it'll become another down-market Sky/ITV and cost more, with less original output.

Is it my imagination or have we had several BBC licence fee bashing threads like this before, mostly started by OB ? ;)

---------- Post added at 21:43 ---------- Previous post was at 21:41 ----------

The fact it's original programming is the important factor.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

The percentage is determined by the charter. I don’t know offhand but for first-run drama I’ve a feeling it’s roughly half and half. That’s not to say the rest is imported - what the BBC doesn’t make in-house it commissions. This became a thing in the 1980s as a deliberate decision of Thatcher’s government to stimulate independent tv production in the UK. We have a vibrant film and TV production industry in the UK as a result. It doubtless helps that the BBC is such a massive commissioner of original programming, and of course it is able to do so because the licence fee guarantees it a large and reliable income to spend on such programming.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

Never really touch the BBC anymore. I remember when F1 was on there though.

Because whether you like the content is opinion based of course. I find I get better original content on Amazon and Netflix. So in a subscription model BBC, I'm out.

The only need for my TV licence is for Sky sports/BT sports and anything Amazon Live I suppose. So I'd welcome a scrappage of the fee too.

Re: BBC licence fee to be reviewed by Conservatives
 

He means co-productions like Fleabag I think. However in those cases the BBC typically just seeks out the funding alone and still is the original commissioner. The deal usually means that the other funding partner gets it for non-UK distribution. As far as I know the only partner who takes an active role in production itself is HBO.

The BBC and the National Theatre are big reasons why the UK has such a high amount of writers, directors and actors doing well both here and in America.