o/t should the tv licence be scrapped?

[desprateseagull]

simple question.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

Are you happy to pay less than the price of a Daily Mail every day for Extras, Match of the Day, the Blue Planet, Harty's phone in, arguably the best news website in the world, Test Match Special, and a hell of a lot more besides?

 

[perseus]

Its a property poll tax. Abolish it and take it out of the income tax budget so the rich can pay more for it.

 

[Hercules Rockerfeller]

Are you happy to pay less than the price of a Daily Mail every day for Extras, Match of the Day, the Blue Planet, Harty's phone in, arguably the best news website in the world, Test Match Special, and a hell of a lot more besides?

And tbe BBC makes millions selling thos things across the world, well not harty's phone in, but the other stuff. They also push loads of products in their programmes and could make money from this. We're getting shafted!

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

And tbe BBC makes millions selling thos things across the world, well not harty's phone in, but the other stuff. They also push loads of products in their programmes and could make money from this. We're getting shafted!

The millions made by the BBC flogging these programmes around the world goes back into into making more programmes, so the licence fee is not so high.

And any suggestion that the BBC "pushes lots of products" in its programmes is complete bollocks I'm afraid.

 

[desprateseagull]

what i dont understand is that the fee keeps going up - beyond inflation - despite all the other stuff they sell (dvd's, books, worldwide programme sales, etc).. surely this should be bringing the fee DOWN?!

and as for all these supposed megafees for the 'stars', i think they must have forgotten what the beeb is all about.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

The fee has been pegged to inflation untill now; the BBC is asking for an above-inflation rise to help pay for the switch to digital broadcasting.

Remember that while the licence fee has been increasing in line with inflation, the number of services it provides has increased (News 24, BBC3, BBC4, regional news from Tunbridge Wells etc etc).

Even I struggle to defend Jonathan Ross's salary. However, if the BBC were to become known in the entertainment industry as a poor payer, then there would be fewer decent entertainers on air, and everyone would complain that they don't get enough entertainment value for their licence fee....

 

[Hercules Rockerfeller]

The millions made by the BBC flogging these programmes around the world goes back into into making more programmes, so the licence fee is not so high.

And any suggestion that the BBC "pushes lots of products" in its programmes is complete bollocks I'm afraid.

Well I am happy to agree to disagree. The BBC is also over staffed and ifit cut it's work force it would bring costs down. Just look at how many staff they took to the world cup compared to othere broadcasters.

 

[perseus]

The BBC want to move to Manchester and they want an increased poll tax to pay for it.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

BBC coverage of the world cup: Live on TV, Five Live, the World Service, the internet, along with highlights programmes and news coverage on rolling TV news and more than forty radio stations.

ITV coverage of the world cup: Jim Rosenthal in a cupboard. Some highlights programmes. Some TV news coverage on three TV bulletins a day.

Sky coverage of the world cup: Er, nothing live. Some coverage on Sky News.

The BBC took loads of staff because it produces loads and loads and loads of output. All to give you, the licence payer, the best possible choice of how you want to watch or listen to the world cup....

 

[clapham_gull]

I rather pay the BBC to do things properly than send a teenager out onto the street with a camera he had a couple of days training to use.

As soon as the licence fee goes you'll see the quality of programming fall through the floor across the board.

The BBC won't feel the need to live up to its Public Service remit, and other channels won't feel the need to produce quality programming to compete with the BBC.

Compared to the cost of SKY (and the quality you get for your money) the BBC represents excellent value.

We honestly don't know how lucky we are to have it.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

Give that man a biscuit.

 

[clapham_gull]

The BBC want to move to Manchester and they want an increased poll tax to pay for it.

They already have a major base in Manchester, as well as other cities like Bristol.

 

[perseus]

The BBC have at least three people to do one job compared to private enterprise television firms.

Scrap the poll tax and have the Government-speak TV station funded through general taxation.

Then the TV company would be answerable through the democratic system.

At the moment they are a QUANGO with special powers to collect poll tax from householders.

Quangos are the highly paid unanswerable semi-Government organisations. They are only answerable to their paymasters the Government., not to the public or the viewers. Independence means they can be arrogant and prejudiced in their own special manner. It is not as though the standard of their programmes is very good. The only good thing about the BBC TV is their lack of annoying adverts.

 

[clapham_gull]

Commercial television is free is it ?

You'll never hear ITV bleating on about how they don't cost you anything.

Funded by advertising, that's paid for by us by shopping in Tescos.

 

[clapham_gull]

The BBC have at least three people to do one job compared to private enterprise television firms.

Scrap the poll tax and have the Government-speak TV station funded through general taxation.

Then the TV company would be answerable through the democratic system.

At the moment they are a QUANGO with special powers to collect poll tax from householders.

Quangos are the highly paid unanswerable semi-Government organisations. They are only answerable to their paymasters the Government., not to the public or the viewers. Independence means they can be arrogant and prejudiced in their own special manner. It is not as though the standard of their programmes is very good. The only good thing about the BBC TV is their lack of annoying adverts.

One thing I like about the BBC is that it ISN'T afraid to stand up to successive Governments.

 

[Kenhead]

Doesn't the bbc own uktv? They show adverts!!

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

The BBC co-owns UKTV with a company called Flextech.

BBC World TV shows adverts in some countries, too -- but then neither are funded by the licence payer.

 

[clapham_gull]

Doesn't the bbc own uktv? They show adverts!!

Not wholly owned by the BBC, possibly with Flextech.

 

[Kenhead]

Ah thats right.

To be honest for what the licence is and all the different products you get for it, it is worth the money.

I don't really watch many bbc shows tho so with digital coming in maybe they can do a pay as you watch servies. As not everyone has the internet and are paying for a services that they are not useing!