Do you need a TV licence to use BBC iPlayer?

norm

norm

norm

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If you use the BBC's iPlayer service, or others like it e.g. 4OnDemand, in place of a television, do you require a TV licence?
 
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The TV licence only covers 'live or nearly live' (i.e. accounting for delays from satellite transmission etc) transmissions or home recordings from those transmissions, so things like iPlayer are exempt, to the best of my knowledge.
 
Interesting. And you could still legally play it back on your TV, just so long as the tuning circuit is not tuned/active.
 
No, not yet anyways. It was covered on Ashley Highfield's blog (FM&T Director). When live content is available - then yes.
 
marc2003 said:
[...] surely you can't get done for having a pc and an internet connection? :p [...]
Click to expand...
Technically, yes - if you watch streamed media [that's broadcast at the same time as being streamed, like sports events etc] without paying your TV licence 'fee' using this 'television receiver', you're committing an offence that's prosecutable under criminal law. By the way, this doesn't just apply to UK television; If Brazilian TV are broadcasting a programme and you're watching a concurrent stream from their website, you need to own a UK TV licence. Figure that one out.

It's in the Communications Act 2003. I can't be bothered to go delving into legalese right now, but I know it's in there from having fun with TVL in the past.

How can they enforce it? Good question ;)
 
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