TV Licence Super Thread

Roar87 · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:16

I don't think £12.12 is good value for money anymore when it's compared to Netflix. The BBC hardly produce any programs that I want to watch, Planet Earth 2 being the only exception in a long while. If iPlayer had all the back catalog programs, especially the classic BBC comedies then it would make sense, but they don't. There's very few programs aimed at 18-35 year old males except Match of the Day, which is rather niché as a lot of people aren't interested in football

Diddums · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:16

Duke said:
You seem to be getting rather upset over a service you don't use.

It's not the service, it's the incessant fake bullying, pretending to be THE LAW and trying to intimidate me into paying. And yes, I've told them I don't use their services. Twice.

Glaucus · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:17

Columbo said:
Who doesn't have adverts?

netflix, amazon, nowtv.

even 4od only has a 30 second add very occasionally. rather than several minutes, 4 times an hour like on tv.

Columbo · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:19

Glaucus said:
netflix, amazon, nowtv.

even 4od only has a 30 second add very occasionally. rather than several minutes, 4 times an hour like on tv.

Was referring the radio specifically, apologies if that wasn't clear.

tom_e · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:20

nowtv have started to drop small amounts of adverts into some but not all of their TV shows.
I can't remember what it was I was watching the other week but there was at least one "break" per episode.

Noxia · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:20

Tefal said:
no its not.

depending o nwhat they're like in your area, ignoring them means a letter once i na while to "the occupier" telling them you dont need one means you still get the letrters but also the occaisonal "we want to send an inspector".

many areas telling them, even letting them in to inspect doesnt change anything.

Sounds like harassment!

Glaucus · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:21

Columbo said:
Was referring the radio specifically, apologies if that wasn't clear.

eww radio, how can people listen to radio. Stupid talking ejits especially at breakfast shows.

Noxia said:
Sounds like harassment!

it really is but as its a tax and government controlled they get away with it. Even though i have no issue with tv license i do have an issue with their tactics.

tom_e · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:22

Noxia said:
Sounds like harassment!

I've had them stood on my front step "cautioning" me back when I was in a shared student house, their tactics are definitely very very questionable.

VincentHanna · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:23

Roar87 said:
I don't think £12.12 is good value for money anymore when it's compared to Netflix. The BBC hardly produce any programs that I want to watch, Planet Earth 2 being the only exception in a long while

In general I find people massively under-estimate the BBC shows they watch/consume

Off the top of my head in 2016 for me:

Question Time
BBC News (Internet and TV)
Murder in Sucessville
American Crime Story (OJ simpson trial)
The Night Manager
Peaky Blinders
The Fall
Line of Duty
The Missing
Planet Earth II
Inside No 9
Hillsborough
Charlie Brookers Yearly Wipe

I also download the 5 Live wittertainment podcast (Kermode and Mayo) and listen to 5 Live and 6 Music a lot in the car.

Basher · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:23

Glaucus said:
eww radio, how can people listen to radio. Stupid talking ejits especially at breakfast shows.

You're listening to the wrong radio stations.

Bantu · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:24

VincentHanna said:
Ummmm...wha?

I believe they mean services like Amazon Prime and Netflix. Tbh those cost the same as a TV License and it's not like the quality of Netflix/Amazon shows on average is any better than the combined BBC TV/Radio/Independent channel shows.

I am a big supporter of the TV license.. at £13 a month i support fantastic documentaries on BBC4, great drama on BBC1, comedies on C4 and radio 4 and 6 music. There's a lot of fluff around too, but i find enough value in what is offered. Having said that the amount of live TV i watch is minimal, i get most of the shows on catch-up/streaming.

Psycho Sonny · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:25

MookJong said:
It's worth it for
BBC Radio 4
BBC Podcasts.
BBC4 especially the documentaries and Nordic dramas
BBC TV Dramas - Luther, The Game, State of Play, Taboo
BBC Wildlife programs
NO ADVERTS

A lot of the BBC is left leaning as of late though...

I love it when people say it's worth it for and then go on to list ONLY bbc shows.

You need a TV license to watch ANY channel live. So Even if you don't watch BBC you still need a license.

The only shows I watch on BBC are Taboo, Peaky Blinders, Match of the Day and the like. It's a handful of shows at best.

I watch mainly Sky Atlantic, Syfy, Fox, etc. All of which require a TV license too.

The TV license IMO needs to be scrapped and just added onto council tax at half the rate it currently is so all the freeloaders need to stump up their half. So add £60 a year onto council tax and be done with it.

Basher · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:26

VincentHanna said:
In general I find people massively under-estimate the BBC shows they watch/consume

Off the top of my head in 2016 for me:

Question Time
BBC News (Internet and TV)
Murder in Sucessville
American Crime Story (OJ simpson trial)
The Night Manager
Peaky Blinders
The Fall
Line of Duty
The Missing
Planet Earth II
Inside No 9
Hillsborough
Charlie Brookers Yearly Wipe

I also download the 5 Live wittertainment podcast (Kermode and Mayo) and listen to 5 Live and 6 Music a lot in the car.

Fair enough, a lot of those shows are absolutely brilliant. But what if you don't like/want any of them, wouldn't it be nice to have a choice to pay/not pay your subscription on that basis? What if I didn't like any of those but quite liked C5? My only option is a TVL which doesn't seem all that fair.

Tefal · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:27

VincentHanna said:
In general I find people massively under-estimate the BBC shows they watch/consume

Off the top of my head in 2016 for me:

Question Time
BBC News (Internet and TV)
Murder in Sucessville
American Crime Story (OJ simpson trial)
The Night Manager
Peaky Blinders
The Fall
Line of Duty
The Missing
Planet Earth II
Inside No 9
Hillsborough
Charlie Brookers Yearly Wipe

I also download the 5 Live wittertainment podcast (Kermode and Mayo) and listen to 5 Live and 6 Music a lot in the car.

aside from the news ive not seen a single one of them, nor have any interested me

Tefal · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:28

Bantu said:
I believe they mean services like Amazon Prime and Netflix. Tbh those cost the same as a TV License and it's not like the quality of Netflix/Amazon shows on average is any better than the combined BBC TV/Radio/Independent channel shows.

the quality is radically better.

the netflix original series alone destroy the bbc.

then theres all the films etc.

VincentHanna · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:28

Psycho Sonny said:
The TV license IMO needs to be scrapped and just added onto council tax at half the rate it currently is so all the freeloaders need to stump up their half. So add £60 a year onto council tax and be done with it.

I forgot it also partly funds Channel 4.

You just know there would be people who refuse to pay the 'TV License' cost if it was added to council tax, and then the councils are burdened with additional work they can't afford, trying to get people to pay.

Glaucus · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:29

Basher said:
Fair enough, a lot of those shows are absolutely brilliant. But what if you don't like/want any of them, wouldn't it be nice to have a choice to pay/not pay your subscription on that basis? What if I didn't like any of those but quite liked C5? My only option is a TVL which doesn't seem all that fair.

other than planet earth 2 the rest i don't watch, and bbc news website very occasionally but you don't need a license for that.
Only thing I need a license for is the ~20 live f1 races a year, The few tv shows can be watched later on.

which makes it extremely expensive.

Psycho Sonny · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:29

You need a TV license even if you only watch 1 show on ITV.

it's a bit of a farce the way it's set up. Even if you don't watch any BBC content or Channel 4 content you still need one.

It's not just a BBC only license it covers all live tv and iPlayer. It is a TV license not a BBC license.

Pottsey · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:30

VincentHanna said:
In general I find people massively under-estimate the BBC shows they watch/consume

Off the top of my head in 2016 for me:

Question Time
BBC News (Internet and TV)
Murder in Sucessville
American Crime Story (OJ simpson trial)
The Night Manager
Peaky Blinders
The Fall
Line of Duty
The Missing
Planet Earth II
Inside No 9
Hillsborough
Charlie Brookers Yearly Wipe

I also download the 5 Live wittertainment podcast (Kermode and Mayo) and listen to 5 Live and 6 Music a lot in the car.

I find people massively over estimate BBC content. Compare the above to Amazon or Netflix and the BBC content is both lower quietly and less of it all the while costing a lot more.

Plus the decent stuff like Planet Earth and The Night Manager you can watch much cheaper via Amazon then what the TV licence costs.

Jeps · 16 Jan 2017 at 16:31

Pottsey said:
It costs a lot at around double or triple of the price of the alternatives for less content and lower quality content. The problem is there should be a choice without getting constant harassment from them.

I'd argue that the BBC puts out higher quality content then most others. Shows like Sherlock, Luther, The Night Manager etc. All feature A list Celebs at the top of their game and are some of the highest quality TV around. Then you have documentaries like planet earth which nobody else makes anything even close to the same. Add in BBC news and shows like strictly, graham norton and all the rest and its not that bad value wise. There is a lot of consistent high quality content there.