Catch-Up BBC iPlayer TV License Fee Loophole May Be Closed

It has been revealed this week that the UK government is considering closing the on-demand BBC iPlayer licence fee loophole for people who are watching television through catch-up services online. According to British daily The Guardian, officials are considering extending the TV licence fee so that it also covers on-demand services like the hugely popular BBC iPlayer, which many people use to catch up on their favourite shows.

TV licence
On-demand BBC iPlayer TV licence fee loophole may be closed

The measures are being look at by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The licence fee that viewers in the United Kingdom have to pay if they are watching or recording programmes as they are broadcast is £145.50. This is regardless of whether the programmes are watched on an HDTV, computer, video game console, or other viewing platforms.

However, at present the British public do not need a licence to enjoy catch-up services such as the popular BBC iPlayer. With around 153 million radio and TV programmes having been broadcast via iPlayer in September alone, the service and other similar offerings have become increasingly popular among viewers, and it seems that the government believes that this could be a good way to cash in.

Over the coming year, more on-demand platforms are set to be launched, including YouView which is backed by the Beeb. Many believe that this increase in the availability of catch-up TV services will result in a rising number of people watching programmes using this method, while claiming not to watch actual television broadcasts in order to escape the licence fee.

With this in mind, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has said that it is mulling over the idea of extending the TV licence fee to cover catch-up services, adding that the government is aware of consumer habits evolving with the growth of catch-up TV arena.

Source: The Guardian

4 comments

  1. I will not be paying this license fee. I watch two programmes on iplayer; Merlin and Doctor Who, as these are the only ones that the BBC produces that interest me. Why should I be funding the rest of the rubbish that gets shown across it’s channels at such a high price?

  2. YUP shameful i guess BBC and tories need more tav revenues to spill out crap like the cube and x-factor, i watch maybe 1-2 documentaries per week and have to pay £140?

    No thanks i refuse to pay, its bad enough they chase P2P football and movies yet cannot offer a pay per view service for these services..naturally if they offered it they would have less piracy.

  3. RD

    Whilst I don’t agree with the licence fee as it is archaic and unfair under competition rules I must point out that the cube and x factor are commercial based programmes so no licence fee money is used on them. the fee only applies to the BBC

  4. I see a lot of grouching…..

    What you fail to understand is that you do not – DO NOT – need a television license.

    What you DO need is the correct information in order to avoid prosecution when you refuse to pay.

    I will be posting a down load of information and tools you can use so that you never have to pay for a license again. Why? (peel them folks!)

    1. THE TELEVISION LICENSE IS ILLEGAL UNDER EUROPEAN LAW
    2. THE BBC IS IN BREACH OF CONTRACT WITH THE BRITISH PUBLIC

    Read more here: http://www.tvlicensing.tk

    We are attempting to get a fighting fund together to take this to the European courts so a small donation would be appreciated, but is not a prerequisite for downloading the files.

    We will be using specialized SEO, promotion techniques and emails to get the word out but if you could spread the word that would be useful.