Future funding of BBC

House of Cards and Breaking Bad.

Likewise plus a Sky dish, because aerial reception is poor here, but I don’t subscribe for any of the additional channels, sport or films.

Which two US programmes?

Out of interest, how many of us pay for TV (other than our licence fee), what for and how much do you spend?

I only pay the licence fee and get the ‘Freeview’ channels…..which are mostly rubbish!

Two of the arguably best recent US programmes were shown on subscription channels, so a lesson there, perhaps!!

Not all US programmes are rubbish…

I wasn’t suggesting they were; in fact quite the opposite…

…but if US programmes are so well made and expensively produced, yet cheap to purchase, what will happen to British-made programmes? Answer: there won’t be any!

This is exactly what happened to the British film industry; plus there is the ‘cultural erosion’. Isn’t it true that you can now dial 911 to get the Emergency Services in the UK because so many children know that number from watching US programmes?

Not sure that I watch much “entertainment” on the BBC, although the odd comedy half hour might be an indicator. And I suppose in the golden days little thought was given to their future showing on commercial channels, hence the very odd interruptions. You mean Discovery has more adbreaks than Channel 4??!!

Indeed – Fawlty Towers and Porridge are 40mins on whatever channel they air.

Far better in some other countries with ads between programmes.

When you watch entertainment programmes on the BBC, look out for the pauses and fade outs, which make it easier for
companies to insert add breaks when they are shown elsewhere.

One of my favourite programmes used to be Time Team on Ch4. They ended up putting more add breaks in to make it easier
for Discovery to show them without cutting anything out.

I think we can take it as read that the BBC make some very good programmes.
They also make some pretty dire quiz and unreality shows.
I also don’t think there are many of us who like adverts.

Saying that, I watch a lot more non-BBC programmes. With virtually everything I watch having been recorded.

Discovery and Nat Geo, are probably worth the Sky subscription alone, and having not seen it the first time around, we have just finished watching “Hornblower” on ITV4, excellent series.

You wouldn’t have seen “House” or watch “Homeland” on the BBC. Not all US programmes are rubbish.

It’s not a case of envy, but I just despise people like Paxman and Anne Robinson being on £1 million a year, of licence payers money. Money which we have no choice but to pay (if you watch any live TV at all).

Who can remember those threatening adverts the BBC used to run, about paying your licence ? Showing a detector van outside a house, with a voice over saying “we know what you are watching”.

Detector vans which probably never even existed.

Indeed – Fawlty Towers and Porridge are 40mins on whatever channel they air.

Far better in some other countries with ads between programmes.

But at least the trailers don’t come in the middle of the programme. I can’t watch serious drama or film with ads in. Even zapping through them on the PVR degrades the experience and breaks the mood.

I also note that Red Dwarf, which was a 30 minute programme on the BBC, occupies a 40 minute slot on Dave. Says it all.

Moggy

Baz – what I watch on anything other than BBC I record so simply skip the ads. BBC advertising (trailers) is just as irritating and has become more frequent on both TV and radio in recent years.

Don’t like the BBC??? you will love it after being subject to the absolute crap that passes as “entertainment” and biased news from the likes of ABC, NBC and CBS in the States. Nothing but absolutely mindless drivel that only someone with an IQ under 12 could appreciate.
PBS used to run a lot of the Brit comedy’s which where much appreciated by me but they stopped doing it due to cost, I miss the likes of shows like “Goodnight Sweatheart” and others like it.

As I hate advertising on ITV channels with an absolute passion, they ruin decent programmes with up to 5 sets of complete crap every hour.

During meal times, I find myself changing channels often from Tamp*x adverts or toilet commercials etc.

When I’m broke, being bombarded with ‘payday’ loans or PPI scams.

When I feel unwell, how to recognise a stroke or what to do when I have blood in my pee/poo.

When I feel a bit mortal, some old (rich) bloke telling me to put money aside to help pay funeral costs.

Looking at the insides of some bloke who smokes and what it does to their lungs.

Crap food aderts (McD*nalds, Bu*gerking etc)

Tiresome insurance ads…..etc…….etc

That’s why I like the BBC

Baz

The BBC is basically the propaganda arm of the Labour party.

Don’t talk utter crap!

If you don’t purchase a licence, how they will turn off your access to BBC programmes?

They can’t; it isn’t possible.

May be some truth in it may not–but anyone who gets hold of the BBC will have a very powerful weapon.

The BBC is basically the propaganda arm of the Labour party. The bias towards the left on the BBC news is shocking.

What I want to know is.
If you don’t purchase a licence, how they will turn off your access to BBC programmes ?

Ok, it’s easy enough with Sky, but what about Freeview and Freesat ?

May be some truth in it may not–but anyone who gets hold of the BBC will have a very powerful weapon.
Remember the James Bond film with the man who wanted to run all the worlds news outputs–,reminds me of a certain disgraced Australian shyster.
I would rather the BBC stay as it is than allow it to become owned and dictated to.

For which you have not a shred of evidence. But it’s a good story.

For all it’s imperfections we need the BBC if only as a counter balance to the rapacious moguls of commercial TV, we all know that Murdoch was within touching distance of taking total control of Sky just as the NoTW brown stuff hit the fan, his next target quite clearly the BBC, he had been blathering on for quite some time about the “unfair” competition from the BBC and very noticeable just who was the first through the back door of No 10 after the election.

Probably presenting his bill for support of the Tories, personally I am convinced that but for the NoTW bust up stopping him in his tracks, the BBC would now be under considerable restrictions in both financial and content terms.

If the BBC hadn’t spent so much money trying to compete with ITV and Sky over the years, maybe they wouldn’t
have been after a licence fee increase so often ?

When ITV announced they were going to introduce Breakfast and daytime TV, the BBC had to jump in first.
They introduced a 24 hour news channel channel, to compete with Sky News. Then often duplicate the same output
as is being shown on BBC1.
They brought in BBC three (soon to go) and BBC four which often shows repeats of BBC1

BBC1 and BBC two already show lots of adds between programmes, promoting their own output.
They also make a lot of money by selling their programmes abroad.

The question is: If the BBC did go subscription only (and it’s by no means certain they will), how would they do it ?
Easy enough on Sky to turn programmes on and off, but how about Freeview, and Freesat ?

How much would it cost the BBC to provide everyone with a pay to view box ?