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I'm in the US and I don't know anything about the BBC's licensing, funding, etc. I do love, love, love its content.

by izak30 14y ago

corin_ 14y ago
In case you're interested, here's a quick overview, as it's an interesting and (I think) unique situation. The BBC is publicly owned, and it's primary source of income is "the license fee". A TV license is required if you watch any live TV in the UK, and costs £145/year ($230). You need a license even if you never watch a BBC channel (there are 100s of channels - our equivalents of HBO, ESPN etc.) however you don't need a license if you never watch live TV (you can watch on-demand TV, for example through BBC iPlayer, and not have to have a license). BBC also makes money through stuff like DVD sales, both in the UK and all over the world, and by selling shows they own to other countries (e.g. Top Gear). Most content on the BBC website (news/etc.) is available from anywhere in the world, but if you visit from outside the UK you are shown advertising. Video content (e.g. TV shows on iPlayer) is generally not available outside the UK, however I believe this is soon to change and it will be available for a fee. Some small amounts of content (for example this "BBC Future", that this article is from) are for some unknown reason created for a non-UK audience and does not allow viewers with UK IP addresses. (OK, it's not easy to give a "quick" overview of the BBC, my bad.)
- 1337biz 14y ago
  Maybe worth adding to the outside-of-the-UK part: They have been offering for quite a while now the (fee based) BBC Global iPlayer. It seems rather successful despite the £44/year price-tag: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9403432/BBC-global-iPlayer-app-reaches-one-million-downloads.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9403432/BBC-globa...
  - corin_ 14y ago
    Wow time flies, had no idea it had launched already, yet alone a year ago - thanks for correcting me.

I'm in the US and I don't know anything about the BBC's licensing, funding, etc. I do love, love, love its content.

by izak30 14y ago

I'm in the US and I don't know anything about the BBC's licensing, funding, etc. I do love, love, love its content.

In case you're interested, here's a quick overview, as it's an interesting and (I think) unique situation. The BBC is publicly owned, and it's primary source of income is "the license fee". A TV license is required if you watch any live TV in the UK, and costs £145/year ($230). You need a license even if you never watch a BBC channel (there are 100s of channels - our equivalents of HBO, ESPN etc.) however you don't need a license if you never watch live TV (you can watch on-demand TV, for example through BBC iPlayer, and not have to have a license). BBC also makes money through stuff like DVD sales, both in the UK and all over the world, and by selling shows they own to other countries (e.g. Top Gear). Most content on the BBC website (news/etc.) is available from anywhere in the world, but if you visit from outside the UK you are shown advertising. Video content (e.g. TV shows on iPlayer) is generally not available outside the UK, however I believe this is soon to change and it will be available for a fee. Some small amounts of content (for example this "BBC Future", that this article is from) are for some unknown reason created for a non-UK audience and does not allow viewers with UK IP addresses. (OK, it's not easy to give a "quick" overview of the BBC, my bad.)

1337biz 14y ago
Maybe worth adding to the outside-of-the-UK part: They have been offering for quite a while now the (fee based) BBC Global iPlayer. It seems rather successful despite the £44/year price-tag: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9403432/BBC-global-iPlayer-app-reaches-one-million-downloads.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/9403432/BBC-globa...
- corin_ 14y ago
  Wow time flies, had no idea it had launched already, yet alone a year ago - thanks for correcting me.