4 ms·
It's insane to me that BBC now has a paywall. Way to fall-off from being the one source of news everyone in "Anglo" countries in the Third-World used to turn t
by profsummergig 9mo ago
It's insane to me that BBC now has a paywall.
Way to fall-off from being the one source of news everyone in "Anglo" countries in the Third-World used to turn to (and love and respect... however biased the news may have been).
Edit: am trying to access from US, I see a paywall. Good to hear from comments that other countries don't see a paywall.
- sam_lowry_ 9mo agoI don't see the paywall. EU-bound.
- dewey 9mo ago> US-based visitors to BBC.com will now have to pay $49.99 (£36) a year or $8.99 (£6.50) a month for access to most BBC News stories and features, and to stream the BBC News channel. Only the US traffic has a paywall, there's none if you visit it from somewhere else. Understandable to charge people who don't pay for it with their taxes in my opinion, especially if you delivery videos and other expensive content for free without ads.
- landl0rd 9mo agoThere are another two hundred-odd countries who also do not pay for it with their taxes. The BBC has apparently not seen fit to paywall them. This is a very confusing and inconsistent move.
- dewey 9mo ago> BBC.com reaches 139 million visitors globally, including almost 60 million in the US, the corporation said. From: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2vgkn7w10o https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2vgkn7w10o The other countries most likely don't make up such a big chunk of visits / costs. FWIW: There's many news sources in the US (Usually regional news papers etc.) that just throw a forbidden or 402 status code right away at anyone not using a US IP.
- landl0rd 9mo agoThe BBC puts ads on visitors from outside Britain. The NPV for them of having a foreigner visit the site is probably very weakly positive.
- Symbiote 9mo agoIt should be funded as part of spreading the British viewpoint, promoting British values, culture and so on — i.e. maintaining "soft power". I would have expected Britain to realize this and continue funding it.
- scott_w 9mo agoMost of these cuts happened under the previous government, including where they restricted how revenue from BBC World Service can be recycled into its local broadcasting. You'd almost think the Conservatives were trying to get rid of it.
- verzali 9mo agoThe US is suing the BBC for $10bn. It is only fair for Americans to pay the cost of that.
- lenkite 9mo agoHuh, viewing from India here - no paywall. BBC can be biased, but it is very useful to know what the British state media thinks. This article is neutral reporting with barely any "analyst opinion" flavor.
- scott_w 9mo agoJust for clarity: the BBC is not "state media," it's a public broadcaster. This is an important distinction as the UK Government cannot determine its agenda or directly influence its funding. The BBC will regularly criticise the government, especially when it's a Labour government.
- zppln 9mo agoHow is the license fee set, and what happens if you don't pay it?
- scott_w 9mo agoIt's set every 10 years as part of the charter renewal process agreed with the government and Parliament. Not paying the Licence Fee is a criminal offence. None of these make the BBC "state media."
- throwaway85825 9mo agoThose are all indicators of state media.
- scott_w 9mo agoDid you miss this: > UK Government cannot determine its agenda or directly influence its funding. > The BBC will regularly criticise the government The funding is set for a 10 year cycle, beyond the scope of any individual government specifically to protect the BBC from editorial interference by the government. That’s why it’s a publicly funded broadcaster, not “state media.” The onus is now on you and the OP to prove your claim that the BBC is state media.