Under new plans from the Labour Government, the BBC licence fee could be expanded so more Brits pay the £180 annual charge. Those only watching TV through streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ could be forced to pay.
The Culture Secretary, Lisa Nandy, has said that this staggered system is one the Government is considering as it prepares a White Paper on the future of the BBC, to be published later this year. Ms Nandy has ruled out the BBC showing adverts, instead preferring funding to come from streaming service subscriptions. This is in the hope that the Government can avert the “existential threat” to the BBC caused by falling licence fee uptake and ensure its sustainability until 2038.
The Culture Secretary pointed out the importance of the national broadcaster, saying: “If you watch any Netflix, Amazon Prime or Apple TV show, it’s likely that you’ll be watching something that has been made with the support of BBC infrastructure, that has been made with staff trained by the BBC.
“There is a shared belief across Government, including the Prime Minister and the Chancellor, that the BBC is one of the most important institutions in this country alongside the NHS.”
Ms Nandy told a cross-party select committee that the Government have ruled out general taxation or a corporate levy on streamers, adding: “We are committed to retaining the licence fee but reforming it.
“But there are other options that are available. One is expanding the scope to video on demand services and platforms…you could add a charge onto people’s streaming subscriptions that would be paid by the consumer.”
“You might pay a small additional amount if you had a streaming service rather than the full licence fee. You could then task the BBC with having targeted concessions for people who needed them or who used BBC services less.
But streaming services aren’t all keen on the idea. Greg Peters, the co-chief executive of Netflix, told The Sunday Times: “Separating essentially what I watch and what I pay for feels like a significant market distortion. It feels like a very strange structure to me.”