BBC says it needs overhaul to survive as rise of streaming undermines licence fee

The BBC has said it is facing “permanent and irreversible” trends that mean it cannot survive without amajor overhaul, asitrevealedastark divergence between the number of people consuming its content and those paying the licence fee.

- Michael Savage

In its opening response to government talks over its future, the corporation said 94% of people in the UK continued to use the BBCeach month, but less than 80% of households contributed to the licence fee.

It said the rise of streaming services and digital platforms such as YouTube had caused confusion around when the licence fee needed to be paid, suggesting there was a “mismatch” between TV licence rules -based on watchinglive TV - and the nation’s viewing habits.

“The BBC has gone from being a service almost every household paid forand used to one that almost every household uses but millions do not pay for,” it said.

The broadcaster suggested the licence fee could actually fall for some groups and become more progressive if the government found a way to ensure that more people paid forit, closing the gap between those consuming and those funding its output.

The BBC warned that without the change, there would be a “tipping point” at which those still paying the licence fee would resent having to doso, fuelling even greater nonpayment. Itsaid the current rules would leave a “diminishing number of people paying for a service designed for and made available to everyone”.

Its official response to the charter renewal process, in which it will negotiate with the government over its future, suggested that other platforms such as Netflix or YouTube could do more to alert people when they were watching content that required a TV licence.

Audiences watching any live TV - such as new series, sporting events and news - on the likes of YouTube or streaming platforms need a TV licence, but thisis apparently not well known andnoteffectively enforced.

While the plans suggest the BBC wants to widen and simplify when someone needs to pay the licence fee, its 114-page document did not spell out exactly whatit believed the new tules should cover.