So the Government has decreed that the TV Licencing fee shall decrease in real-terms over the next seven years. A move that was declared to be in line with a “tough spending round” for HMG departments, n.b. these are not ‘Tory cuts’.
Fine, I say.
Yes, it was silly for the BBC to agree to a new charter, and all the requirements that entails, before it had secured funding. But a large chunk of money has been put aside within the BBC budget for additional projects relating to the transformation to digital TV and the analogue switch-off.
Extra-ordinary costs! you doubtless say. How can the Licence fee payers be expected to pay for the jump across to digital?
Well, they might not have to. The analogue switch-off will free up lots of prime real-estate in the UHF spectrum. This time around the telcos aren’t going to get their fingers burned again after the 3G fiasco, but the auction of the spare frequencies should still raise a pretty penny. Brown wasn’t planning on keeping all that money to himself, was he?
Let the Beeb / Channel 4 / ITV / 5 keep the dosh raised from the analogue auction and make them plough it into assisting folks with digiboxes and new digital programming.
Just so long as it’s not more Robin Hood.
I have often seen reminiscences of people I have never even heard of, and I fail to see -- because I do not happen to be a 'Somebody' -- why my blog should not be interesting. My only regret is that I did not commence it when I was a youth.
