Exunctly.

BBC doesn't have adverts. An hour of programming is actually an hour, not 45 minutes.

It also used to be a state controlled enterprise anyway, so the laws arn't gona be changing anytime soon.

PBS is the US's equivalent of the BBC. They have to run pledge drives to suppliment the little bit that they get from the government.

C-SPAN is a cable thing. All the cable operators pitch in for C-SPAN for some of their public service type things.

I also just realized that I'm replying to an older message in the thread. I hope I don't look like a dumbass for reposting what other people have already said.

http://upe.acm.jhu.edu/websites/Jon_Grover/page2.htm
SFW link
It works, I'm in the process of building a setup to do it, and I think WIRED had an article about driving around NYC with one, with highlights being Wall Street (insider tips, anyone?) and the World Trade Center (I think it was 1999)

So, have the costs gone down? The website you linked says that the boxes cost around $5000.

What you are doing is paying a tax for a device that can receive television signals.
The govt here controls who broadcasts on what frequencies, just like your state authorities. And for that you pay the tax if you use their service.

Just like road and vehicle taxes or airport taxes.

If you have a monitor that does not have a built-in tuner then you can get away with it as you can obviously only play pre-recorded programs. This fails if you have an external tuner sitting next to it.

So technically yes, if you had a tuner card in your pc you might be able to bluff out of it, but the Sky digital dish or the aerial cable entering your house would be a dead give-away.

I'm confused by the premise of this answer. I know that you pay taxes to watch TV.... I also know, I think, that you have adverts on your TV as well.

I don't know what the premise for your answer is. Is it because of the van Eck boxes?

What? Not exactly.

You HAVE to pay a fee to watch television. I don't HAVE to pay any fee for television.

Sure, if I want more channels I have to pay a fee, but I'm not forced to pay the fee. And yes, I will have to see adverts. But I will have to see adverts on cable television also, so the point is moot.

Basic cable is not free.

Broadcast aerial is.

I can tell you that almost in NYC has access to broadcast TV for free as most apartments buildings will not allow one to put an antennae on the rooftop without some form of payment to the building owner. I believe ours was $1/month.

If you ask almost anyone, it's quite rare to hear someone say that they don't have cable TV, unlike in the 80's when cable penetration was low and cable infrastructure still being built.

I also know that in Iceland each household has to pay for the government channel, I don't recall the fee.

I'm also pretty sure there are some taxes built into the cost of the TV set you purchase not just the sales tax.

Very soon even broadcast TV reception will require a digital converter for non-digital televisions. Televisions without won't be picking up anything but high quality snowstorms. The existing TV spectrum will be auctioned and re-allocated. Those digital converters shouldn't cost much initially - which will help calm the masses - but I wonder how long before pay-per-view for "enhanced content".

Indications (from hearings minutes, press releases, interviews) suggest broadcasters are pushing hard for a rapid all-digital adoption. The FCC wanted it for 2006. McCain had proposed that the current (?) deadline for digital-only TV sales be extended from 2007 to 2009, and that a chunk of the spectrum auction proceeds go toward providing converters (public frequencies, etc.), but the Senate killed it. It probably will be extended due to lack of consensus between cable, broadcasters, and govt, but I haven't heard about many public hearings. (Memories of the FCC lifting media ownership restrictions back in 2003.)

I haven't been keeping up on things this last year so don't take dates or details as gospel. Regardless, the direction seems clear. Our free television won't remain what we grew up with.

Right back at you... babe. ;)

La di di, one two three,
Eric the Half a Bee.
A B C D E F G,
Eric the Half a Bee.

Is this wretched demi-bee,
Half asleep upon my knee,
Some freak from a menagerie?
No! It's Eric the Half a Bee.

Fiddle di dum, fiddle di dee,
Eric the Half a Bee.
Ho ho ho, tee hee hee,
Eric the Half a Bee.

Half-a-bee, philosophically
Must ipso-facto half not-be.
But half the bee, has got to bee
Vis-a-vis its entity ... d'you see?
But can a bee be said to be
Or not to be an entire bee
When half the bee is not a bee
Due to some ancient injury?

Singing...

La di di, a-one-two-three
Eric The Half-A-Bee
A-B-C-D-E-F-G
Eric The Half-A-Bee
Is this a-wretched demi-bee
Half asleep upon my knee
Some freak from a managerie?
NO! It's Eric The Half-A-Bee!
A-fiddle-di-dum, a-fiddle-di-dee
Eric The Half-A-Bee
Ho-ho-ho, tee-hee-hee
Eric The Half-A-Bee
I love this hive employ-e-e
Bisected accidentally
One summer afternoon by me
I love him carnally
He loves him carnally
Semi-carnally. The end.


:D

I'm going to go download that song now...

You can download songs?????

what will they think of next!

Yeah, I know. Isn't that what I said in my post?

Genetically engineered radio-active super songs, that spout fire from their lyrics and crush all who dare not buy them!

Well, if certain american companies get their way they will. :hmm:

One of my favourate bonuses of the TV license is that all of the non-BBC channels in the UK still have to compete with the BBC. This means that none of them can bombard you with ads every 5 minutes, and you can get through most shows with only one ad break. Broadcasters who try to show more ads risk losing viewers to the BBC.

I think the license is worth it. The BBC's trialing a service that'll let UK residents download its shows from the internet and watch them for a week after they are broadcast on TV, which should be nice, seeing as we're the ones who paid to have them made in the first place!

nope you said basic channels, which can be served up via cable as well. Cable has a basic tier which has the broadcast channels and a few cable channels.

Broadcast channels in some markets the big 3/5 depeding. CBS/NBC/ABC/FOX/UPN are free via over the air (OTA).

I believe the proper response to that claim (made by the site, not you,) is, "pfft." Like I said, I'm building one, and I don't intend to spend more than $50, most of which will be on the antenna.

I was going to make this point. However, the organisation which licenses the broadcasters imposes a limit on the proportion of time given up to adverts. Channel 4 was recently told to cut the number of ads during 'Lost'. Still, the fact that we have a broadcaster that can produce quality output without having to appeal to the lowest common denominator means the other broadcasters have to up their standards as well.

To clear up a misunderstanding that some have made, the license is not for owning a TV tuner, it's for receiving TV signals. You can have a TV for your games console without needing a license.

To those who resent HAVING to pay for TV: what is the markup on a can of Coke over a can of generic cola? And where do you think some of that goes? So when you go to a shop that doesn't have a generic version, or if you live in one of a growing number of towns that consist almost entirely of nationally advertised chain stores then you're paying for TV that you might have no intention of watching.

Most TV can receive aerial signals without an external/roof-top antennae. You can actually get REALLY good inside-the-house antennae these days. *shrug*

Not in an apartment building or most densly populated areas like New York City.

It may be good enough for you to see most of the picture with some snow and fuzz. I on the otherhand cannot stand to see any screen issues since the wife looked for transmission and tape damage as part of her job, so she balks and any kind of bad images.