According to research commissioned by the Department of Media people are “on average” willing to pay almost £163 a year at today’s prices for the BBC licence. This is more than the state broadcaster has asked to government to agree. The current fee payable by those who ask the BBC’s permission to watch TV is £131.50.
A letter to the Financial Times from Fred Perkins of Information TV has revealed how this surprising response was achieved. Mr. Perkins, who took part in the survey, wrote that “we were asked to choose between paying (extra, of course) for the new vision of the BBC . . .or accepting that new services . . . would not be provided at all. Pay more or have a diet of repeats and low-cost dramas”. He went on to say that respondents were not told that the new services could probably be provided by other media organisations that do not rely on the licence fee. Mr. Perkins also revealed that those who took part in the survey were presented with questions that emphasised the positive role the BBC is said to have played in society.
Despite this the survey found that 75% of respondents supported funding new services through subscriptions rather than the licence fee. The government has ruled out subscriptions for the next years years, however.