As you are no-doubt aware, services like Netflix and Amazon Fire (just to name a few) have ushered in a new era of on-demand TV broadcasting and convenient access to many other forms of media. Well now it seems the BBC is considering jumping on the gravy train in an attempt to merge online streaming with public access television.
Culture Secretary John Whittingdale has been meeting with corporate execs interested in providing subscriptions to those already owning a television license; however, the manner in which the existing legislation will change to enforce subscription rules remains to be seen. Either way, this will likely mean big changes, and hopefully advances, for households who use television subscriptions for most of their entertainment and news.
“The BBC is to push ahead with plans to launch a British rival toNetflix, after getting the go-ahead from the government to develop a new subscription streaming service.
The project – which is understood to have the working title, Britflix – is believed to be a collaboration between the corporation and ITV, its main commercial rival, and is still in the early stages of development.
A White Paper on the future of the BBC, unveiled on Thursday, called on the corporation to develop “some form of additional subscription services” over the coming years, which ministers suggested could pave the way to the corporation adopting a mixed model of both licence fee funding, as well as additional, paid-for services.
There may come a moment in the future where all television is delivered online John Whittingdale
The paragraphs were widely interpreted as an assault on the corporation’s traditional funding model, with some suggesting that it marked the “beginning of the end” for the licence fee.
However, John Whittingdale, the culture secretary, as well as senior BBC sources, said it was the corporation that had requested new powers to levy subscriptions.“
Source: Telegraph.co.uk
