TV / television licensing MEGATHREAD

[bigsexydoug]

Make them all pay per view and get rid of the licence and then we will see an end to this madness.

 

It's a disgrace what the BBC & crapita get away with !

[cgksheff]

Me too, that's why you have to give your address etc when you buy a tv.

 

You don't have to.

The law obliges the store to ask. It does not oblige you to give.

 

.......... In fact, scrap that.

The law requiring information from stores was scrapped last year!

Edited March 23, 2014 by cgksheff

[Leather man]

Make them all pay per view and get rid of the licence and then we will see an end to this madness.

 

It's a disgrace what the BBC & crapita get away with !

 

More and more people are cottoning on and stopping paying for a tv license. Ive not had one for 15 years and wont ever get one. Anyone who blindly pays it without looking deeper into the bbc is moron who deserves to be parted with their cash but for anyone else a little research will open your eyes.

 

---------- Post added 23-03-2014 at 07:16 ----------

 

You don't have to.

The law obliges the store to ask. It does not oblige you to give.

 

I give them fake names. I bought a Blueray player for a prezzie and told them i was Jimmy Savile and i lived at 69 Nowthen Road on the Owzaboutthat estate.

The cashier didnt see the funny side but the man behind me was in stitches. Ive also been Phil McCavity, Maddy McCann (that one went down like a tonne of poo) and a variety of other names but i never use my own.

[Zamo]

A word of caution for the OP...

 

From the Mail: Figures released by the Ministry of Justice show that in 2010, 164,444 people were prosecuted for evading the licence fee. Of those, 142,375 were convicted and sentenced in the courts.

 

I'm not saying you can or can't beat the charge. I'm just saying that most people don't beat the charge and you need to consider the risk to you personally if you end up with a criminal record. If you do decide it is worth the risk then you need to identify the arguments that you know are accepted by the courts and not rely on opinions and theory.

 

Anyone got an example/link for the OP of someone who was taken to court and not convicted?

[Leather man]

A word of caution for the OP...

 

From the Mail: Figures released by the Ministry of Justice show that in 2010, 164,444 people were prosecuted for evading the licence fee. Of those, 142,375 were convicted and sentenced in the courts.

 

I'm not saying you can or can't beat the charge. I'm just saying that most people don't beat the charge and you need to consider the risk to you personally if you end up with a criminal record. If you do decide it is worth the risk then you need to identify the arguments that you know are accepted by the courts and not rely on opinions and theory.

 

Anyone got an example/link for the OP of someone who was taken to court and not convicted?

 

If you dont speak to or communicate with capitas doorstep collectors then youve got more chance of growing a 3rd testicle than winding up in court. Also you should remove the implied rights of access to your property from TVL and they wont bother you. More interestingly if they breech the removal of implied rights of access you can take THEM to court for harassment

[dosxuk]

According to Ofcom, TV transmissions over the Internet are a grey area.

programme previously recorded on properly licensed premises and then watched on unlicensed equipment is outside the scope of the Communications (Television Licensing) Regulations 2004, because it is not "received at the same time (or virtually the same time) as it is received by members of the public,"[24][33] although such recordings may infringe copyright.

 

This would be the 15 second delay on tvcatchup! and many, many others. However that's not what my debate was about.... It was about tv licence at home... however I was correct on both my comments..... Read .... then read again ... then again until you understand it!

 

TVCatchup.com was hauled in front of the courts on copyright infringement charges when they allowed users to watch recorded transmissions from earlier broadcasts, so had to stop. Their current service, despite the name, is purely a rebroadcast of a live signal, utilising legislation designed for cable TV providers, and as such is a live broadcast which requires a TV licence to view.

[Zamo]

If you dont speak to or communicate with capitas doorstep collectors then youve got more chance of growing a 3rd testicle than winding up in court. Also you should remove the implied rights of access to your property from TVL and they wont bother you. More interestingly if they breech the removal of implied rights of access you can take THEM to court for harassment

 

Unfortunately the OP did speak to them, invited them in, signed something and has been summonsed to court. It is therefore too late for him to close the barn door as you suggest... the horse has already bolted.

[Leather man]

Unfortunately the OP did speak to them, invited them in, signed something and has been summonsed to court. It is therefore too late for him to close the barn door as you suggest... the horse has already bolted.

 

Yeah, i should have pointed out i meant it as advice for people in the future rather than it being of any real help to the op.

My bad, But thanks for clearing it up

[onewheeldave]

A word of caution for the OP...

 

From the Mail: Figures released by the Ministry of Justice show that in 2010, 164,444 people were prosecuted for evading the licence fee. Of those, 142,375 were convicted and sentenced in the courts.

 

I'm not saying you can or can't beat the charge. I'm just saying that most people don't beat the charge and you need to consider the risk to you personally if you end up with a criminal record. If you do decide it is worth the risk then you need to identify the arguments that you know are accepted by the courts and not rely on opinions and theory.

 

Anyone got an example/link for the OP of someone who was taken to court and not convicted?

The only people who get prosecuted are those who go along with the licensing officers requests.

 

The licensing officers have no right to enter your premises and the householder is under no obligation to speak/communicate/acknowledge them whatseover.

 

Simply shut the door on them and it's over and done with, you'll never end up in court.

 

The ones who do are those who make the mistake of engaging with the officer/letting him in the house etc.

 

The OP has messed up by letting them in and signing their documents- I have no idea of what happens in that scenario.

 

But, to everyone else reading this thread- simply do not let them in, don't talk to them, and, most definitly, do not sign any of their papers- you are them effectively immume from any legal actions whatsever.

[999tigger]

 

This would be the 15 second delay on tvcatchup! and many, many others. However that's not what my debate was about.... It was about tv licence at home... however I was correct on both my comments..... Read .... then read again ... then again until you understand it!

 

The tvcatchup site itself says you need a licence. Its you who needs to read, although your inability to comprehend means that it is obviously beyond your abilities.

 

You made your argument directly about tvcatchup, which is why everyone else explained why you needed a licence.

 

If you want to tell us which comments you were correct on, which hadnt already been stated earlier in the discussion then enlighten us. We have already said umpteen times you do not need a licence if you do not watch a live signal.

 

TVCatchup counts as a live signal, which is why they say you need a licence.

 

Link some credible reference to us, whcih says it isnt a live signal or you do not need a tv licence to watch it? Back up what you are supposedly saying, if you even know what that is. For once actually back up your argument.

 

---------- Post added 23-03-2014 at 11:09 ----------

 

A word of caution for the OP...

 

From the Mail: Figures released by the Ministry of Justice show that in 2010, 164,444 people were prosecuted for evading the licence fee. Of those, 142,375 were convicted and sentenced in the courts.

 

I'm not saying you can or can't beat the charge. I'm just saying that most people don't beat the charge and you need to consider the risk to you personally if you end up with a criminal record. If you do decide it is worth the risk then you need to identify the arguments that you know are accepted by the courts and not rely on opinions and theory.

 

Anyone got an example/link for the OP of someone who was taken to court and not convicted?

 

He's going to get a criminal record anyway if he does nothing. I have already pointed out to him that he can make an offer to stop it going to trial. His case has some substance to it, but i'd agree he need to know his argument.

 

If the TVLA want to prosecute, then the only way he can avoid a criminal record is by winning a trial. He can put forward an argument that is technically correct and which the tv people plus the law say no licence is needed. The recorder or the magistrates may or may not believe him based on the evidence, even if the legal argument is correct.

 

The point is that at the moment, whether or not he gets a criminal record is dependant more on the TVLA and if they wish to proceed. Once they do, then the only choice he has will be a not guilty plea and to fight it.