Cancelling TV licence in protest

wush06

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784576#Comment_120784576

I’m hoping it be like the water meters and people kick up because the money wasted at rte is madness.

65535

I'm in the odd situation that we have a valid up to date licence - we have 2 tv's but no RTE or any other Antenna viewing - the familiy only use them for youtube and netflix etc.

If someone told me about a TV advert now or an RTE 'star' I'd have to ask them what it means.

Spotify in the car or even youtube - Radio and TV are long gone now - it's content on demand now not content that Radio Telefis Dublin think is appropriate.

One of the family does have TVnow ? (not sure if that's what it's called) but they watch that on a tablet.

Am I in any way upset over Tubridy or any of them - No - it was bound to happen and probably has been happening for years.

These 'stars' are working as contractors for their own media companies.

I'd like to see what's left of RTE moving to somewhere like Athlone or Galway even and into a Warehouse with standard pay similar to TG4 or other channels that are transmitting.

There is a big opportunity for education, or at least during the pandemic there was a big opportunity - for radio educational broadcasts and podcasts - I mean when was the last time you heard an Irish or even a German language lesson on a radio station ?

RTE in it's current format is really not suitable for today - it was relevant many years ago but not any more - sadly it has been left to fester.

NIMAN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784634#Comment_120784634

Good luck getting it from the unemployed. It'll be the Water Charges Mk II

Jorge Jorgesson

I bet a large percentage of people claiming to and encouraging friends to not pay their licence, will themselves pay up secretly.

Ginger83

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784872#Comment_120784872

Yeah just like council tenants don't pay property tax

buried

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784916#Comment_120784916

Why would you do that if you don't own a television? Plenty of people these days don't own one. It's not like we are all waiting on baited breath anymore for what two television channels can offer us for entertainment or information.

BagofWeed

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784576#Comment_120784576

Won't be paying that either, thank you.

paxreseuropa

Anyone who intends on continuing to pay for their TV Licence are complete and utter fools. RTE and Tubridy and who knows else have completely mugged us all off and laughed their way to the bank while doing so in the belief that their corruption would never see the light of day. There's more coming about this story each day since it broke and I believe it is only going to get ever worse.

Tubridy's career is in ruins and effectively finished in Ireland and RTE's image has been tarnished beyond repair. There is simply no way back for either of them.

Just today its been announced that RTE also footed the bill for Renault corporate events that Tubridy was still legally obliged to appear at due to RTE underwriting the agreement (otherwise he wouldn't of been paid; which shows his involvement and knowledge of the payment, which goes against his statements). This was all paid for through the TV Licence Fee which the people of this country paid as otherwise they were threatened with hefty fines, imprisonment and criminal records.

So no, don't pay the TV Licence fee! Cancel your direct debits, rip up and set fire to your stamp books and boycott all RTE programming on TV and Radio as a form of protest; drive the viewership and listener numbers down to let them know how p*issed off we all really are with the lot of them sitting in their ivory towers pontificating to use whilst they're on exorbitant wages paid for by us plebs while we are struggling to pay the bills, rent/mortgage and ensure our kids and ourselves don't go hungry, making sacrifice after sacrifice and having to stump up a very precious €160 in todays economy to a corrupt organisation by threat.

NO TO TV LICENCE!! BOYCOTT RTE PROGRAMMING!!

StupidLikeAFox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784691#Comment_120784691

You should buy some fancy monitors and legally save yourself the license fee

65535

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120785129#Comment_120785129

I would but the 'children' in the house have purchased TV's now

I'm sure the 'County Council' sitting in Dáil Éireann will find a way to suck more money out of us anyway for another 'broadcasting charge'

Loafing Oaf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784973#Comment_120784973

You won't have a choice any more than you do with the rest of your taxes.

BagofWeed

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120785334#Comment_120785334

There's always a choice ! It's Ireland, we do things the Irish way so there's normally a loop hole to exploit. If the big boys can do it then I can do it.

In protest I'm not buying my TV licence stamp tomorrow. I'll buy 2 next week

Emblematic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784623#Comment_120784623

It will be much easier to enforce payment of it however since it does not require them to prove you own a TV.

Peregrinus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784195#Comment_120784195

That's the idea, surely? There's no point in a "protest" that nobody notices or becomes aware of; it will have no effect. Protestors want to evoke a reaction and attract publicity.

Ubbquittious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784642#Comment_120784642

THey'll hand it over to the revenue hounds and get everyone to sh1t themselves like with the property tax

Gooser14

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120785044#Comment_120785044

Is it not the case that the barter account from which the additional money was paid is part of the commercial revenue side of RTE rather than the public funded licence fee.

Iecrawfc

Unlike the FAS, FAI, Rehab Lottery and other 'pigss at the public money trough' scandals at least with this one you can register your outrage directly by withholding your license money, action will be forced on the government, they can't prosecute everybody...

ElitesTeam

Wont be paying it when its due next month.

Splish Splash

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784285#Comment_120784285

So pay a subscription to support it, don't impose it on those of us who have little interest in what RTE produce and resent the grossly inflated salaries paid to poor presenters. The likes of Joe Duffy is a troglodyte who shows so much bias and bigotry on a daily basis that i'm amazed he's allowed to contine on air. It annoys the heck out of me to think of the obscene amount of money he gets to listen to his own voice and only those who agree with him.

I could go on, but you get the idea. I don't want to pay the tv licence, I only do it because I have to. I don't think it is relevant any more and the whole issue should be reviewed and reformed (not in the way Dee Forbes was proposing of course). A subscription service with government subsidies for Irish content would likely satisfy most. Anything of value with RTE's name attached over the past number of years was produced by very little money from RTE anyway.

fortwilliam

I'm 52 and never owned a licence in my life.

RTE needs to be stripped down to one TV station, one radio station and a website.

Current affairs, News, Irish sport, Documentaries.

It never fails to amaze me why 2FM exists, it brings literally nothing that is not available on plenty of commercial stations, likewise TV 2.

If that was done, I would be happy to pay a small fee annually.

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120784195#Comment_120784195

If enough people did it they wouldn't have the resources to go after everybody,the courts would be clogged up and some sort of amnesty would have to apply.Certainly they're be no prison space

I've paid my tv license once in my 45 years.

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120785521#Comment_120785521

I believe this will eventually happen but it'll be a brave (and short) government that brings it in.

Varik

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120786645#Comment_120786645

Not a point of distinction I put any weight behind, but as multiple RTE apologist keep pointing out the prison time is for not paying the fine.

If a large number did refuse to pay it then they'd just do what the UK did to those refusing to pay fines for their hate speech laws, where people were choosing prison as an act of protest and then the court just take the money from accounts or direct from Income instead.

AyeGer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120780960#Comment_120780960

35 hour work week is basically 9 to 5 with an hour for lunch. I can see anything wrong with that.

We spend enough of our lives working. 35 hrs is plenty.

ELM327

I'm 37 this year, have owned 2 houses and lived on my own since I was 17. I have never had a TV licence. I never will either. Unless they deduct it at source or something I simply will not pay it.

Emblematic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120786775#Comment_120786775

That's the plan though isn't it. A public service broadcasting charge that every household pays regardless of whether or not they have a TV. A lot easier to enforce since they don't need to prove you have a TV. Game over.

Persionally I would make RTE a purely commercial outfit. Then have a separate commissioning body that part-funds Irish productions (drama, documentaries etc.) that would otherwise not be produced in this small market. These productions would then be sold to Irish broadcasters and platforms including, but not limited to, RTE.

This also sets things up for the move towards online platforms and away from monolithic broadcasting. That's the big fear, I think of RTE, that people would move towards HBO, Netflix, Prime etc and would no longer see the relevance of RTE. Hence their push to a universal charge. People could completely ignore RTE but would still need to cough up the annual fee regardless.

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120786742#Comment_120786742

Again,it would be a brave/dumb government that would be taking TV payments from dolers at source.

DeanAustin

I paid it last week and am sort of raging about it now. Not because I think this entitles me not to pay the license, just because I don't like having to pay it and this would have been a nice excuse to have.

Let's be fair, there is no principle at work here. People just don't want to part with €160.

Papa Doble

How many times do you reckon this lad has paid his TV Licence?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu6d0ns-JJU

I cancelled my DD this morning.