Television licence

A television licence (or more correctly broadcast receiver licence, as it usually also pays for public radio) is an official licence required in many countries for all owners of television and radio receivers. It is a form of hypothecation tax to fund public broadcasting, thus allowing public broadcasters to transmit programmes without, or with only supplemental, funding from radio and television commercials.

The television licence was originally known as a radio licence, and was used to fund public radio broadcasting. With the arrival of television some countries created a separate additional television licence, while some just increased the radio licence fee to cover the additional cost of TV broadcasting, changing the licence's name from "radio licence" to "TV licence" or "receiver licence". Today most countries fund public radio broadcasting from the same licence fee that is used for television, although a few still have separate radio licences, or apply a lower or no fee at all for consumers who only have a radio. Some also have different fees for users with colour or monochrome TV. Many also give discounts for elderly and/or disabled consumers.

Television Licences Around the World

Many countries have television licences. It is common in Europe, as well as in some countries of Africa and Asia. However, TV Licencing is rare in the Americas, largely being confined to French overseas departments. The Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago [1] notes that two-thirds of the countries in Europe and half of the countries in Asia and Africa use television licences to fund public television.

The actual cost and implmentation of the television licence varies greatly from country to country. The rest of this section looks at the licence fee in a number of countries around the world.

Europe

Albania

The Albanian licence fee is 800 Lek (around €6.30) per year [2]. However, the licence fee makes up only a small part of public broadcaster RTSh's funding. RTSh is mainly funded directly from the government through taxes (58%), the remaining 42% comes from commercials and the licence fee.

Austria

In Austria, the annual television & radio licence varies in price depending on which state one lives in.

State	Television	Radio
Burgenland	€ 233.76	€ 67.80
Carinthia	€ 255.36	€ 73.80
Lower Austria	€ 243.36	€ 70.20
Upper Austria	€ 206.16	€ 60.60
Salzburg	€ 243.36	€ 71.40
Styria	€ 262.56	€ 76.20
Tyrol	€ 233.76	€ 69.00
Vorarlberg	€ 206.16	€ 60.60
Vienna	€ 242.88	€ 70.68

The licence pays for ORF. Viewers in the German speaking province of South Tyrol, Italy can also receive ORF channels via terrestrial transmissions, but do not have pay a licence fee towards ORF.

Belgium (Walloon Region)

The licence fee in Belgium's Walloon Region (encompassing the French and German speaking communities) is €149.67 for a TV and €26.72 for a car radio [3]. Only one licence is needed for each household regardless of how many television sets there are. However, each car with a radio must have a separate car radio licence. Household radios do not require a licence. The money raised by the fee is used to fund Belgium's French and German public broadcasters (RTBF and BRF respectively).

Bosnia and Herzegovina

The licence fee in Bosnia and Herzegovina is around € 36 per year[4]. The civil war and the associated collapse of infrastructure caused very high evasion rates. This has in part been resolved by collecting the licence fee as part of a household's telephone bill. The licence is used to fund PBSBiH (Public Broadcasting Service of Bosnia and Herzegovina) which is a umbrella organisation of three separate broadcasters. These are BHRT (Radio Television of Bosnia Herzegovina), which serves the whole country; RTFBiH (Radio-Television of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina) that serves Bosnian-Croat and Bosniak population; and RTRS (Radio-Television of the Republika Srpska), which serves the Bosnian Serb people.

Croatia

The licence fee in Croatia is about €100 per year per household with at least one radio or TV receiver. The amount is adjusted yearly, as it is indexed to average salary. The fee is the main source of revenue for national broadcaster Hrvatska Radiotelevizija (HRT). However, HRT's programmes are still not free of advertisements (although the percentage of air time which may be devoted to advertising is limited by law and is lower than the one that applies to commercial broadcasters).

Cyprus

The licence fee in Cyprus is indirect but obligatory and paid through electricity bills. The amount to be paid varies according to the total floor area of the property. Its beneficiary is the state broadcaster Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC).

Northern Cyprus (TRNC) does not pay the Cypriot licence fee as Cypriot jurisdiction is not applicable in the North. Bayrak Radio and Television Corporation, the North's public broadcaster gets it funds through the North Cypriot government.

Czech Republic

The licence fee in the Czech Republic, is currently 1200 Kč [5] (around €42.15) annually. This will increase to 1440 Kč (€50.58) on January 1 2007, and 1620 Kč (€56.90) on January 1 2008. Each household pays for one TV Licence regardless of how many televisions they own. Corporations and the self-employed must pay for a licence for each television. The licence currently forms 68% of, public broadcaster, Česká televize's income, with the rest coming from advertising, sponsorship, and commercial ventures. However, advertising and sponsorship are being phased out as a form of funding for Česká televize. From 2008 no commercials or teleshopping will be allowed except for adverts related to sports and cultural transmissions[6].

Denmark

The licence fee in Denmark is DKK 2,090 [7](around €280) per annum for colour TV, DKK 1,310 for black and white TV and DKK 320 for radio. The majority of the licence fee is used to fund the national radio and TV broadcaster DR.

Finland

The licence fee in Finland is €200.70 [8] per annum for a household with TV (as of 2006). It is the primary source of funding for Yleisradio (YLE). The amount is being adjusted yearly for reasons including transition to digital television.

France

In 2004, the television licence fee in France (mainland & Corsica) is €116.50 and in the overseas departments it is €74.31. The licence funds services provided by France Télévisions. Overseas departments receive the Reseau France d'Outre Mer (RFO), whilst the mainland receives France 2, France 3, France 5, and Arte) . Source: Service-public.fr

Germany

The licence fee in Germany is €204.36 per annum for TV and radio, and €66.24 for just radio. It is billed by the month, but typically paid quarterly (yearly payments are possible). Unemployed, disabled and generally people (nearly) solely dependent on governmental support for living do not need to pay the licence fee. From 2007, the German government will establish a licence fee for every working Internet access, if it is the only source for radio and television.

The licence fee is used to fund the public broadcasters ZDF, ARD, and Deutschlandradio, ARTE and the public "Third Programs" tv channels and all public radio stations as well.

Greece

The licence fee in Greece is indirect but obligatory and paid through electricity bills. The amount to be paid varies according to the total floor area of the property. Its beneficiary is the state broadcaster Elliniki Radiophonia Tileorassi (ERT). There has been some discussion about imposing a direct licence fee after complaints from people who do not own a television set and yet are still forced to fund ERT.

Iceland

In Iceland the TV Licence is 32 460 kr [9] (around €346.59) (2006). Discounts are available for black and white TVs and those who only have radios. The TV Licence is used to fund RÚV [10]. However, this income is supplemented by broadcasting commercials.

Ireland

In 2006, the television licence in Ireland is €158, up from €155 in 2005. It is free to anyone over the age of 70 and to some over 66. The licence fee is the primary source of revenue for RTÉ, the state broadcaster; however, its radio and TV stations also broadcast advertising to supplement this income, and operates some services, such as RTÉ 2fm, RTÉ Aertel and rte.ie, as well as their transmission network on an entirely commercial basis.

The licence fee does not entirely go to RTÉ. After collection costs, 5% is used for the Broadcasting Commission of Irelands "Sound and Vision Scheme", which provides a fund for programme production and restoration of archive material which is open to applications from any quarters. 5% of what RTÉ then receive is granted to TG4, as well as a requirement to provide them with programming.

Italy

In 2005, the licence fee in Italy was €99.60 per household with a TV set. It is the primary source of income for RAI, which does, however, also broadcast advertising. [11]

Viewers in the (German speaking) province of South Tyrol, Italy can also receive German public TV and radio channels via terrestrial transmissions, but do not have to pay a licence fee.

Macedonia

The licence fee in FYR Macedonia is around €57 per year [12]. It is collected monthly as part of the electricity bill. In addition to licence fee funding, Macedonian Radio-Television (MRT) also takes advertising and sponsorship.

Norway

The licence fee in Norway is 2039 kr [13] (about €260) per annum (2006). The fee is mandatory for any owner of a TV set, and is the primary source of income for Norsk Rikskringkasting (NRK).

Poland

The current licence fee in Poland is 200.40 zł (about €47) per annum [14]. 60% of the fee goes to Telewizja Polska with the rest going to public radio. The TV Licence is waived for the over 75s.

Romania

The licence fee in Romania for a household is RON 48 (about € 12) per annum [15]. Small businesses pay about €45 and large businesses about € 150. The licence fee is collected as part of the electricity bill. The licence fee makes up part of Televiziunea Română's funding. The rest coming from advertising and government grants.

Slovakia

The total licence in Slovakia comes to approximately € 42 per annum[16]. In addition to the licence fee STV also receives state subsidies and money from advertising.

Slovenia

In 2004, the licence fee in Slovenia stood at 31 644 SIT (about €132) [17]. The licence fee is used to fund RTV Slovenija, which supplements its licence fee income by broadcasting commercials

Sweden

The current licence fee in Sweden is 1968 kr [18](about €210), per annum. It is collected on behalf of the three public broadcasters (Sveriges Television, Sveriges Radio and Sveriges Utbildningsradio by Radiotjänst, which is jointly owned by them. The fee pays for five TV channels and 16 radio channels. In Sweden, the term "television licence" was replaced a few years ago by "television fee", which was regarded as less ambiguous.

Switzerland

The licence fee in Switzerland is CHF 450.35 (about € 292) per annum for TV and radio. The Swiss licence fee pays for the national public broadcaster SRG SSR idée suisse

Viewers in the German-speaking region of South Tyrol, Italy can also receive the Swiss German-language channels via terrestrial digital transmissions, but do not have pay a licence fee.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, the television licence was £131.50 (about €187) for colour TV and £44 (about €63) for monochrome TV in 2006. The licence fee is charged on a per household basis, therefore those who more than one television only pay for a single licence. A similar licence, mandated by the 1904 Wireless Telegraphy Act, used to exist for radios, but was abolished in 1971. Therefore, those who only listen to radio no longer have to pay a licence fee.

There are concessions for the elderly (free for over 75s, except Jersey [19]), the licence fee here being paid for by the government. Blind people get a 50% discount on their licence. Residents of residential care homes for the elderly and people with physical/mental disablities, can apply for a special licence called the licence for Accommodation for Residential Care (ARC) which is £5 per year.

The licence fee can be paid annually, monthly or quarterly by Direct Debit, or monthly or weekly with the Monthly Cash Plan or Cash Easy Entry cards, which were introduced in the mid 1990s for those with limited means or no bank account. The Monthly Cash Plan works on the same basis as the Cash Easy Entry scheme and has been designed so as not to discriminate against those that don't receive benefits.

The licence fee currently goes solely to the BBC, and forms approximately 75% of its income [20]. However, the UK's second public broadcaster, Channel 4 has claimed that it may need licence fee income if it is to continue with public broadcasting after digital switch-over. To this end, on April 25 2006, it was announced that Channel 4's digital switch-over bill would be paid for from the licence fee [21].

Collection is enforced by the criminal law. However, since 1991, the revenue is collected privately by the BBC and does not pass through the state before reaching the BBC, and hence it is inaccurate to refer to the BBC as a "state broadcaster". The BBC in turn have contracted out the work to three companies, Capita, Revenue Management Services and AMV Consortium, working together under the trading name TV Licensing. Prior to 1991, the collection and administration of the UK licence fee was the responsibility of the Home Office.

Asia

Israel

The television licence for 2006 in Israel is 400 ₪ (about €70 or $90). The licence fee is the primary source of revenue for the Israel Broadcasting Authority, the state broadcaster; however, its radio stations carry full advertising and its TV programmes sometime receive "sponsorship" from commercial entities to supplement this income.

Japan

In Japan, the annual licence fee for terrestrial television broadcasts is ¥15,490 (about €110) (slightly less if paid by direct debit) and ¥25,520 (about €178) if you receive satellite broadcasts. There is separate licence for monochrome TV, and fees are different in Okinawa. The Japanese licence fee pays for the national broadcaster NHK.

While every household in Japan with a television set is required to have a licence, there is no penalty for non-payment, and people are legally entitled to stop licensing inspectors from entering their houses.

Korea, Republic of

In South Korea, the television licence fee is collected for KBS (Korean Broadcasting System) and it has been about ₩2500 per year (about €2) for 21 years. Its purpose is to maintain public broadcasting in South Korea, and to give public broadcasters the resources to do their best to produce and broadcast public interest programs. The fee is collected by the national electrical company (Korean Electric Power Company) and is famous for its high collection rate.

Singapore

The cost of the TV licence for a household in Singapore is S$110 (about €57). Additional licences are required for radios and TVs in vehicles (S$27 and S$110 respectively).

Africa

Ghana

The licence fee in Ghana is 3,000 GHC [22] (about €0.29) (2006). The fee is used to fund the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). There has recently been controversy in the Ghanian Parliament over the number of people who do not pay the licence [23]

Namibia

The licence fee in Namibia was NAD 204 (about €23) in 2001 [24]. The fee is used to fund the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) [25].

South Africa

The licence fee in South Africa is R225 (about €31) per annum (R276 per year if paid on amonthly basis) for TV. A concessionary rate of R65 is available for those over 70, and disabled persons or war veterans who are on social welfare. The licence fee funds SABC

Countries where the TV Licence has been abolished

The following countries have had television licences, but subsequently abolished them:

Australia

Radio licence fees were introduced in Australia in the 1920s to fund the first privately owned broadcasters which were not permitted to sell advertising. With the formation of the government-owned Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1932 the licence fees were used to fund ABC broadcasts while the privately owned stations were permitted to seek revenue from advertising and sponsorship. Television licence fees were also introduced in 1956 when the ABC began TV transmissions. All licence fees were abolished in 1974 by the Australian Labor Party government led by Gough Whitlam on the basis that it was an unfair and regressive tax. The ABC has since then been funded by government grants, now totalling around A$800 million a year, and its own commercial activities (merchandising, overseas sale of programmes, etc.).

Belgium (Flemish Region)

The Flemish Region of Belgium abolished its television licence in 2001. The Flemish broadcaster VRT is now funded from general taxation.

Gibraltar

It was announced in Gibraltar's budget speech of June 23, 2006 that Gibraltar would abolish its TV licence [26]. The 7,452 [27] TV licence fees were previously used to part fund the Gibraltar Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). However, the majority of the GBC's funding came in the form of a grant from the government.

Hungary

Hungary abolished the TV licence in 2002[28]. Funding for Hungarian Television now comes from the government through taxation.

Malaysia

Malaysia abolished the TV licence at the end of 1999.

Netherlands

The licence fee in the Netherlands was abolished in 2000. Public television in the Netherlands is now funded by government subsidy.

New Zealand

Licence fees were first used in New Zealand to fund the radio services of what was to become the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation. Television was introduced in 1960, and with it the television licence fee. The licence fee was capped at NZ$100 a year in the 1970s, and the country's two television channels, while still publicly owned, became increasingly reliant on advertising. Later known as the public broadcasting fee, the licence fee was finally abolished in New Zealand in 1999, partly because the administration costs to collect the tax relative to the level of revenue was unviable, and also because the TV channels had become commercial revenue generators for the government with hardly any public service obligations left.

Opinions of Television Licencing Systems

In most countries with a receiver licence there are opponents to the system. Some of the critics dislike the very idea of a mandatory charge, and would rather see that all TV was commercial or that public TV should be a form of pay-TV, which those not interested in wouldn't have to pay for. Others would prefer that public TV and radio was funded directly by the Government through taxes, arguing that a fixed licence fee is unfair against low-income groups.

However, opinion polls in most of TV licence countries have shown that an overwhelming majority prefer the current system, as it can give them access to TV that is not driven by viewer numbers (and thus "dare" to show "difficult" programmes) and is free from commercials (although some public TV is partly financed via advertisements), and as the licence fee system gives the public TV companies, at least formally, more independence from the Government than they would have if they were financed through the tax system.

Furthermore, there are moves further towards licence fees, especially in some former Eastern Bloc countries. Some nations have found that the existing public service broadcasters could not compete with commercial broadcasters for advertising revenues. Conversely, other nations have found that the public broadcasters severely damage the prospects of commercial broadcasters by taking up a significant slice of available advertising revenue. In both cases this has led to some nations with licence fees increasing the proportion of funding the public broadcasters gets from licence fee.

The problem has also led to other nations considering the introduction of licence fees. Both Bulgaria [29] and Serbia [30]have attempted to legislate to introduce a television licence. Lithuania and Latvia have long debated the introduction of a licence fee but so far made little progress on legislating for one. In the case of Latvia, many media commentators believe this is partly due to the fact that the government is unwilling to relinquish the control of Latvijas Televīzija that funding from general taxation gives it [31].

Funding of Public Television in North America.

The reasons why the idea of a licence fee never caught on in Canada or the United States bear some differences.

Canada

The Canadian public broadcaster, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, lagged slightly behind the private American broadcasters in providing radio and then television service to Canadians. Thus unlike the BBC, the CBC has always had to compete with other English language stations for its viewing audience - or more accurately, for most of its viewing audience. Many, but not all, Canadians have access to radio and television signals from stations in the northern U.S. Thus, a licence fee to own a television would almost certainly have been viewed as patently unfair by those Canadians who could only watch one and later two channels, while others would pay presumably the same fee and get four and later five. Moreover, by the late 1950s through to early 1960s, close to every Canadian household would acquire a television set, thus giving limited weight to the argument that a licence fee is fair to those who do not own a television. As a result, the Canadian government chose to fund the CBC from its general revenues, although CBC Television also sells advertising to cover some of its expenses.

United States

In the U.S., privately-owned radio (and later television) stations selling advertising quickly proved to be commercially viable enterprises during the first half of the twentieth century, which presumably proved to the American government that it did not need any sort of scheme such as a licence fee to force the end user to pay for the services he or she was listening to or watching. The United States did eventually create the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 1967, which would eventually be used to help fund the Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio. However, this endeavour is funded through general revenues, and PBS, NPR and their affiliated stations also receive substantial funding in the form of donations from private citizens and charitable organisations.

An additional factor is the somewhat different meaning of the term license (licence) in the USA. A license is a form of regulation, not taxation, i.e. a (usually inexpensive) document that says the holder is allowed to do something. Actions that can potentially harm others (such as driving on the public roads, or operating a television transmitter) are licensed. Actions that do not infringe on the rights of others (such as operating a television receiver) are not. Most Americans would be outraged at the thought of needing a license, i.e. government permission, to watch TV or listen to the radio. Because of this different meaning of the word license, the "television license" of Europe and the UK would probably be referred to as a "television tax" or "user fee" if it were proposed in the USA. However, since television in the USA is overwhelmingly dominated by private enterprise, such a tax or fee is unlikely. (The annual funding for public television is about $2 per capita, such a small amount doesn't warrant a separate tax.)

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