BBC License Fee in Northern Ireland - Coursework Example

The primary argument is about whether the license fee is a valid method of opportunity or not and how far is it justifiable in Northern Ireland. In the first part, a glance at the people who are ardent fans of BBC is exposed. Some feel hard to digest the comments against BBC and its policies. They strongly feel that only people, who are not much aware of the actual help by BBC to the UK economy, will take every opportunity to defame BBC. They frame up the stage of illustrating figures which will be taking an opportunity to highlight figures. Some of the statistics have revealed that BBC nearly pays 7% of their license fee income, which comes to around 229 million pounds to the talented like presenters, actors, musicians, etc. They also claim that BBC is one of the greatest creations of Britain and it is known for its reliable and enormous high-quality information. It may not be exaggerating for them even to say that the cultural life of the UK might be poverty-stricken without the presence of the five extraordinary radio stations. Finally, they advise it is 100% worthwhile to pay a license fee of £140 a year and support the institution.

The above description is only one side of the coin. The majority of people feel that the BBC license fee is part of a kind of damaged system planned and implemented to help politicians to keep control of the broadcasting by challenging the technology.

For years on, the primary issue in media debate is the conflict of interests between consumers and citizens on the one hand and broadcasters and politicians on the other. The inconsistency to be observed here is that we are at a point where the technological breakthrough in theory should be able to eliminate the artificial restrictions associated with terrestrial distribution technology. “The intense competition, and the prospect of it being extended if the newly available third channel were granted to commercial interests, provoked the establishment of an official Committee on Broadcasting” (Sparks, 1995, p142). More than 40 different channels have been accessed by the Northern Ireland households which are run with the help of cable and satellites. With the advent of digital cable and digital launch, the channels will rise to hundreds and even thousands. It’s possible seeing the technological advances.

Now, all these scenarios have potential chances to make the politicians panic. John Reith has supported the government in General Strike with his slogan, “The BBC is for the people, the government is for the people, so the BBC is for the government.” This slogan has changed the mindset of the politicians as they started believing that they are the final point of authority and not the broadcasters. It’s a common belief among the ministers that broadcasting provides a platform with guaranteed impartial treatment when compared with the newspapers.

For the last 75 years, the deal which was set has satisfied the BBC as it received billions of pounds in the form of the license fee and a well-paid advertising monopoly. However, with the advent of new technology, things become simpler and easier. This might not be always done in a way that is old-fashioned and might not guarantee favor the same set of conditions. Here also, the new technology has offered certain solutions to the new questions and helped to shift the power from old-style broadcaster and regular towards the creator and consumer.

A satellite can be considered the biggest technological breakthrough. Technological advancement has not only introduced a wider choice for the viewer but has altered the relationship between the consumer and the provider. Overcoming the traditional supremacy of structures, paved a new way for vital means of funding broadcasting and hence exposed the true nature of value chain associated. A small dish could pick up signals from any corner of Europe and the same could be targeted directly at Northern Ireland, without passing through the regulatory selection process imposed.