Pay-per-view television is not a new concept, especially to those who are subscribing to cable or satelllite TV. With broadcasting moving more and more into digital, television is no longer the sole medium for broadcasters to air programs. Viewers can now tune in to their favourite shows using their PCs (or Macs, for the purists) and mobile devices. There is even a ‘revolution’ in subscription-based viewing as people can now pay for channels that they would like to watch instead of a set package.

But even when the market adopts to the habits of the viewers, the TV licence in the UK is still very much in force whether or not you subscribe to cable/satellite.

The news of the England vs Ukraine football match to be aired over the internet only hit the headlines today. According to the BBC report, the match will not be aired over satellite nor terrestial channels and viewers will need to pay £4.99 to watch it. This news has caused an outrage to football fanaticos, saying that World Cup matches should be “available for everybody on free-to-air TV”. The traditional broadcasters have ‘washed their hands’ of the situation by saying that it is out of their control as the rights to air have been initially awarded to Setanta, which recently collapsed.

Many people in the media industry believe that this is the way forward — people only pay for the programs, not just channels, that they really want to watch and with the medium that they choose — either TV, computer or mobile device. From a personal standpoint, I do agree but only when the British government re-thinks about charging the TV licence. In my opinion, the fee of watching the broadcast for each program should already include the TV licence aspect of it.

(Image credits: Lampard, Gerrard and Beckham by Nigel Wilson on Flickr)