A new report from Enders Analysis looks at what impact a move to a subscription-based model could have on the BBC and TV viewing in the UK
By Jenny Priestley
Published: January 28, 2022 Updated: January 31, 2022
A new report from Enders Analysis looks at what impact a move to a subscription-based model could have on the BBC and TV viewing in the UK
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
In a new report looking at the future of the BBC, Enders Analysis has warned that scrapping the licence fee in favour of a subscription-based model would undermine a number of tenets of public service broadcasting, most notably universality, breadth of programming and representing the diversity of Britain .
The analysts note that one of the core concepts of public service television and radio broadcasting is universality.
Under the current model the licence fee is charged for all households that watch live TV (on a TV set or other device) or use the iPlayer. The report states that if the BBC were to become a subscription-only service this concept of universality would be instantly removed, challenging one of the core constructs of public service broadcasting.
It adds that there are around 8 million adults in the UK who either lack the means, or do not wish, to pay for a TV service beyond the licence fee, with around three million of these people living alone, four million belong to the C2DE socio-economic group, and nearly 1.8 million having a disability.
A major consequence of a BBC subscription-either a reduced BBC product and range, or a cost to the viewer that is higher than the licence fee-will disproportionately affect this group, states the report.
If the licence fee were to be replaced by a subscription-model, the analysts say the government would need to implement a conditional access (CA) system to ensure that only households that have paid for a particular BBC package (whether channel, genre, etc.) receive it.
However Freeview, the UK's largest TV platform, has no CA system in place.
As no TVs in the UK have CA embedded within them, this procedure would have to start from scratch, note the analysts. The report adds that a move to a subscription-based model could also impact Freeview, as viewers may have to switch to a pay-TV service or an online subscription to access the BBC's channels.
The analysts also considered the idea that certain parts of the BBC's output could remain as public service content such as news and current affairs. Categorisation along genre lines is crude, but an alternative scenario is one where content could end up being directed to where it can be best optimised: we struggle to see a rationale, other than complying with difficult to enforce regulation, for the BBC to keep any content on free-to-air that it thinks could benefit its paid-for service, states the report.
Given that one of the current major attractions of the BBC is its breadth of offering, which includes its news service, the truncated subscription service would hope to offer the best of the public service content' in order to compete in a tough subscription environment.
The full report is available for Enders Analysis subscribers to download here.
What next for the BBC?
data-src=https://www.tvbeurope.com/wp-content/themes/tvbeurope/library/images/tvbe-subs.jpg width=729 height=90>
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
UKTV has today announced the appointment of Matt Berry to the newly created role of General Manager - Marketing, effective 1 July.
Matt will take on this senio...
01/07/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign featuring Deborah Meaden challenges consumers to rethink everyday bathroom wasteWednesday 1 July 2026
Fussy asks Bri...
01/07/2026
Constituency-level analysis reveals where girls miss out most on sport - and where targeted action could unlock more than £640 million in economic and health be...
01/07/2026
Wuppertal July 1, 2026
Riedel and SKAARHOJ Expand Collaboration With SimplyLive IntegrationRiedel Communications today announced an expanded collaboration wit...
01/07/2026
Apple today introduced power-packed updates to Apple Creator Studio, a groundbre...
01/07/2026
Nectar360, the Retail Media, Loyalty and Insights business of the Sainsburys Gro...
01/07/2026
9.2 million streams on RT Player between 11 and 28 June
Reach of 2.9 million viewers during Group stages of FIFA World Cup on RT 2
23 million video views acr...
30/06/2026
Could your journalism reach an international stage?
Entries are now open for the Thomson Foundation's Young Journalist Award 2026, one of the most prestigi...
30/06/2026
Brings together saturation & lo-fi effects
Following on from the release of their Voxcraft vocal-processing plug-in, UJAM have announced the launch of Retro...
30/06/2026
New IR reverb engine, Juno-inspired chorus & more
The latest version of Rapid Flow's hardware-emulation synth plug-in expands on its predecessor with a ...
30/06/2026
Excels at heavy-handed VCA compression
For their latest release, Shy Audio have recreated the crunchy' sound of a rackmount compressor that found its w...
30/06/2026
Component scarcity drives cost increases
Shortly after Apple's CEO Tim Cook acknowledged that cost increases would soon be inevitable , the company hav...
30/06/2026
Hitachi and Bank Pekao S.A. have completed the installation of the first Hitachi...
30/06/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
29/06/2026
Four-layer instrument aimed at dark electronic music
Excite Audio's latest software instrument has been designed with dark drum and bass, atmospheric te...
29/06/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
29/06/2026
Details environmental policies & results
The Focusrite Group have just announced that following a long audit process, they have published their 2026 sustain...
29/06/2026
Arvato Systems Achieves AWS Cloud Operations Competency
The team behind the AWS Cloud Operations Competency (from left to right: Philipp Hellmich, Johanna Bod...
29/06/2026
RT today announced that Ger Gilroy will join the RT Podcasts team to present a daily sports podcast. Launching later this year, the new show will set the spor...
29/06/2026
RT Commercial announced OUTsurance as sponsor of the Oliver Callan show on RT Radio 1 from Wednesday 1 July.
Oliver Callan doubles the fun, delivering two ...
28/06/2026
Half-size model joins Console 1 line-up
Shortly after the release of their new Flow Studio controller, Softube have announced the launch of another new surf...
28/06/2026
New EXO Series DSP control software announced
EVE Audio's EXO Series monitor range has just gained a new software element that provides remote access to...
27/06/2026
Brings together saturation & lo-fi effects
Following on from the release of their Voxcraft vocal-processing plug-in, UJAM have announced the launch of Retro...
26/06/2026
Virtual session musician plug-in gains new percussion options
Celemony's latest update for their virtual session musician platform complements the exist...
26/06/2026
Half-size model joins Console 1 line-up
Shortly after the release of their new Flow Studio controller, Softube have announced the launch of another new surf...
26/06/2026
ELT Group and Rohde & Schwarz sign a cooperation agreement to explore commercial...
26/06/2026
Flicker Productions to produce five-part docu-reality series following women who have fallen for men in prison and have become TikTok sensations, with brands an...
26/06/2026
Catch up on the latest developments across Baselight and Daylight v7, Nara and F...
26/06/2026
26. June 2026 News
DFT is pleased to announce that a second Polar HQ film s...
26/06/2026
A fresh look at how the Irish helped shape the foundations of the United States
...
25/06/2026
Six free workshops across two days
Global music education platform Music Production for Women (MPW), have just announced a brand new and highly anticipated ...
25/06/2026
Popular pedalboard PSU gets an upgrade
The DC7 v2 is a new and improved version of the renowned effects pedal PSU from CIOKS, and is said to be the thinnest...
25/06/2026
Optimised for lush, enveloping sounds
Described as an instantly rewarding reverb , the latest addition to Arturia's range of creative effects plug-ins ...
25/06/2026
27 June 2026, Westminster University Harrow Campus
GearExpo UK is now upon us, with just two days to go until 150 of the worlds top pro-audio brands and ind...
25/06/2026
alt= data-nectar-img-srcset=https://www.antonbauer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/0...
25/06/2026
Thursday 25 June 2026
Read all about it! The Paper will return for a second sea...
25/06/2026
Thursday 25 June 2026
How to watch the 2026/27 EFL season on Sky Sports
Which EFL matches are Sky Sports showing on the 2026/27 opening weekend?
Sky Sports w...
25/06/2026
Launching today (Thursday 25 June), new RT podcast Ramble with Joe McGucken is a series of curiosity-driven conversations where actor, writer and comedian Joe ...
24/06/2026
Plus: VoiceAssist Basic now available to UA LUNA users
NoiseWorks Audio have just released an update that adds a new Mouth De-Click module to the Advanced t...
24/06/2026
New heavy-duty mic stand joins range
The latest arrival to Gator's Frameworks family introduces a new heavy-duty boom stand that's been designed for...
24/06/2026
Latest major plug-in update goes live
Waves have just announced that the latest major update for their hugely popular plug-in range is now officially availa...
24/06/2026
When assessing cellular coverage, many people look at the signal bars displayed on a smartphone, router or modem. More bars are often assumed to mean better per...
A new report from Enders Analysis looks at what impact a move to a subscription-based model could have on the BBC and TV viewing in the UK
