BBC Considers Locking iPlayer For Viewers Who Opt Out Of License Fee

EXCLUSIVE: The BBC has said it is open-minded about closing off iPlayer to British viewers who decline to pay the licence fee.

In an all-staff call on Monday, the BBC’s chief customer officer Kerris Bright said locking down iPlayer could be an “opportunity” in the future as the corporation looks to stem the tide of people opting out of the licence fee.

Bright told colleagues that blocking iPlayer does not currently make sense because it could cause unwelcome friction for viewers who do pay the licence fee, but she said the BBC will keep the idea under review as streaming technology improves.

“iPlayer is the only service really that’s licensable where you could actually decide to put a gate in front of it, but the data today says that actually [there’s] not really the return on investment for doing that,” Bright told employees, per audio obtained by Deadline.

“The vast majority of evasion is not on iPlayer. The vast majority of people that are watching iPlayer are people that are paying their TV licence, and so to put a gate in front of iPlayer, the data today says that you actually would make it a very difficult experience for people that are paying for the licence.”

iPlayer viewers do have to sign into the BBC to watch the streamer. The service also occasionally asks users if they have a licence fee, though it does not require proof. “It’s quite a difficult experience if you have to ask them to find their TV licence to put it into iPlayer,” Bright said.

She continued: “As we go into the future, more of an IPTV world, audiences changing behavior, new ways of creating experiences that maybe aren’t so full of friction for audiences … that might absolutely be an opportunity for us, depending on the funding model.

“The data says today [that] absolutely [it] is not the silver bullet to generating more revenue. There’s probably more cost in it than revenue, but it is something we should absolutely keep looking at because it might be something that you actually would want to do in the future.”

More than half a million people opted out of the licence fee in the BBC’s most recent financial year, contributing to a funding crisis for the British broadcaster.

Some 94% of the UK population use the BBC every month, but fewer than 80% pay the £180 annual licence fee. The BBC is attempting to bridge this gap and can no longer dip into its cash reserves to fund operations.

In comments earlier this month, BBC director general Matt Brittin said: “We can and should be doing as much as possible on [enforcing] licence fee collection under the current model, but it’s yesterday’s model, it’s a busted flush, it’s no longer fit for purpose, and that’s why we need to make the case for the BBC and a shift of the licence fee model.”

The BBC is in talks with the government about a new charter, which will likely lead to funding model changes. The BBC is not being prescriptive about what could replace the licence fee, but thinks the government should reconsider a compulsory household levy, which it previously ruled out.

Another idea under consideration is extending the licence fee to include subscribers to streamers like Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video. The plan has already drawn the ire of the Motion Picture Association, representing U.S. streamers and studios.