BBC would cost nearly three times more than Netflix as subscription service, says Tim Davie

Turns out the licence fee is good value for money

BBC director general Tim Davie has said the BBC would cost almost three times more if it were to turn into a subscription service like Netflix. In a report entitled Value for Audiences, it is claimed that an hour of BBC programming costs a household 9 pence, whereas an hour of streaming amounts to around 15 pence. “Compared with the market, the BBC continues to be very good value for money,” the broadcaster said in the report. Emphasising the BBC's value for money, the report said: "Taken together, a bundle of subscriptions providing advertising-free, high-quality services comparable with those offered by the BBC across video, audio and news would cost over £400 per year in comparison to a current licence fee of £157.50." It also said fewer BBC shows will also be broadcast on streaming services in the future. Shows such as Line of Duty and Peaky Blinders, which many consumers mistakenly believe to be Netflix originals, will be made exclusively available on BBC iPlayer or Britbox once their current contracts have expired. "The person who is waiting for that show to come to Netflix will be increasingly disappointed," Davie said. The report also outlined a 30 per cent reduction in income over the past 10 years since the arrival of various streaming platforms, suggesting it may need to make more cuts, with their documentary likely to suffer. "It has to be a better use of our resources than the alternatives… It’s not enough to say: 'It got a low audience but it’s a very worthwhile thing to do'." Not everyone agrees with Davie's assessment of the value in the licence fee. Philip Davies, a former member of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee, said: "If the BBC is such wonderful value for money, why does it continue to insist on the criminal law being in place to force people to pay for it? If they really believed that, the BBC would be happy to join Netflix and move to a voluntary subscription. "Their desperation to avoid a voluntary subscription is the only proof we need that the BBC don’t really think they represent such wonderful value for money."