Free Republic

The Rundfunkbeitrag — or television license fee, which every household living in Germany is required to pay — could rise soon. On Wednesday, the leaders of Germany’s 16 states cleared the way for the amount of money people contribute to the Rundfunkbeitrag to go up by signing the interstate broadcasting agreement. The increase in the broadcasting fee is now likely to rise by 86 cents to €18.36 per month from January 2021. However, the change in law must go through all state parliaments before it comes into force. And there may be some resistance from the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt....

The BBC license fee should be scrapped and replaced with a voluntary subscription service, TV presenter Nick Ross has claimed. The former host of Crimewatch warned support for the BBC would “fall off a cliff” if the mandatory charge for all owners of a television set is not axed, but the Corporation hit back saying the change would mean fewer people paying much more each year to maintain a quality service. Viewers must buy a TV license for £145.50 if they want to watch live broadcasts, but they can legally avoid paying by waiting until their favorite show is available...

They are generally regarded as historic relics and part of a bygone era of broadcasting history. But even in today’s digital age, there are 11,550 households in the country still watching black and white television, official figures reveal. The number of black and white licenses have dropped dramatically in recent years and the total has decreased by a further 12 percent over the past year. […] The cost of a black and white TV license remains frozen at £49 ($80.37) until the BBC Charter Review in 2016. A color license costs £145.50 ($238.65). …

The television licence enforcers were nothing if not persistent. For five years they pursued 69-year-old Hannah Patricia Humphris with a succession of intimidating missives demanding she buy a licence.   The pursuit culminated with a letter this month threatening her with prosecution and a possible £1,000 fine.  But the TV licensing police had overlooked one crucial fact: Miss Humphris hasn't owned a television since 1978.    Hannah Patricia Humphris doesn't own a television, but is still being pursued by the TV Licencing AuthorityShe got rid of her set that year because it wasn't working properly and, she said, there...