The BBC has begun an early stage, or beta, trial of live
television over Wi-Fi networks. The owners of phones with Wi-Fi
connections can go online and see live streaming of BBC One, BBC
Two and six other BBC stations, displayed as an image measuring 176
x 144 pixels. Radio stations are also available.
The service requires a TV licence and anyone who uses it whose
home is not covered by a licence is committing an offence. But
under a licensing quirk, so is anyone who plugs their handset into
the mains electricity at a site which is not covered by a
licence.
"You would
have to have a TV licence already if you use your mobile phone to
watch live TV," said a TV Licensing Authority spokesman. "That home
licence covers you unless you plug into the mains."
The location of the mains must also have a TV licence or the law
has been broken, the spokesman said. He said that it is the
smartphone user, and not the owner of the premises, who is liable
for the infringement.
Users are allowed, though, to plug their devices into the mains
without breaking the law on a train, plane, boat or in a car. "If
you plug into the mains at any address other than your home, that
address would need to be covered. But licensing regulations cover
you for when you are travelling," he said.
No warning is given by the BBC of the fact that users of the
service who have a TV licence at home could break the law.
"In order to use BBC LiveTV/Radio, you must have a full colour
TV licence," said the BBC's guide to using the service. "It is a
criminal offence to watch ‘live’ television without a TV licence or
to possess or control a device which you know or reasonably believe
will be used to watch ‘live’ TV without a TV licence."
There is no mention of the law being broken if a handset is
plugged in at an unlicensed premises.
The BBC did not say why it had not told users of the trial
service of the danger of breaking the law.
"The BBC has been running a public beta to test live TV/Radio,
on a limited number of Wi-Fi enabled handsets, via the mobile
homepage since last September," said a statement. "The purpose is
to test uptake and quality and assess how we might be able to
stream live services to an increasing number of mobile devices in
the future."
The TV Licensing Authority said that 98% of UK households have
televisions, and that the licence evasion rate is 5%.
It is a criminal offence to watch TV without a licence and the
penalty is a fine of up to £1,000.
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