The BBC has this month published an extensive report called BBC Value for Audiences. It uses the licence fee figure of £157.50 although from April it increases £1.50 a year to £159. They state that the BBC’s income has decreased in real terms by 30% but sets out its economic case that they provide great value for money. Here are some of the headlines from the report:-
The licence fee costs less in real terms now than in 2010/11
The cost for each BBC hour consumed by UK audiences is lower at 6.6p in 2019/20, compared to 7.6p in 2010/11
- Compared with the market, the BBC continues to be very good value for money. Each hour of BBC TV watched by a household costs it around 9p, on average. For an equivalent subscription video-on-demand service that is around 15p, and for an equivalent pay TV service it starts at well over 50p per hour
- Radio also provides great value for money. Each hour of BBC radio listening costs each household about 3p, on average
- 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
- Despite an explosion in competition, more people use the BBC than any other media brand: 91% of UK adults a week and 97% a month
- Among young people, 80% of 16-34 year olds (12.5 million) use the BBC every week and 93% (14.6 million) every month, on average – more than any other brand for media. Adults spend close to 18 hours a week with the BBC on average, making the BBC the UK’s most used media brand
- The BBC is at the heart of UK life. The UK public chooses the BBC around 250 million times a day. Every single minute of the day and night, the BBC is being used by 5 million people, on average, and 45 million across an average day.
The full report is available to download @ https://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/reports/reports/value-for-audiences-2021.pdf
