RTE - "Player Originals" - (e.g. "Good Boy" comedy on RTE Player ONLY) - funded by TV Licence

podgeandrodge

As @RoTelly mentioned in a wider post, RTE have developed "Good Boys", as an RTE "Player Original", only available on the RTE Player.

Wish it the best of luck.

I am curious as respects the TV Licence though on this.

RTE receive about 85% of the licence fee. The licence fee is paid for by people that have a device capable of receiving broadcasts, or something defined like this in the legislation.

According to the Irish Times ( https://www.irishtimes.com/media/2024/10/15/good-boy-comedy-marks-new-era-for-rte-player/) RTE have a "mission to make the app a culturally relevant streamer” in which Player Originals “fill in the gaps left by linear content", and intend that from 2027, "50 per cent of its non-live television content will be made available on the player first. This, it says, is about giving viewers choice about how they watch".

So, in effect, the licence fee payer, funding RTE for content, specifically on the basis of owning a device capable of receiving broadcasts, is funding programming that is only available on the Player - for which no TV licence is required if viewed on various platforms.

Is there a conflict in this? If you are, let's say, a law abiding tv licence fee payer, with only a television receiving RTE, but not Player, is it fair that you are effectively funding those who may not have to pay any fee if watching on non-tv's?

Or put another way, why should a medium which can legally be watched without a licence fee, be funded by a licence fee, in a case where the licence fee payer may not have access to the Player.

I realise in saying all this that it is the Government who receive the licence fee, it's not an "RTE fee" etc. etc. But ultimately they get most of it, so should they be able to use the licence fee, specifically imposed on physical broadcast receivers, on content that is free to non payers.

Anyway, curious as to thoughts. Again, this is not a "pay or not pay the licence fee" thread!

I'm also aware that RTE/Govt. may be planning ultimately to link the Player with the licence fee, so this is about the here and now.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058374482/rte-player-originals-e-g-good-boy-comedy-on-rte-player-only-funded-by-tv-licence

About a decade ago maybe less RTÉ were given the go ahead to spend money on "Player originals", previously Licence fee could only be spent on Broadcast.

Annual report shows that in 2023 they spent €11.22 for the licence fee online services. 7% of the total.

also over on the TV forum :)

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058374461/good-boy-a-new-rte-web-series

murpho999

This sounds like just complaining for the sake of it.

Vast majority of people have TVs in their household and most TVs also are smart nowadays and can have RTE player app on them. I would say the amount of people without access to RTE Player these days is miniscule.

I'm sure at some point the shows will be broadcast by RTE anyway.

But this is a good sign that RTE are modernising and changing attitudes. I hope they modernise the apps and increase functionality and do something about the ads and crashing which often make it infuriating.

podgeandrodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122722755#Comment_122722755

Thanks!

podgeandrodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122722791#Comment_122722791

As stated, just curious. I specifically worded it to try and avoid sounding like a complaint, more about the system and process and whether it was all above board. @RoTelly has actually clarified it. But if you think I put it together just to go "complaining for the sake of it", I can think of easier ways of ranting at RTE!

Licence fee will have to be fixed anyway, hypothetically if everyone gave up their "tv" and just streamed RTE Player Originals, there would be no licence fee to fund that content.

RoTelly

But this is a good sign that RTE are modernising and changing attitudes. I hope they modernise the apps and increase functionality and do something about the ads and crashing which often make it infuriating.

Problem is they aren't really they are just pretending.

What you would consider to be a Comedy series. Length of each episode for example.

In my opinion RTÉ are trying to steer their way of thinking into modernizing and changing attitudes.