Dee Forbes banging the RTE TV licence drum again 60m uncollected fee poll not working - pl ignore

CrankyHaus · 14-06-2018 6:16pm

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

While I agree with the sentiments here Wibbs, the problem is that - unless you want to watch everything on a laptop/tablet screen - you still need a physical TV, especially if you want something 40" or larger.

Yes, there are monitors that big, but they're generally very expensive, lack a lot of the TV-focused options (multiple HDMI, suitable refresh rates and resolutions, SmartTV apps for Netflix etc) and of course, speakers and a remote control.

There's also the upcoming plan to make you pay (again!) for your Netflix viewing when they introduce this Broadcast/Internet Tax (noting that you ALSO already pay VAT on your Internet sub too of course! Pay three times!)

Those who don't want RTE an genuinely don't watch/use it, shouldn't have to subsidise it - certainly not at the current charges and for the current content. In the modern TV era that means making it available through Pay TV platforms only (Sky, Virgin etc), and subscription-locked streaming options.

But this being Ireland, it'll never happen so we will indeed pay at least twice for something an increasing number of us don't even want/use.

Get a projector. They're very good value these days, compare favourably to TVs by most measures and are not eligible for TV license fee.

The Household broadcast charge was first mooted back around 2011, it's far from a dead cert and should encounter opposition.

In a particularly cynical stroke the proposed broadcast charge may well include print media among its beneficiaries. While any genuinely independent journalist would be aghast at being tethered to state support (and therefore dependant upon state approval) the Irish papers have been uniformly supportive or uncritical of the broadcast charge, no doubt because they smell money. The usual line trotted out is that traditional media must be paid for to maintain standards in the age of internet "trolls" (shorthand for any unapproved opinion online). Even Fintan O'Toole sang that line in one of his pieces a few years back.

steddyeddy · 14-06-2018 6:55pm

Is there a political will to do an audit of RTE's use of money? I'd be surprised if that would be unpopular with anyone except RTE.

fritzelly · 14-06-2018 6:57pm

Wonder if Virgin's analogue shut down will have any effect on RTE's viewership figures...

kneemos · 14-06-2018 7:14pm

CrankyHaus wrote: »

Get a projector. They're very good value these days, compare favourably to TVs by most measures and are not eligible for TV license fee.

The Household broadcast charge was first mooted back around 2011, it's far from a dead cert and should encounter opposition.

In a particularly cynical stroke the proposed broadcast charge may well include print media among its beneficiaries. While any genuinely independent journalist would be aghast at being tethered to state support (and therefore dependant upon state approval) the Irish papers have been uniformly supportive or uncritical of the broadcast charge, no doubt because they smell money. The usual line trotted out is that traditional media must be paid for to maintain standards in the age of internet "trolls" (shorthand for any unapproved opinion online). Even Fintan O'Toole sang that line in one of his pieces a few years back.

Has to be worth the cost of the license fee to avoid all that fapping about.

CrankyHaus · 14-06-2018 8:24pm

kneemos wrote: »

Has to be worth the cost of the license fee to avoid all that fapping about.

Depends what you're into. If sitting in front of the TV to pass the time is an everynight thing then the TV the handiest thing for it.

If you just want to watch selected films, shows and docs a few times a week then the projector is the way to go.

backspin. · 14-06-2018 8:56pm

Listen folks Miriam needs to update the Merc don't be miserable.

Permabear · 15-06-2018 10:47am

This post has been deleted.

Idbatterim · 15-06-2018 4:09pm

Any political party that supported license fee abolition and letting RTÉ stand on its own two feet or fail, would probably win a fair bit of support ...

CrankyHaus · 15-06-2018 4:33pm

Idbatterim wrote: »

Any political party that supported license fee abolition and letting RTÉ stand on its own two feet or fail, would probably win a fair bit of support ...

Not after all the negative press RTE would run on them.

Red_Wake · 18-06-2018 11:17am

CrankyHaus wrote: »

Idbatterim wrote: »

Any political party that supported license fee abolition and letting RTÉ stand on its own two feet or fail, would probably win a fair bit of support ...

Not after all the negative press RTE would run on them.

This.

They were happy to play up the water protests. If the same ire was directed at the TV Licence Fee, the coverage would not be as generous.

VinLieger · 18-06-2018 11:48am

Red_Wake wrote: »

This.

They were happy to play up the water protests. If the same ire was directed at the TV Licence Fee, the coverage would not be as generous.

Joe Duffy is the classic example, he portrays himself as a "man of de peeeple" but any time his salary is mentioned by a caller, which is at the latest increase is at least 6-7 times that of the average worker, he quickly shuts down the discussion or they get muted and the call is "dropped".

Rule one and two in RTE is don't talk about the salaries

Wibbs · 18-06-2018 12:03pm

CrankyHaus wrote: »

Get a projector. They're very good value these days, compare favourably to TVs by most measures and are not eligible for TV license fee.

I could never get with projectors TBH. Too dull and not so sharp. A guy I know has this very nice plasma TV* he got years ago. He got pissed off with paying the RTE tax, so stopped his cable subscription and got an electronics expert chap he knows to remove the TV receiver from his plasma set(IIRC it was a daughter card on the main board), blanked up the aerial holes, rendering it incapable of receiving a TV signal. Basically he uses a 50 inch HD plasma as a monitor and he uses that to play Netflix, blurays and the like.

*Though they're out of favour now as LED/LCD are cheaper to produce and use less power IMHO the plasmas still have the superior picture.

steddyeddy · 19-06-2018 10:12am

RTE warn the government of serious financial problems the Irish Times report. They're reporting a deficit of nearly 7 million for last year.

Interestingly the article doesn't mention any cost cutting measures RTE are thinking of bringing in. It seems to be another begging to support our 400k a year presenter lifestyle from our favorite broadcaster in receipt of taxpayer and advertising revenue.

Red_Wake · 19-06-2018 10:48am

steddyeddy wrote: »

RTE warn the government of serious financial problems the Irish Times report. They're reporting a deficit of nearly 7 million for last year.

Interestingly the article doesn't mention any cost cutting measures RTE are thinking of bringing in. It seems to be another begging to support our 400k a year presenter lifestyle from our favorite broadcaster in receipt of taxpayer and advertising revenue.

Have a heart lads, how else will Gerry Ryan's kids support themselves?

19-06-2018 11:11am

steddyeddy wrote: »

RTE warn the government of serious financial problems the Irish Times report. They're reporting a deficit of nearly 7 million for last year.

Interestingly the article doesn't mention any cost cutting measures RTE are thinking of bringing in. It seems to be another begging to support our 400k a year presenter lifestyle from our favorite broadcaster in receipt of taxpayer and advertising revenue.

What an absolute joke. Gime gime gime

Permabear · 19-06-2018 11:25am

This post has been deleted.

CrankyHaus · 19-06-2018 11:41am

Permabear wrote: »

This post had been deleted.

Yes RTE knows well which side its bread is buttered on and is not above running propaganda for its paymasters. Last year it stage managed an interview with Varadker's parents where Miriam Varadker was instructed tro change her answers by the Taoiseach's PR staff. This was edited out in the interview broadcast on TV but RTE then mistakenly posted the unedited interview on RTE Player where viewers could hear Ms Varadker being told to change her answer by someone off-stage.

http://https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/interview-with-leo-varadkars-parents-removed-from-rte-website-793985.html

Even RTE's traditional antipathy to SF in its coverage has softened considerably as the party has become a more viable party of government, and therefore may hold RTE's purse-strings at some point.

steddyeddy · 19-06-2018 12:23pm

bluewolf wrote: »

What an absolute joke. Gime gime gime

Indeed. They exist in a bubble of entitlement. Last week they were blaming Netflix, now it's a deficit.

andekwarhola · 19-06-2018 12:29pm

I'd still be a big supporter of funding state broadcasting, especially nowadays.

That said, some of the arguments against RTE that were advanced here before were good and I found myself agreeing with them, re: a state broadcaster trying to runiously compete in the commercial sphere of talk shows, pop music, syndicated drama etc.

Even the likes of the Late Late has gone from being a very central part of Irish life to one of many chat shows.

Surely RTE could be slimmed down to, say, one tv and radio station with a pure focus on producing good domestic current affairs, political and cultural output. You could still commission popular drama like Love/Hate as well. You could preserve a quality music show like John Creedon's but there's not point in having a state broadcaster competing with a million other pop stations.

AndyBoBandy · 19-06-2018 12:39pm

On top of their ad revenue & licence fee, they don’t publish how much they earn from those silly competitions they run on EVERY SINGLE SHOW because it’s ‘comercially sensitive information’.

To be in with a chance to win this great prize (a 2 grand holiday to New York) just answer the following question.

Q: What is a Car?

A: a bicycle
B: a dolphin
C: a car

Calls cost €1 per entry.

They should either be 100% publicly funded, or 100% commercial and fund themselves through advertising and silly competitions, not both.

CrankyHaus · 19-06-2018 12:48pm

AndyBoBandy wrote: »

On top of their ad revenue & licence fee, they don’t publish how much they earn from those silly competitions they run on EVERY SINGLE SHOW because it’s ‘comercially sensitive information’.

To be in with a chance to win this great prize (a 2 grand holiday to New York) just answer the following question.

Q: What is a Car?

A: a bicycle
B: a dolphin
C: a car

Calls cost €1 per entry.

They should either be 100% publicly funded, or 100% commercial and fund themselves through advertising and silly competitions, not both.

Yes that's actually RTE shamelessly exploiting a loophole in the gambling laws that allows quizzes with far less restriction than a straight up lottery draw.

Of course when the answer is so obvious the vast majority (maybe all) of answers are "correct" and are then placed in a pool with a winner selected at random, so it's little different from a lottery. I wonder if it was anyone other than RTE doing it so often would the authorities clamp down on it?

Rjd2 · 20-06-2018 1:43am

steddyeddy wrote: »

RTE warn the government of serious financial problems the Irish Times report. They're reporting a deficit of nearly 7 million for last year.

Interestingly the article doesn't mention any cost cutting measures RTE are thinking of bringing in. It seems to be another begging to support our 400k a year presenter lifestyle from our favorite broadcaster in receipt of taxpayer and advertising revenue.

I am in the middle when it comes to the license fee, but I agree its loathsome that Dee demands more money when we haven't seen any acknowledgement from her that salaries of the top people and the overall running of RTE is absolutely bloated.

For what its worth, even if somehow the fee is increased she will be back soon enough asking for another increase, its never going to be enough for her with her current mindset.

TomOnBoard · 20-06-2018 1:51am

The sense of entitlement of this wan really annoys me, along with the elitism of the RTE presenters vs those of TV3,Newstalk and the like. Put Finucane out to grass immediately and maybe she'll be able to deal with that awful chest of hers that has her wheezing and spluttering through her very underwhelming programme at the weekend.

applehunter · 20-06-2018 2:00am

Get rid of 2FM and RTE 2.

Cut the RTE sports department bu 50% at least.

Atlantic Dawn · 20-06-2018 2:16am

Could she charge Joe Duffy a fee for each time he gives out his personal Twitter handle instead of de Liveline official show handle?

RabbleRouser2k · 20-06-2018 2:39am

applehunter wrote: »

Get rid of 2FM and RTE 2.

Cut the RTE sports department bu 50% at least.

There would also have been 3 chatshows this year, but for 'the referendum'...

3 chatshows...with repeated 'guests' every few weeks.

The RTE sports department has become a joke. The recent 'stepping down' of Ryle Nugent aka 'his firing' due to the loss of the rugby-the many, many, many pundits they have for GAA and Football.It's ridiculous.

foxy farmer · 20-06-2018 7:10am

RTE are lucky they don't have to deal directly with the public looking for money they're "owed"
If I use electricity the relevant supplier sends me a bill. If i use a landline the relevant provider sends me a reminder. In the case of RTE at the moment even though its RTE thats providing the service its An Post that are sending me reminders that there's money due. No mention of RTE in any letter. Theyre the only semi state company that can get people sent to prison for not paying up and yet RTE won't be taking the court action or even have their name mentioned in court.
Yes I know it's a service you can't disconnect for non payment but maybe if they had to collect the money themselves they'd soon wake up when they'd really experience public sentiment.
Scramble the signal make it a subscription service and see how long they'd last.

CrankyHaus · 20-06-2018 9:19am

[URL="https://mobile.twitter.com/namawinelake/status/1009073001210564608?s=19]https://mobile.twitter.com/namawinelake/status/1009073001210564608?s=19[/URL]

RTE to report €6.4m loss for 2017 when it publishes its annual report next week. It still maintains it made a €20m loss in 2016 because of 1916 commemorations; the truth is, it increased average pay by 8% in 2016, adding €12m to the payroll. #chancers

Kivaro · 20-06-2018 9:45am

The government, and politicians in general, have utter disdain and contempt for the Irish electorate on this issue, as the vast majority of the population want a slimmed down self-sufficient RTE.

The compulsory television license tax on the Irish people should be removed and a subscription service should be introduced.

RabbleRouser2k · 20-06-2018 8:36pm

Are 'budget cuts' the reason RTE doesn't have any tv listings for tv3, or 3e?

Case in point. https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/listings/television/#!blank-hpdv-1529496000000

weldoninhio · 20-06-2018 8:52pm

RabbleRouser2k wrote: »

Are 'budget cuts' the reason RTE doesn't have any tv listings for tv3, or 3e?

Case in point. https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/listings/television/#!blank-hpdv-1529496000000

They are there

RabbleRouser2k · 20-06-2018 8:56pm

weldoninhio wrote: »

They are there

That's mad, they don't show on my connection at all.

Capt'n Midnight · 20-06-2018 9:18pm

Permabear wrote: »

This post had been deleted.

TG4's budget is €32.5 a year.

Neither do we need RTE competing in the crowded pop music space with 2 FM. That entire station should be privatized.

2FM doesn't get licence fee money as it's a commercial opperation.

Varik · 20-06-2018 9:21pm

Can RTE go bust, is there any chance for examinership where the fat can be cut or at least brought to light or would the government just bail them out.

fritzelly · 20-06-2018 9:24pm

Varik wrote: »

Can RTE go bust, is there any chance for examinership where the fat can be cut or at least brought to light or would the government just bail them out.

You made me laugh

Harry Palmr · 20-06-2018 9:26pm

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

TG4's budget is €32.5 a year.

2FM doesn't get licence fee money as it's a commercial opperation.

2FM received €3.74c of every licence fee in 2016.

Before Gerry Ryan's death it actually turned a profit, but regardless of that RTE should be compelled to sell it off, it should raise a decent amount in a growing economy.

kneemos · 20-06-2018 9:27pm

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

TG4's budget is €32.5 a year.

2FM doesn't get licence fee money as it's a commercial opperation.

Course it does. It also loses millions.

RabbleRouser2k · 20-06-2018 9:56pm

Harry Palmr wrote: »

2FM received €3.74c of every licence fee in 2016.

Before Gerry Ryan's death it actually turned a profit, but regardless of that RTE should be compelled to sell it off, it should raise a decent amount in a growing economy.

And before Gay Byrne stepped down from hosting the Late Late show, the licence fee was pretty much frozen-because RTE didn't need it. The money they were making from adverts shown during the Late Late was incredible-literally ask what they wanted, and they got it.

Gay Byrne steps down-and the ratings, and advertising revenue, from the LLS fell dramatically. I think RTE thought they were sorted when they got 1 million viewers a night on Who wants to be a Millionaire-and then the ratings gradually fell to 300 000 average and it lost its sponsor.

RTE always seem to put money/ gamble on a 'sure thing' since then-and then it's money wasted.

Idbatterim · 20-06-2018 9:58pm

Say 20,000 homes are built on average for the next few years. 85% compliance rate. The thieving scum are getting more and more each year!

Here we go · 20-06-2018 9:59pm

One of the first to say rte is **** and wouldn't watch it by there showing every game of the World Cup and I hazard a guess rte 2 is on from 12/8 in most houses the past week

Here we go · 20-06-2018 10:02pm

One of the first to say rte is **** and wouldn't watch it by there showing every game of the World Cup and I hazard a guess rte 2 is on from 12/8 in most houses the past week

Idbatterim · 20-06-2018 10:02pm

Here we go wrote: »

One of the first to say rte is **** and wouldn't watch it by there showing every game of the World Cup and I hazard a guess rte 2 is on from 12/8 in most houses the past week

Yeah but is that worth e640 over four years?! Make it subscription, the vast majority that watch the RTÉ rubbish are older people who don’t even pay for the privilege!

fritzelly · 20-06-2018 10:12pm

Here we go wrote: »

One of the first to say rte is **** and wouldn't watch it by there showing every game of the World Cup and I hazard a guess rte 2 is on from 12/8 in most houses the past week

But how many could be watching it on ITV/BBC - not really that big a scoop for RTE when there are for most other ways to watch it

Atlantic Dawn · 20-06-2018 10:20pm

Ten Pin wrote: »

Any organization that tells ya to "love your orchestras" and have the neck to charge you for doing so, is just taking the piss, big style.

€11.36 (7.1%) of your annual licence fee goes towards funding the orchestra, a crazy percentage and more than RTE spends on its entire online services. The orchestra is entertainment for the few, not the many, it should be funded outside the licence fee.

http://www.thejournal.ie/rte-orchestra-licence-fee-3689617-Nov2017/

fritzelly · 20-06-2018 10:30pm

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

€11.36 (7.1%) of your annual licence fee goes towards funding the orchestra, a crazy percentage and more than RTE spends on its entire online services. The orchestra is entertainment for the few, not the many, it should be funded outside the licence fee.

http://www.thejournal.ie/rte-orchestra-licence-fee-3689617-Nov2017/

A very select few - less than 4% of the population (of both orchestras and including all performances) see it and that's assuming there is no one attending a performance more than once! And on top of that in most cases you are paying to go watch them perform

All for performing arts of all kinds but if they can not be more self sustaining then they are just showing themselves up as being the same as RTE with the attitude ahh well we're getting loads of money for doing nothing

RabbleRouser2k · 20-06-2018 10:37pm

Idbatterim wrote: »

Yeah but is that worth e640 over four years?! Make it subscription, the vast majority that watch the RTÉ rubbish are older people who don’t even pay for the privilege!

They've earned that privilege-unlike RTE's code of Omerta
(not paying I mean).

Everyone else is using netflix, amazon or youtube-even the rte player is pretty terrible.
The TV3 player is far superior, and they don't get anywhere near the license fee money rte get.

Atlantic Dawn · 20-06-2018 10:41pm

Also the RTE Orchestra members are allowed claim flat rate expenses by Revenue of €2476 a year, the highest of any profession by far. A nurse is allowed €536 a year, a teacher €518, a plumber €205, what a great little country to live in.

https://www.revenue.ie/en/employing-people/employee-expenses/flat-rate-expense-allowances/index.aspx

https://www.revenue.ie/en/personal-tax-credits-reliefs-and-exemptions/documents/flat-rate-expenses.xls

TomOnBoard · 20-06-2018 10:42pm

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Also the RTE Orchestra members are allowed claim flat rate expenses by Revenue of €2476 a year, the highest of any profession by far. A nurse is allowed €536 a year, a teacher €518, a plumber €205, what a great little country to live in.

https://www.revenue.ie/en/employing-people/employee-expenses/flat-rate-expense-allowances/index.aspx

https://www.revenue.ie/en/personal-tax-credits-reliefs-and-exemptions/documents/flat-rate-expenses.xls

Feck sake.. Do you have any idea how much a Stradivarius costs??

kneemos · 28-06-2018 8:36pm

Colm Hayes reackons RTE is slow and bumbling,and progress is stifled by unions and the sheer size of the organisation.

https://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/radio-novas-colm-hayes-slams-12803297

RabbleRouser2k · 28-06-2018 8:47pm

kneemos wrote: »

Colm Hayes reackons RTE is slow and bumbling,and progress is stifled by unions and the sheer size of the organisation.

https://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/radio-novas-colm-hayes-slams-12803297

I imagine there's some bitterness about how him and Jim Jim were treated like royalty, then treated like paupers.

I think anyone who saw the Colm and Jim Jim quiz show knows how crappy it was-but it's not not as surprise RTe are in the crapper.

Dee Forbes banging the RTE TV licence drum again 60m uncollected fee *poll not working - pl ignore*

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Dee Forbes banging the RTE TV licence drum again 60m uncollected fee poll not working - pl ignore