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<blockquote data-quote="easysat" data-source="post: 17539" data-attributes="member: 175305">MarkI can sympathise with you possibly losing free British TV or having to go to great expense and trouble to install a big dish. However for those parts of continental Europe covered by Astra 2D, I can't really see a disadvantage if the BBC and later ITV and Ch4, Ch5 become free to air. The BBC's costs will only be marginally impacted by higher copyright fees and this will be offset by lower distribution costs. A few expats and anglophiles will tune in for free, but so what? The British government has long funded the export of culture and English language teaching through the British Council and the BBC WOrld Service. When I was a kid, I used to tune in to Radio Nederland and even tried to learn Dutch with their &quot;Dutch by Radio&quot; programme. I can't say it did me any harm and if anything it made me more open to buying Dutch products and services.There is a legitimate question whether TV in the Irish Republic will suffer 'unfair' competition from its bigger neighbour. It's up to the government there to decide the best way of protecting Irish TV and culture.As for the BBC being crap, it's a matter of opinion. I don't watch the endless hospital soaps, Eastenders, etc. which seem to attract the largest audiences. But there are still programmes that I like to watch on BBC1 or on BBC2 plus the sports coverage. And my kids like CBeebies.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="easysat, post: 17539, member: 175305"] Mark I can sympathise with you possibly losing free British TV or having to go to great expense and trouble to install a big dish. However for those parts of continental Europe covered by Astra 2D, I can't really see a disadvantage if the BBC and later ITV and Ch4, Ch5 become free to air. The BBC's costs will only be marginally impacted by higher copyright fees and this will be offset by lower distribution costs. A few expats and anglophiles will tune in for free, but so what? The British government has long funded the export of culture and English language teaching through the British Council and the BBC WOrld Service. When I was a kid, I used to tune in to Radio Nederland and even tried to learn Dutch with their "Dutch by Radio" programme. I can't say it did me any harm and if anything it made me more open to buying Dutch products and services. There is a legitimate question whether TV in the Irish Republic will suffer 'unfair' competition from its bigger neighbour. It's up to the government there to decide the best way of protecting Irish TV and culture. As for the BBC being crap, it's a matter of opinion. I don't watch the endless hospital soaps, Eastenders, etc. which seem to attract the largest audiences. But there are still programmes that I like to watch on BBC1 or on BBC2 plus the sports coverage. And my kids like CBeebies. [/QUOTE]

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