What can be viewed without a TV licence?
You CAN view all non-live, on-demand content via your broadband internet connection - with the exception of BBC iPlayer.
You CANNOT view or record any live TV content. This is regardless of how live TV is delivered, be it via a TV Aerial, Satellite or Broadband Internet.
Sources:-
TVL Website: Do I need a TV Licence?
TVL Website: Easy Read - When you need a TV Licence
Household Members, TVs, Computers and Smartphones
The TV licence rules apply to all members of the household and cover televisions, computers, mobile phones in and outside of the home, regardless of the distance from home within the UK.
Live TV vs. On-Demand TV
What is Live TV?
- Live TV stations nearly always broadcast live content according to a predefined schedule.
- Live TV might be a soap every weekday at 7pm, or a documentary at 9pm.
- Live TV cannot be viewed or recorded at the time of broadcast without a TV licence.
What is On-Demand TV
- On-demand TV is pre-recorded content that is placed on the internet, ready to be accessed and played at any time by anybody who has access to it.
- On-demand content is not scheduled to be broadcast at a predefined time.
- On-demand TV content can be legally viewed or recorded without a TV licence.
Examples of what CANNOT be viewed or recorded
Below are some examples of what CANNOT be viewed or recorded without a TV Licence:-
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Live broadcast TV via your TV aerial and satellite dish.
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Live TV channels including BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. All channels on Freeview, including +1 channels.
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Live content viewed or recorded at the time of broadcast over the internet.
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All content on BBC iPlayer.
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Any Sky, Virgin or similar services featuring live TV and received via a satellite dish.
Examples of what CAN be viewed
Below are some examples of what CAN be viewed without a TV Licence.
This only includes on-demand content over your broadband internet connection. You must avoid viewing or recording any and all live content if and where it can found on any of the services below !!!
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ITV Player: Free. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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All-4: Free. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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My-5: Free. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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Netflix: Subscription. 100% on-demand content content.
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Amazon Prime: Subscription. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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NowTV: Subscription. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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Disney+: Subscription. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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YouTube: Free. Mostly on-demand content with some live content.
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Others: There are many other providers of on-demand content.
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DVDs: All DVD content.
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Radio: All radios stations, including BBC radio stations.
This means that any person can subscribe to the above channels and view on-demand content so long as they avoid any and all live content - without requiring a TV licence.
On-demand providers and live content
Some on-demand providers include a small minority of live broadcast content on their channels.
Where this is the case, live content is almost always clearly labelled as being live and must be strictly avoided where a householder does not have a TV licence.
Amazon Prime is one example of this and contains a tiny amount of live broadcast content. However, this live content is hard to find and almost always clearly labelled as live. So long as any live content is completely avoided then no TV licence is required to subscribe to Amazon Prime and view on-demand content.
Source: TVL Website: Do I need a TV Licence to watch subscription services like Netflix, Amazon or Now TV?
Where do I find on-demand TV providers?
See the links below to some very well known providers of on-demand and catch-up TV. Some of these providers are free to access while others require a paid subscription:-
Free UK catchup TV providers
Subscription on-demand TV providers
Free video viewing and posting websites
In summary
A TV licence is required to view or record any live broadcast TV or BBC iPlayer on any device whether at home or away, anywhere in the UK.
A TV licence is not required to view any on-demand content, except for BBC iPlayer, on any device - anywhere, at home or away from home.
What does TV Licensing say?
The advice given on the TVL website is often presented in small fonts and long paragraphs, making it confusing and more difficult than it might otherwise be for many people to interpret or fully understand.
See the link below. If you read the wording carefully and note the context and positioning of the word “live”, you will see that the above information on this page is correct.
Source: TVL Website: Do I need a TV Licence?
What about TV equipment?
To decide whether or not a TV license is required, it is also necessary to consider TV equipment and the way that it is set up. See the link below for more information on TV equipment.
Further reading
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