dbd33

+1

I find Canadian media to be nigh on useless to me. The TV has too many adverts. The radio has too many adverts and too much political polemic woven into the inane banter.

paolosmythe

I always hated the license fee. In the UK we seldom watched BBC broadcasts, chosing those myriad other satellite channels instead. You could never imagine Rupert Murdoch enjoying the enforcement of mandatory subscription through law.

Although the Broadcasting Act (making a license mandatory) has been updated to include online / digital media in recent years, it is still basically based upon legislation formed when a single TV in an entire street was considered the norm.

Meanwhile, the licensing authority are free to spend the revenue generated to send out threatening junk mail and door beating inspectors to those 'freaks' who dare not indulge in television!

And of course tossers like Johnathon Ross, Russell Brand, Terry Wogan, (whoever else you might have a personal disliking of) are commanding top dollar.

And then i came to North America.

Holy crap! In excess of 5 minutes of commercials every 10 minutes or so, really undermines my committment to watch a show. I really really need to want to watch something, to tolerate all of the interruptions; but i never get to like a show enough to want to watch it, because every few minutes i am channel hopping, trying to evade some bullshit effort at mass media marketing.

Once more am i effectively free of TV!

paolosmythe

apologies for the above rant......

incidentally, i understand that revenues from license fee collection goes back into license fee enforcement!

the funds for program production is generated primarily from the foreign exportation of BBC products; 'Blue Planet' DVD box sets for example, as well as sale to foreign broadcasters.

Oh and Jeremey Clarkson is another tosser worth naming, who isn't worth his salary! (imo)

*Threadjack complete*

iaink

I've three letters for you, it will lower your blood pressure no end

P

V

R



(FF through all those annoying commercials)

Steve_P

Once again someone goes off into hyperbole.

On average there are between 12 and 15 minutes of advertising per hour in UK television and in north America it is more like 18 minutes so yes up to one third more ads per hour.

But 5 minutes every 10 give it a rest.

Plus as Iaink said get a PVR.

R I C H

It's your right to choose, and if you can honestly say you never accessed any state funded media at all, I'd have some sympathy, but I suspect that's unlikely. As previously mentioned you contribute via taxation to the CBC - do you have the same complaint here?


So?

The Broadcasting Act's clear who needs a licence - what's the problem with enforcement?

If I don't care for a particular personality or program I don't watch it. What they earn is subject to market forces, and I really don't care about.

Get a PVR and those issues are effectively avoided.

You're not free of the overhead though - your taxes are still being spent on programming. Oh, and the products/goods/services you buy on a daily basis too are contributing to program delivery. You can't escape it

scrubbedexpat133

I do miss BBC radio 2 - Steve Wright in the afternoon and 5 live when I worked nights - there is nothing I have found yet on normal or satellite radio here yet that compares and I am going to miss match of the day soon.

paolosmythe

Stats are what you want them to be.

I stand by my statement. You need proof? I ain't got any. It is what it is, take it or leave it.

Steve_P

I've got both UK and US shows on my hard drive with advertising removed and what I said is true.

Stand by your statement all you like it's pure bullshit.

R I C H

There's clear legislation and guidelines concerning the volume/length of ad breaks, both in the UK and here. Steve's stats aren't conjecture or hyperbole - it appears that your statement isn't based on anything other than a vague guess.

paolosmythe

*threadjack incomplete*

You suggest i lie? How dare thee!

Have you ever endured the efforts from the licensing authority when you do not have a license?

market forces seldom affect those personalities on long term multi-year contracts. and what force governs the plethora of tripe that is actually produced by the BBC?

apologies - to clarify, my freedom is from the desire to watch television.

i can repsect the need for public funding being provided (such as when the Beeb licensing laws came about) for the public good of information sharing, that went beyond Pathe news reels at the cinema once a week.

But this is a giant and global market now. old rules should not be applied.

Steve_

I was talking about music, if you go back to the start of the thread. I agree Radio 4 was okay but it's no better than CBC Radio 1.

BTJ

Whilst in Vancouver for 2 weeks I actually really quite enjoyed the TV we watched...CSI was always on at least one of the Shaw Basic channels! And Hatley High was an excellent made-for-TV movie! After all, you can talk to the other people in the room when the adverts come on...

John_B

You may well be right about this, but it does feel like ads are longer and more frequent on Canadian TV compared to the UK. I remember when I first moved here I watched a film on the History channel. I can't remember which film it was, but it started at 9pm and didn't end until about 1am. I also noticed that the ads became more frequent towards the end of the film. It was like they knew that if you were still tuned in after over 3 hours you were probably going to watch it to the end, so why not throw in some extra adverts.

I also find the concept of going directly from the opening credits to an ad break and then a final ad break before the closing credits, to be a bit irritating.

Steve_

There's much less manufactured Cowell-esque crap cookie cutter pop music on the radio here. They have actual musicians on the radio here generally speaking.

And erm... you wouldn't see it, it's noise coming out of the radio.