BBC licence fee could extend to streaming services under ‘YouTube tax’ – report

The BBC licence fee will be extended to online streaming services such as YouTube and Netflix under new Government plans, it has been reported.According to The Independent, the plan is to extend the licence fee to these platforms to prevent people from avoiding it by logging on to the internet via their phones, tablets or laptops.A White Paper on the BBC’s charter renewal is expected to be published before Christmas, which will set out how the corporation will be governed, regulated and funded from 2028 onwards.Currently, anyone who uses a television to watch content must pay the licence fee, even if they do not watch the BBC. The fee rose to £180 on April 1.The YouTube logo is displayed on a smartphone screen (Alamy?PA)Under the proposed changes, the fee would expand to streamers including Amazon and Disney+, which are currently exempt from the licence fee.The publication reports that the new arrangements have been called the “YouTube tax” because the site is by far the biggest online video platform in the UK.A BBC spokesperson said: “We have consistently argued that the current funding model is outdated and needs reform.“We will continue to engage with Government to secure a new charter that provides sustainable, sufficient and universal funding so the BBC can deliver for audiences for generations to come.”The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has been contacted for comment.BBC director-general Matt Brittin said last month that he wants BBC News to be on streaming sites such as Netflix in a bid to reform how the broadcaster’s content is consumed and paid for.Anyone who uses a television to watch content must pay the licence fee, even if they do not watch the BBC (James Manning/PA)PA WireHe has also said the corporation is “held back” by its licence fee, which is “no longer fit for purpose”, and suggested a household levy as a potential funding option.Speaking on the Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme, he said: “What we need to look at is the current model. You pay the licence fee if you watch live TV or you’re on iPlayer.“I’d like to see reform that allows us to be where audiences are. I think BBC content should be on Netflix, on YouTube, on TikTok, on Spotify, and Instagram, and everywhere where audiences are.”Read MoreIt comes after the DCMS recommended that the BBC extends the licence fee to cover services other than TV.The DCMS said its current model was “outdated and no longer fit for purpose”, and also suggested that the BBC reduced the cost from its current price of £180 per year.BBC director-general Matt Brittin has said the corporation is ‘held back’ by its licence fee (Lucy North/PA)PA WireIt also said that a household levy, which would see homes forced to pay the licence fee regardless of whether they used the corporation’s services, would be difficult to introduce.The standard TV licence is legally required to watch or record television on any channel or service, watch live TV on streaming services, or to use BBC iPlayer.The BBC’s licence fee income has dropped by more than £1 billion in real terms over the past decade, with the 2026 BBC annual report revealing TV licences fell by more than half a million in the 2025/26 financial year.The BBC charter has to be renewed every 10 years and is set to end in December 2027.