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Aardvark DailyNew Zealand's longest-running online daily news and commentary publication, now in its 25th year. The opinion pieces presented here are not purported to be fact but reasonable effort is made to ensure accuracy.Content copyright © 1995 - 2019 to Bruce Simpson (aka Aardvark), the logo was kindly created for Aardvark Daily by the folks at aardvark.co.uk |
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Once upon a time, radio and TV were miracles of the modern age.
I recall when I was a young boy (and dinosaurs roamed the earth) that the radio held pride of place in our house. Not just "another appliance", our radio sat in a little recess that had been created in the kitchen wall so that it was protected from damage and elevated to a height where young hands couldn't fiddle.
These were the days before TV (yes, such a time did once exist) and even before the ready availability of "personal" radios. Yes, valves ruled and radios were so cool that they'd keep working for just a few seconds -- even after you turned them off or pulled out the plug.
Of course nothing this magical could go untaxed and, as a result, every household had to pay a radio licence fee to legalise the ownership and use of such a hi-tech device.
When the incredible magic of TV was unleashed on the public, the radio got demoted to sitting on a shelf and was only used early in the mornings as the family scrambled to get ready for work or school.
Gone were the memorable evenings spent listening to The Goon Show or other verbal delights. Instead, everyone huddled around the glowing box and watched Get Smart, The Man From UNCLE, Dr Who and other exciting dramas or comedy.
Of course (wouldn't you know) that this more advanced magic meant that the radio licence was no longer enough. Now we had to have a Television Licence which (naturally) cost more.
This licence fee was charged despite the fact that there were advertisements being screened so therefore the broadcaster (the government) was already receiving revenue from this magic.
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Naturally this even *more* advanced magic mandated an even more expensive tax -- the Colour TV Licence. Nobody was allowed to own or use any form of broadcast receiver (radio, B&W or colour TV) without paying a stiff stipend to the government for the privilege.
Of course, since much of the broadcasting was now being done by state-owned enterprises and very healthy revenues were already being returned to the government, it became obvious that the licence fee amounted to nothing more than double-dipping so commonsense prevailed. The licence fees were dropped.
And that's how it has remained to this day. Unlike many other countries, we Kiwis are not required to pay a broadcast licence fee, the broadcasters generating their revenues from subscription or advertising and the government getting its cut from taxes or dividends.
But could that be about to change?
What will they do if IPTV becomes the new "big thing"?
Since it's not restricted by physical borders or the physics of radio-wave propagation, there's a very real chance that the most popular IPTV broadcasters won't be NZ-based and therefore won't be paying tax or dividends to the NZ government.
Now, if there's one thing that governments are completely intolerant of, it's losing tax/dividend revenues.
If people switch off free to air (FTA) broadcasts and instead opt to buy an IPTV tuner that plugs into their broadband service, how will the government deal with the massive loss of revenue?
Of course I'm assuming for the moment that we're talking about a time when data-caps and bandwidth bottle-necks are things of the past, okay?
Well I'm betting that we could then see a new kind of broadcast licence that would see all those accessing (or able to access) IPTV having to pay an annual fee/tax for the privilege.
Sounds far-fetched?
Well that's exactly what's happening in Germany.
Our German friends now face having to pay 5.52 Euros per month if they have a computer or mobile phone that is merely capable of accessing TV and radio programmes via the internet.
Of course this is the same country that imposed a levy/tax on CD/DVD writers so as to offset the costs of piracy to the music/movie industries -- so we shouldn't be too surprised.
However, don't for one minute think that our government won't be eyeing the prospect of an IPTV licence as another way to generate revenues for the state's coffers.
What do you reckon?
If TV shifts to IP as its delivery mechanism and we are then able to tune in to almost any TV station, anywhere in the world simply by connecting our TV set to our DSL connection -- will government be tempted to tax us for the privilege?
Oh, and don't forget today's sci/tech news headlines
Beware The Alternative Energy Scammers
The Great "Run Your Car On Water" Scam