|
Given that the biggest take up of expensive cable/satellite subscription TV packages in the UK is amongst the lowest socio-economic groups it would seem that they are willing to spend a lot more than $230/yr on TV. There is also a rule of thumb that you will see the largest TV sets in the smallest houses. Of course we ALL spend a lot more than that on TV because of the hidden costs of TV advertising. That applies even to those who never watch TV. I don't have any references to hand but some years ago it was reckoned that ITV (the main UK commerical channel) cost the average household more in their shopping bill than the BBC did in licence fee.
Broadcasting has to paid for somehow and in the UK we have the licence fee which ensures that the public service elements of broadcasting flourish as against the tiny PBS ghetto in the US. It's not a perfect arrangement, far from it, but perfection isn't attainable in this world.
The biggest driver of change in the media in the UK, as elsewhere, is the internet. The BBC embraced this early on and now has a very comprehensive offering (NB: Much of this is only available in the UK due to copyright restrictions) that has set the standard for others to follow.
|