A cherished British institution is facing its Waterloo because young people have come to see it as an irrelevance – not the Conservative party but the BBC. Figures from Ofcom released yesterday show a dramatic fall in the amount of viewing of live television among 16 to 24 year olds who, collectively, are only watching two-thirds as much as they did in 2010. Instead, they are getting increasing amounts of entertainment online, through Netflix, Amazon and other services.
Why, with all that available on your phone, your iPad, your laptop, would you see the need to buy a television – especially when you are probably living a semi-nomadic lifestyle between insecure tenancies? The television is gradually losing its distinction as a piece of kit, as the quality of pictures delivered via wifi connections improves. It is a fair guess that within the decade the word ‘television’ may come to be seen as quaint as ‘gramophone’ – there will just be screens.
Maybe there is a department at the BBC which is secretly planning for the day when hardly anyone under the age of 30 sees the need to buy a television licence, but there is no outward sign of it.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in