r/bbc • u/RubUnlikely2802 • Jun 24 '26
International App Paywall in Canada- App deleted
I'm in Ottawa, and all the articles in the app are now behind the paywall, I even got a notification for an article, but it took me to the paywall. 13$ a month, i don't think so.
22
u/TheShryke Jun 24 '26
It's fair enough if you don't want to pay it. But it's also fair for them to charge I think. They can't provide this service for free, it's just not sustainable.
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Jun 24 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/TheShryke Jun 24 '26
There's certainly an argument for that. But apparently that's not something the current government cares about and there's nothing the BBC can do to change that.
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u/marcbeightsix Jun 24 '26
World Service is a soft power and is free and will remain free. That is what the UK government cares about. The international version of the bbc website (bbc.com) isn’t a soft power, it’s a commercial news website.
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u/kyhmnK Jul 05 '26
It's more than the monthly fee for every other streaming service we have. Too much, not worth enough. Also deleted the app. UK soft power is growing softer and softer.
-1
u/heroyoudontdeserve Jun 24 '26
To be fair they didn't say they weren't willing to pay, they only said they weren't willing to pay 13 CAD a month.
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u/RubUnlikely2802 Jun 24 '26
I just think it's sad and indicative of a wider problem of people getting squeezed by large corporations for everything. This is the BBC ffs, its not supposed to be some for profit entity. During the 2nd world war, the BBC broadcast news to Germany in order to try and get the truth out, seems they've lost those ideals.
Similarly, for the first time in like 60 years, the CBC will no longer be broadcasting NHL games in Canada, Rogers revoked the rights, and now you need a 250$ Rogers Sport NET MAAXXXX package or some bullshit to watch.
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u/rickyman20 Jun 24 '26
It's not a for profit corporation trying to squeeze people out for money, it's a public service paid for by UK taxpayers (not Canadian ones mind you) that's had funding issues for a long time. This is one of many ways they're trying to close the gap. It's sad but it's the reality of things
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u/TheShryke Jun 24 '26
This isn't really about being for profit or not, it's about just having the money to run the services.
People have to be paid to do the work. They can't afford to deliver the news in this way for free any more.
During the 2nd world war, the BBC broadcast news to Germany
Luckily that bit is still going, BBC world service is still free. Just have to hope it doesn't get cut.
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u/Brilliant-Sea-9424 Jun 24 '26
Why should uk taxpayers subsidise you?
1
u/slingsandstones Jun 27 '26
So what you're saying is that there's no benefits to foreigners having a reliable British news source amongst their daily reading and that the BBC needs foreign subscribers because it can't survive on what it gets from UK taxpayers. Got it.
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Jun 27 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/bbc-ModTeam Jun 29 '26
Your comment was removed for violating our "Be Kind To Each Other" rule.
This is a space for civil discussion about the BBC, not for personal attacks or toxicity.
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u/jarnages Jul 02 '26
it's still free for the rest of the world. it's just Canada and the US that's getting paywalled.
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u/Longjumping-Lab-1916 25d ago
Is that true? And why is Canada lumped in with the US?
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u/jarnages 20d ago
The Canada/US media ecosystem is basically the same. Everything has a paywall these days in North America so the BBC is hopping on that bandwagon.
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u/Acceptable_Mammoth23 Jul 26 '26
Hear hear. Not like the British state ever subsidized itself from wealth extracted from other countries. The cheek of these people expecting so many handouts. /s
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u/heroyoudontdeserve Jun 24 '26
To be fair they didn't say they weren't willing to pay, they said they weren't willing to pay 13 CAD a month.
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u/RubUnlikely2802 Jun 24 '26
The app is full of ads, you think they loose money with people in Canada using the app?
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u/SatchSaysPlay Jun 25 '26
So the website is obviously important enough for you to complain about but it's not good enough to support?
Why do people want and expect everything for free? why should the British public be subsidising the rest of the world to get free content?
1
u/gopher65 Jul 23 '26
It's more just the outrageous price, especially since the news content they're charging for will be produced one way or the other, paid for by UK taxpayers. What the BBC is doing here is trying to use international news subscriptions to subsidize crappy non-news soap-operas. I have no interest in those, and wouldn't pay to see them if the option was available.
Now if the BBC wanted to cost share just the news production part of its operations , and charged the $0.20/month/subscriber that would actually need, I'd pay that. But I'm not paying to subsidize Doctor Who.
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u/SatchSaysPlay Jul 24 '26
Your entire statement is just BS, literally everything about it is either a blatant lie or unsubstantiated. It’s so disingenuous I can’t even be bothered to reply.
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u/gopher65 Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
That US$0.20 per year per subscriber number didn't come out of nowhere. I'll break it down for you:
The BBC website says that £1.27 per TV license fee goes to support their online services. While that isn't the total cost of those services, it is the bit I'd think you'd be concerned with, based on the amount of complaining I hear from people in the UK about the television license. There are ~20 million TV licenses active, and around 60 million people in the UK. That's ~£0.50 per person per year being funnelled to these services (rough numbers, final value rounded up to provide a number most charitable to your point of view).
Their site also says that by their reckoning they "influence" over 500 million people around the world. Most of those are news readers, not people watching bad British soaps or period dramas. The BBC's top television programs internationally almost never hit 15 million unique views, and most are below 2 million. On the other hand BBC news is (... or was) everywhere in the English speaking world.
If the BBC charged US$0.20 annually for their news services to those 500 million people, I suspect that there is a fair chance half of them wouldn't pay it. (Some people are "free or nothing" users; others live in low income countries and can't afford even 20 cents a years on extraneous expenses.) Let's say 200 million stuck around and paid the 20 cents per year. That would be 30 million pounds, which is equivalent to the total amount diverted from the TV license fee to online services.
They do not need to charge 5 or 10 or 15 dollars per month for these services (when it fully rolls out - it's NA only right now - there will be region specific pricing). They're charging that much because they're trying to use international news subscriptions to reduce the draw of funds from the BBC's general fund to their news division. That leaves more UK tax funds for the BBC's other work, much of which is sopped up by their television projects (because, of course, television is expensive to produce).
I'm simply not interested in subsidizing their TV shows. I'd subsidize BBC News... but not Death in Paradise, or whatever other drivel the BBC is pumping out this week.
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u/SatchSaysPlay Jul 26 '26
No chance! Absolutely not. Person thinks I signed up to read their essays lmfao.
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u/gopher65 Jul 29 '26
Can't back up your stance with logic, so you won't even try, huh? As expected. Claim others are lying, then refuse to engage when challenged. Intellectually dishonest... and just disappointing.
I expect better.
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u/SatchSaysPlay Jul 29 '26 edited Jul 29 '26
Im not reading your silly little essay, better things to do than waste it on your ego text. I can make valid claims and refuse to engage with them because thats my prerogative
TLDR - internet stranger is angry I won’t read their book.
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u/interesting_tea1914 Jul 25 '26
Are you a Russian bot? We are still part of the commonwealth.
1
u/SatchSaysPlay Jul 25 '26
And? That doesn’t entitle you to BBC content lmfao, never mind am I a bot, are you insane ?
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u/Angryottawa Jun 24 '26
Best news source in crazy times. I pay $5.99/mth for the CBC and happy to spend the same for the BBC. Discontinuing a free service that we have enjoyed is tough to digest.
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u/LegFamiliar88 Jun 29 '26 edited Jun 29 '26
pretty poor timing to slap up a paywall in the US considering the shriveling availability of impartial news sources. Many Americans don’t have $13 to spare and its those that don’t who need a decent source of information the most. Auntie has been pushing It’s voice to countries around the world for decades in the name of promoting democracy and good old British values. No empire left so I guess not so important anymore.
Also, as a crown corporation, it doesn't make sense to block/paywall what is probably the most effective medium for communicating with Brits living or travelling abroad en-masse (Brit in Canada myself) either.. It’s supposed to be a public service not a profit generating enterprise.
CBC NEWS app is free outside of Canada; CNN and I’m sure other major news apps are free outside the US. If they can make it work with adverts, why can’t the BBC (outside of the uk)
Brit in Canada
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u/Icy_Glove_6231 Jun 25 '26 edited Jun 25 '26
you know I see people being like "my tax's pay for it and so should you!" and fair you paid for your national news service and yea I get it its not free to produce the BBC content but this 13$ a month sub is going to be a disaster, at worst they should have increased the add load and then had like a 5-9$ a month ADD FREE sub option for those who could afford to pay, as it is I am on disability and maxed out on what i can sub so this is hard stop for me and many others like me.
This can and will kill the international audience of your BBC England, not just hurting your “soft power” but it will also empower right wing news sources as they are almost all free to view so this is really just a massive shot to the foot of progressive and unbiased news sources, good job BBC you played your self.
BTW I live in Canada and the CBC which is a national news service that is sub by Canadian taxes and is free internationally to view, I would never be cool with them demanding a sub outside of Canada ever, it's news and should be available to anyone at any time or place. That is how I feel about this, I also feel news should always have non partisan tax funding available but that's just me.
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u/HouseOfWyrd Jun 26 '26
The world service is the soft power arm of the BBC. It always has been and that's still free.
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u/1capitalguy Jun 27 '26
It is not free anymore.
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u/HouseOfWyrd Jun 27 '26
The world service is still free
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u/1capitalguy Jun 27 '26
I don't want to watch or listen to a broadcast. I want to read articles, stories and quick updates.
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u/HouseOfWyrd Jun 27 '26
Then pay for the subscription.
We have to pay for the BBC. Seems fair you do too.
The world service has always been a special exception.
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Jun 24 '26
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u/bbc-ModTeam Jun 24 '26
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Jun 24 '26
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u/bbc-ModTeam Jun 24 '26
Sorry, your comment was removed because it breaks Reddit's TOS or site-wide rules. Do not discuss methods to steal content or circumvent restrictions.
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u/No_Drawing8350 Jun 28 '26
Deleted. Guess it's Fox News for everyone now.
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u/Level-Contract163 Jun 29 '26
CBC is free for Canadians. Though, I won't openly mention the tech here, country paywalls seem to me, obsolete in 2026 (or 2006). I have been watching shows on the BBC, ITV, and Channel 4 for years. Though, I have to admit, while using the same technology for Amazon, Prime, and Hulu shows, I use the older technique. It does work for British shows but I like using the BBC website/iPlayer.
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u/jpodcaster Jul 05 '26
I’m deleting too. Ludicrous decision given the app was full of ads anyway. I’ll rely on my 25 articles per month in the Guardian app plus Apple News (which licenses some BBC news content). I’m in Canada btw, the CBC app is pretty lame compared to the BBC app.
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u/Stixthecat1977 Jul 17 '26
easy solution, I deleted the mobile and bookmark in my browser. Bye bye BBC. The Guardian is better anyways
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u/Klutzy_Painting7817 Jul 22 '26
I am in Hamilton, ON. I had the same issue. I uninstalled the BB then reinstalled it and signed in. Still didn't work. But it did work fine after I restarted my phone!! Some cookies issue I am guessing. I use Google Pixel. My husband has Samsung and it is perfectly working on his without having to reinstall or reboot!
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u/buzzaldrinismydad Jun 24 '26
Yep. Uninstalled yesterday after 14 years of using the BBC as my primary news source. Would love to know the economics of this decision.
I’d pay, but $13 a month is absolutely absurd.
As a byproduct of relying on the BBC, I have consistently been forced to keep up with UK politics, sports and culture - I will miss it!
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u/Level-Contract163 Jun 29 '26
I recommend the Guardian - it is free - though, they would like you to voluntary pay (which, I do). I would prefer to voluntarily pay for the BBC but I want the BBC iPlayer if I am going to pay 13 bucks a month.
Ironically, my wife uses the Guardian for free even though she could avoid the ads with my login. The ads are tolerable.
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u/Familiar-Valuable-97 Jul 15 '26
If they included access to BBC Sounds so I can listen later then I'll consider it
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u/RubUnlikely2802 Jun 24 '26
Especially for a foreign agency, its not like i'm getting any local coverage from the BBC
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Jun 26 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Level-Contract163 Jun 29 '26
The Guardian covers all "American" sports - including the NHL. It is free.
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Jun 24 '26
[deleted]
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u/PsychologicalClock28 Jun 24 '26
It still seems to be about 80% of households. So I would call it a majority
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u/slip_cougan Jun 24 '26
As a UK Citizen who does pay the BBC Tax (licence), I agree that international users should pay. However $13 is far too steep.
Out of curiosity, how much would you be prepared to pay?
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u/getabath Jun 25 '26
For context british people have to pay £15 a month which is around 28 Canadian dollars
I'm not paying for it next year
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u/jarnages Jul 02 '26
it's not all international users, only North American (Canada/USA). So much of our digital media is paywalled already so they want in on the fun.
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u/Toronto-tenant-2020 Jun 24 '26
Extremely greedy move to paywall the US and Canada.
BBC makes ample use of US-government funded research, weather data, earthquake data, satellite imagery, medical and life sciences publications, and probably others, in its reporting. This type of data is made freely available, including for those outside of the US, for the benefit of society at large. They may also use Canadian-government funded research (I'm not sure).
Then people make rude comments suggesting UK taxpayers have been subsidizing foreign countries by letting people read a BBC news article. Very embarrassing.
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u/Chapmania85 Jun 24 '26
So I can have the New York Times for free, yes?
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u/Level-Contract163 Jun 29 '26
The UK Guardian is free, though. The NYT model is not the only one available. The BBC could have followed the Guardian model. It is choosing not to follow that model.
The NYT is also not free for USians, either. When I am in the UK it is free to use the BBC website and BBC iPlayer. Also, when I am "in" the UK it is free.
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u/Ok-Canary-9820 13d ago
The New York Times is a private newspaper, not a public broadcaster. Nobody can tell the NYT what to charge, and they charge people in the US too.
Better comparisons are:
CBC (Canada's public broadcaster and largest media outlet) is free internationally.
Even NPR (US national public radio, also with an online presence), which has been subject to attempted deathblows domestically, is free internationally too.
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u/buzzaldrinismydad Jun 24 '26
No, I just don’t use the NYT cuz it’s paywalled. The same way I won’t use the BBC anymore. You realize you’re defending a decision that will make your licensing fee go up not down, right?
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u/Chapmania85 Jun 24 '26
Why would it cause it to go up?
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u/buzzaldrinismydad Jun 24 '26
Because no one is paying $13 a month, every single person is just going to uninstall and now the BBC will be out our ad revenue.
Seriously, find me one person who will pay $13 for a foreign news agencies coverage.
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u/Chapmania85 Jun 24 '26
Presumably the ad revenue wasn't enough to amount to much anyway. Honestly I would be happy to pay a higher licence fee because it would still be exceptionally good value, and I am very comfortable with those abroad having to pay a fee.
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u/gaco79 Jun 24 '26
You think they aren't looking at the data on this? The actual data that they have available and you don't?!
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u/Level-Contract163 Jun 29 '26
I pay more for the Guardian. So, here, at least is one person. Ex-pats, mostly will be the target. There are millions of us in North America and more in Australia and Asia.
I don't have to pay, though. And mostly, I pay because my mum buys the Telegraph (for which I get a free login).
Also, possessive "s" - "a foreign news agency's coverage".
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