The BBC has come in for criticism in a report by MPs into its finances (Ian West/PA)MPs have labelled the BBC “complacent” for its attitude towards declining audiences, with 200,000 people per year cancelling their licence fee and young people switching to Netflix. The committee’s BBC Strategic Financial Management report said that in the last half of 2017, 16 to 24-year-olds were spending more time on Netflix than BBC TV and its iPlayer service. Commercial returns represent less than 6% of the income the BBC gets from the licence fee, with the broadcaster aiming to increase that by 30% over five years. A response from the BBC said: “We do not feel that this report reflects the evidence or the facts provided to the committee. We have taken great pains to stress, including to this committee, that the jeopardy for the BBC is high.

Source: Irish Independent May 20, 2021 23:03 UTC