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There's something Media License in the State of Denmark
As some of you may know, I haven't had a TV set or a radio for about 3 years now. TV and radio programming doesn't interest me at all, save for a very few special occasions like e.g. the Olympic Games, which I still manage nicely to do without. It's a stage I have forever left behind, and I've been very satisfied so far not being a witness to all the nonsense on TV, and not having to pay the license fee, which goes along with it.
As some of you may also know, in Denmark as in several other European countries, you have to pay a license fee if you own a TV. You have to pay whether or not you actually use it to view the national, state-run channels that collect the license. In fact you have to pay whether or not you use it at all. If you have a TV, you cough up. When you buy a new TV, the dealer has to report to the license bureau that a TV set has been sold to you so they can collect the license.
2140 kroner per year. That's USD 350.00 per year. Doesn't matter how many sets you have, whether you watch the state-run channels or watch anything at all - USD 350.00 per year.
Now comes the good part.
Today, an agreement was reached between virtually all parties in Parliament that this license will henceforth be known as a Media License, and that it will be extended to include not only TV's, but also certain cell phones and other portable media devices capable of receiving TV signals - as well as all computers equipped with a tuner for receiving TV signals and/or having an Internet connection with a speed of 256 Kbit/s or above.
Well that's just splendid. I have a connection of 1 Mbit/s and as of 1 January 2007, despite not watching any TV on the Net or otherwise, despite not having any interest whatsoever in TV, and despite outright hating the heavily lopsided, biased and left-leaning state-run channels which benefit from the license, I will have to pay $350 per year.
For having a friggin' Internet connection!
Right now I'm tempted to either emigrate from this goddamned stupid country, or downgrade to a 128 Kbit/s connection to avoid this moronic license whatsamathingy. But in the end I will conform. They will get their way. Getting me to pay for something which I'm utterly opposed to, haven't used for 3 years, and never will use for the rest of my life.
Rest of my life.. Hmm.. I expect, with a little good luck, to live another 35 years, so that's (35 x 350) $12,250 I've just been robbed off today.
As some of you may also know, in Denmark as in several other European countries, you have to pay a license fee if you own a TV. You have to pay whether or not you actually use it to view the national, state-run channels that collect the license. In fact you have to pay whether or not you use it at all. If you have a TV, you cough up. When you buy a new TV, the dealer has to report to the license bureau that a TV set has been sold to you so they can collect the license.
2140 kroner per year. That's USD 350.00 per year. Doesn't matter how many sets you have, whether you watch the state-run channels or watch anything at all - USD 350.00 per year.
Now comes the good part.
Today, an agreement was reached between virtually all parties in Parliament that this license will henceforth be known as a Media License, and that it will be extended to include not only TV's, but also certain cell phones and other portable media devices capable of receiving TV signals - as well as all computers equipped with a tuner for receiving TV signals and/or having an Internet connection with a speed of 256 Kbit/s or above.
Well that's just splendid. I have a connection of 1 Mbit/s and as of 1 January 2007, despite not watching any TV on the Net or otherwise, despite not having any interest whatsoever in TV, and despite outright hating the heavily lopsided, biased and left-leaning state-run channels which benefit from the license, I will have to pay $350 per year.
For having a friggin' Internet connection!
Right now I'm tempted to either emigrate from this goddamned stupid country, or downgrade to a 128 Kbit/s connection to avoid this moronic license whatsamathingy. But in the end I will conform. They will get their way. Getting me to pay for something which I'm utterly opposed to, haven't used for 3 years, and never will use for the rest of my life.
Rest of my life.. Hmm.. I expect, with a little good luck, to live another 35 years, so that's (35 x 350) $12,250 I've just been robbed off today.
But right now even that sounds rather appealing.
) manage to have excellent publicly funded broadcasters without resorting to a license fee. 
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