Tories: We would shut down BBCi & Three

Sorry Katherine that doesn't make any sense. Nobody dies directly or indirectly as a result of tax. People may die from alcohol or cigarettes, and these things are taxed, but you are making a link where there is none. I am therefore not sure what your point is supposed to be.

For the record I realise the Licence Fee is a tax. You should hear me complain when my NI is taken off my wages every month, but I still appreciate what it provides for and pay it. I happen to think the Licence Fee is one of the best value-for-money taxes I pay.

Maybe the day will come where the BBC is subscription based giving viewers like Squarey the choice to opt out. I think I'm comfortably clinging to the past when I say that I would *rather* everyone would just accept that its one of the finest broadcasters the world will ever have (/fawn...) and we should all pay for it. I realise that in light of the seemingly infinate means of delivery and the acceptance of subscription, its days are numbered.

You've watched plenty of episodes of Calendar - you must be a hologram or an avatar by now!! Do you have a pulse?

Well there's some WILD assumptions there. None of the BBC Digital radio stations have been through a RAJAR sweep yet, so you have no idea how well they've done. Even in comparison to each other.

If the last sweep, which included figures for commericial digital-only stations is anything to go by, the BBC should come out quite well this Autumn.

On the BBC 7 point ... there was some recent research by the Digital Research Development Bureau (DRDB), which suggests that one in five digital radio buyers bought a digital radio to listen to the new station BBC 7. More info from RadioNow.
RadioNow article

Also on the general point, and I know I'm biased, but really honestly can you think of any other broadcaster than offers the same value for money as the BBC with it's national, regional and local radio stations, national and regional TV, digital service and BBCi. I do question whether a commerical organisation could provide something like BBC News Online ... CNN try but I still think the BBC site is way ahead of it. Most of the other American networks tend to just copy and paste agency copy on to web pages.

It doesn't however mean that they will actually listen to BBC7 once they have their digital radio however. It's like people getting all excited about being able to get ITV2 once they have digital TV - until they realise that there's nothing on it and they don't actually spend much time watching it.

The trouble is you have no actual fact on which to base your theory that nobody listens to BBC7 - until the RAJARs come out later this year, neither of us will know, so this arguement is totally pointless!!

In any case, the answer cannot possibly be "nobody", as I listen to it regularly for the classic comedy shows.

To my accurate knowledge, the minimum possible listenership is one.

Quite, Nick - turn of phrase, and all.

I certainly tune past it every so often, but I'm more (with my lovely digital radio) more a fan of 6 Music.

Hey, where else can you hear Joan of Ark from OMD segged with a nice bit of Kraftwerk??

God bless the 1980s.

Anyway - I would imagine 6 Music and BBC7 will be the two leading lights for the digital RAJARs.

I'm not sure about 1xtra - I can honestly say I've never listened to it ....!

Just be grateful The Navy Lark has finished on Thursday evenings on 7.

I don't go out drinking on a Thursday if The Navy Lark is on!

We couldn't have that .....

Add another two guaranteed listeners to that - three if my tivo counts. (Thank goodness for Tivo and DSat radio...)

In that case, I think you're entitled to join us for a 6X tomorrow night, noggin!