From now there are new restrictions on BBC radio stations abroad.
BBC Sounds is being replaced by BBC.com and the only LIVE stations are the World Service and BBC Radio 4.
What is more annoying though is that on those stations, playback is being limited so you may not be able listen to something you missed.
BBC Sounds still currently works on desktop and as a mobile app but is no longer available to download as an app. BBC.com is the new mobile app but with the restrictions I mentioned earlier.
What people should not do (for the moment), is replace the BBC Sounds app with the BBC.com app.
I’m a life-long BBC radio 4 and world service listener and would gladly pay for this service. These aren’t music channels so there isn’t the problem with Music royalty payments.
The BBC is short of money but having a subscription service would boost their income.
The licence fee used to only cover the TV transmitting part of their service (the radio part was free) - which is why you couldn’t use it abroad as the BBC also has a significant income in syndicating its TV output to other countries (and now also some streaming services)
You can not pay a licence fee and listen to UK radio abroad.
The BBC is also loosing licence payers as many are chosing to watch only streaming services like Netflix/Prime.
The World service is now funded partially by government, some of the licence fee and advertising.
The BBC already cut various internet radio services a year ago. I was able to get the Sounds App to replace Radio 4 on my phone and through my Bluetooth speaker.
I guess a VPN will still get all services - I can‘t survive without Sound of the Sixties every Saturday morning.
It‘s sad how travel and media are becoming more and more restricted. I wouldn‘t be surprised if BBC TV is restricted before too long….
There was (is) a nice app to list them all: TuneIn. However since quite a few months it forbids me to listen many European stations in Switzerland. I can still listen them from the web.
I do use TuneIn - especially with Alexa but with the desktop version, you can’t go back over the schedules and see what you missed so you can listen to anything of interest.
BBC Radio 4 has some of the best international news coverage - there was an hour long feature on the Romanian Election last week including interviewing people in the street, for example.
Point of order - the radio was not free, it was simply covered by the TV licence. Up until 1971 there was a separate radio licence, but by that time it was assumed that pretty much anyone with a radio would also have a TV. Not everybody was happy about the change, and in practice the requirement, if you didn’t have a TV/licence, was dropped, i.e. it was not enforced.
