Students reminded to purchase TV licence in order to stream favourite shows

Change in the law means, as of September, a licence will be needed to download or watch BBC programmes on demand, including catch up TV, on iPlayer

A TV licence covers you to watch or record live TV, whatever device you're watching on (TV Licensing)

This year’s students may find their options for streaming TV programmes are limited, as a change in the law is set to make it compulsory to purchase a TV licence to download or watch shows from BBC iPlayer.

iPlayer, which is the most popular online streaming platform amongst students ahead of Youtube and Netflix - according to a survey from TV Licensing - will no longer be free for students to use as of 1 September.

Watching TV remains a popular way at university to unwind, with the same research showing 84 per cent of students claiming they use it to relax on their own, while 60 percent also cited it as an opportunity to spend time with their friends.

The survey also revealed two in three students view catch up TV, while almost a quarter said that they took a TV with them to university.

Spokesperson for TV Licensing, Caroline McCourt, said: “Watching catch up TV is really popular among students and we want to make sure students are aware of the change in law. From 1 September, everyone will need to be covered by a TV Licence to watch BBC TV programmes on demand - including catch up - on iPlayer.

“You still need to be covered by a licence for all live viewing and recording, no matter which channel you are watching or what device you are watching on.”

This is set to apply to all devices used for streaming, although there are no plans to extend this to other streaming services such as Netflix or Amazon Instant Video.

A report by the National Audit Office (NAO) also highlighted how the BBC apparently planned to enforce this new law and monitor the Wi-Fi of those watching iPlayer without a license, with what is described as “a fleet of detection vans.”

Sir Amyas Morse, auditor general of the NAO, added in the report: “TV licence detection vans can identify viewing on a non-TV device in the same way that they can detect viewing on a television set,” reports The Telegraph.

The BBC, however, has disputed this particular report, dismissing what it called in a statement “considerable inaccurate reporting.”

It is yet to be seen whether this change will help to boost the sales of TV licenses, or simply encourage more students to use alternatives to iPlayer to avoid the need to purchase one. There is also the possibility it will lead to BBC-produced shows being uploaded illegally on to third-party websites for free watching.

If you are at university, visit the dedicated TV Licence for students page for more information