TV Licensing

Winter Olympics TV Licensing reminder for sports fans

Sports fans around the UK are set to enjoy a feast of Winter sport playing out live on their portable devices, as the Winter Olympics kick off next month in South Korea. TV Licensing is asking those viewing the live action to ensure they are correctly licensed ahead of an exciting season of sport on TV.

The 2018 Winter Olympics will be held between 9 and 25 February 2018 and Team GB will send around 60 athletes. There will be daily coverage from midnight until 8pm across BBC One and BBC Two for the 17 day duration of the Winter Games.

Your licence for your home address covers you to watch the live TV action on the move, as well as watch or download BBC programmes on iPlayer. This applies to any equipment such as TV, computer, tablet, mobile phone or games console, as long as it is not plugged into the mains.

Licensed viewers can take advantage of watching the live sporting drama whenever and wherever they like. Recent Ofcom research¹ indicates more than a third of people watch TV on the move – while on holiday (24%), while commuting (16%) or even in the pub (7%).

Jason Hill, spokesperson for TV Licensing, said:

Remember, your home licence covers you for watching TV on the move. Although we can now watch programmes whenever it’s convenient for us, we’re still drawn to watching big events like the Winter Olympics live. So now is a great time to remind sport fans they need a TV Licence.

Team GB is aiming for their most successful Winter Olympics after UK Sport set an ambitious target of at least five medals from the games. The GB Paralympic team have set a target of seven medals for March's Winter Paralympics, which starts on 9 March.

Sports fans will be hoping to see a repeat of the feats of snowboarder Jenny Jones, who stole headlines at the 2014 Games when she won bronze in slopestyle, to become the first Briton to win an Olympic medal in a snow event.

In Skeleton, Britain is used to winning ways, having claimed a medal at every Winter Olympics since the sport was reintroduced in 2002. Sochi 2014 champion Lizzy Yarnold aims to become the first Britain to defend an Olympic title, while team-mate Laura Deas has produced the best results so far this season.

References

¹ Ofcom Box Set Britain report, 3 Aug 2017: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/media/media-releases/2017/box-set-britain-tv-online-habits