ePetition Covering Public Data From The Likes Of The BBC

[Nick]

On Wed, 5 Nov 2014 14:35:58 +0000
Jon Davies <jon at hedgerows.org.uk> wrote:

> On 4 November 2014 14:40, C E Macfarlane <c.e.macfarlane at macfh.co.uk>
> wrote:
> > Now available for signatories.  Please sign if you are a UK
> > resident and feel remotely able to support it:
> 
> I confidently predict that the government's response, if you get one
> at all, will be "we already do this".  It's government policy to use
> open standards and open data structures already (has been for a long
> time), and government does actually do it.  But the BBC is not part of
> the government, and government will always claim to be unable to
> direct them to do stuff and will instead point you at the BBC Trust.

I thought there was some change made under the Blair or Brown
governments to the TV licence where it now legally counts as taxation,
or Parliament has a say over the money that they never did in the past?

I'm not saying the gov won't do what you suggest though. The change in
law IIRC looked very authoritarian, not really about accountability and
democracy (though likely spun that way). Parliament is meant to
represent us.... but really it is PLCs, private businesses, then us
(and not us if we are too much of a minority). Imagine what the
Murdoch press would do if Parliament forced the BBC to make services
that are significantly (or even slightly) more open than Sky Go or
Netflix or other proprietary VOD services?

I think the petition still can have some influence on the BBC, off the
record pressure might be applied. A member of the old-boys network in
the right place might sympathise with the cause, for example. Though it
does suck that the only hope I can offer is an undemocratic system!

But at the same time IMHO concern over the petition isn't very
necessary: a million people could march on the street to demand things
and it still won't be listened to. On-line petitions really are
very easy to ignore :(

Nick