British Government plans to make BBC iPlayer users pay a licence fee
The British Government has announced plans to "close the iPlayer loophole" by making those who use the service pay the licence fee.
However, details on how the new requirement will be enforced remain sketchy with no specific options outlined in the White Paper.
Speaking to the House of Commons in London outlining the proposed reforms, Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said: "The current licence fee system needs to be fairer, so we will close the iPlayer loophole meaning that those who watch BBC programmes on demand will now need a TV licence like everyone else."
The White Paper said that someone wanting to access the service would have to "verify" they are a licence fee payer.
But it did not spell out exactly what this verification process would look like, or how it would be enforced in practice.
A spokesman at the UK's Department for Culture, Media and Sport said a requirement for watchers to type in their licence fee number while logging on might be one option.
But he said specific options had not been drafted and it would be up to the BBC to draw these up.
