It doesn’t matter what channel you choose – it could be terrestrial, cable or satellite. Nor does it matter what equipment you use – traditional TV, games console, laptop or mobile phone, tablets, mobile phones or media streaming devices. You still need to be covered by a licence. If you’re found to be using TV without a licence, you may be prosecuted and fined up to £1,000.
In some cases you and your flatmates will each require your own separate licence for the TVs in your rooms, and in others one licence may be sufficient between all your flatmates, regardless of the number of devices in the property. The tenancy agreement on your property is often a good indication of this. For example:
You need your own separate TV licence if you live in halls of residence and use a TV in your own room, or if you share a house with other students and use a TV in your room, and your room is a separately occupied place (a separate tenancy agreement would normally indicate that this is the case).
If you have a separate tenancy agreement but a television is only being used in a communal area, only one licence is required.
If you are sharing a house with other students and you use a TV in your own room, but the house can be treated as one place shared by all, only one TV licence is required (a joint tenancy agreement would usually be evidence that the house is a single licenseable place for this purpose).