No Escape From The NHK Man?

[wagyl]

Currently the prerequisite for escape is not possessing any equipment capable of receiving TV broadcast. I haven't heard yet that that requires that people remove the one-seg antenna from their mobile phone (and I will now be scolded for giving them ideas...) Edit: see viewtopic.php?f=11&t=15166&start=330#p344859 If they change the law so that access to NHK on demand (which is currently a service requiring registration, some parts free some parts for pay) means that you are also liable for the licence fee then you would also have to disable data to your phone as well and cut yourself off from the internet.

[Yokohammer]

People have mentioned that the roving NHK thugs are already asking their victims if they have a mobile phone, as if that's enough to oblige them to pay. Every trick in the freakin' book.

Do you have a mobile phone?
Do you have a computer?
Do you have a car navi?

None of your fucking business.
Or better yet, the short answer: *slam!*

[IparryU]

People have mentioned that the roving NHK thugs are already asking their victims if they have a mobile phone, as if that's enough to oblige them to pay. Every trick in the freakin' book.

Do you have a mobile phone?
Do you have a computer?
Do you have a car navi?

None of your fucking business.
Or better yet, the short answer: *slam!*

Exactly. None of ypur fucking business, gtfo, and if you try to stop this door from shutting you're gonna have to limp down the stairs.

[matsuki]

Currently the prerequisite for escape is not possessing any equipment capable of receiving TV broadcast. I haven't heard yet that that requires that people remove the one-seg antenna from their mobile phone (and I will now be scolded for giving them ideas...) If they change the law so that access to NHK on demand (which is currently a service requiring registration, some parts free some parts for pay) means that you are also liable for the licence fee then you would also have to disable data to your phone as well and cut yourself off from the internet.

While a PITA, seems you can reasonably escape then??

People have mentioned that the roving NHK thugs are already asking their victims if they have a mobile phone, as if that's enough to oblige them to pay. Every trick in the freakin' book.

Do you have a mobile phone?
Do you have a computer?
Do you have a car navi?

None of your fucking business.
Or better yet, the short answer: *slam!*

Yeah, last dude asked about TV (no) and then went straight to asking if I have a keitai...to which I replied "Yeah, I have an iphone." The guy was polite and not in anyway an ass to me though so I politely shut him down and sent him on his way.

[wagyl]

Currently the prerequisite for escape is not possessing any equipment capable of receiving TV broadcast. I haven't heard yet that that requires that people remove the one-seg antenna from their mobile phone (and I will now be scolded for giving them ideas...) If they change the law so that access to NHK on demand (which is currently a service requiring registration, some parts free some parts for pay) means that you are also liable for the licence fee then you would also have to disable data to your phone as well and cut yourself off from the internet.

While a PITA, seems you can reasonably escape then??

There were a few media reports about numbers decreasing significantly with the switching off of analog broadcast: it seems quite a few people took that opportunity. There is an established process and forms for it, but I don't think they are online.

Edit: indeed they are not.

放送受信契約の解約

テレビを設置した住居に誰も居住しなくなる場合や、廃棄、故障などにより、放送受信契約の対象となるテレビがすべてなくなった場合は、NHKにご連絡ください。

こうした場合以外は、放送受信契約の解約はできません。

放送受信契約の解約にあたっては、所定の届出書をご提出いただきます。
NHKで届出書の記入内容を確認のうえ、受信契約を解約します。

お届けのあった前月まで、放送受信料のお支払いが必要です。

https://pid.nhk.or.jp/jushinryo/about_5.html

[Yokohammer]

放送受信契約の解約

テレビを設置した住居に誰も居住しなくなる場合や、廃棄、故障などにより、放送受信契約の対象となるテレビがすべてなくなった場合は、NHKにご連絡ください。

こうした場合以外は、放送受信契約の解約はできません。

放送受信契約の解約にあたっては、所定の届出書をご提出いただきます。
NHKで届出書の記入内容を確認のうえ、受信契約を解約します。

お届けのあった前月まで、放送受信料のお支払いが必要です。

https://pid.nhk.or.jp/jushinryo/about_5.html

Jeez, what an onerous, one-sided, feudal, unrealistic load of swill.
The only way to deal with this is to not enter into a contract with these tyrants in the first place.

Basically, unless your house is destroyed and every last piece of gear that has the potential to pick up a TV signal is gone you cannot cancel the contract. And even then they're going to have to consider it. Of course you could die, that'd be another way.

I bet they'd even put up a fight if they believed you had the capacity to go out and buy a TV (or a keitai, or a computer) after they cancelled the contract.

[Russell]

放送受信契約の解約

テレビを設置した住居に誰も居住しなくなる場合や、廃棄、故障などにより、放送受信契約の対象となるテレビがすべてなくなった場合は、NHKにご連絡ください。

こうした場合以外は、放送受信契約の解約はできません。

放送受信契約の解約にあたっては、所定の届出書をご提出いただきます。
NHKで届出書の記入内容を確認のうえ、受信契約を解約します。

お届けのあった前月まで、放送受信料のお支払いが必要です。

https://pid.nhk.or.jp/jushinryo/about_5.html

Jeez, what an onerous, one-sided, feudal, unrealistic load of swill.
The only way to deal with this is to not enter into a contract with these tyrants in the first place.

Basically, unless your house is destroyed and every last piece of gear that has the potential to pick up a TV signal is gone you cannot cancel the contract. And even then they're going to have to consider it. Of course you could die, that'd be another way.

I bet they'd even put up a fight if they believed you had the capacity to go out and buy a TV (or a keitai, or a computer) after they cancelled the contract.

I read it in a different way.

If you get rid of your TV, then contact NHK. They do not deny that it will be possible to cancel your contract.

I think it is best to show a proof that you got rid of your TV. When you go out to dispose of an old TV, you have to pay a fee, and you get a document in return. That document could be useful to submit to NHK as proof that you threw out your TV.

[Yokohammer]

I read it in a different way.

If you get rid of your TV, then contact NHK. They do not deny that it will be possible to cancel your contract.

I think it is best to show a proof that you got rid of your TV. When you go out to dispose of an old TV, you have to pay a fee, and you get a document in return. That document could be useful to submit to NHK as proof that you threw out your TV.

They're saying it's possible, but only under the conditions stipulated by them, and that includes a complete absence of any device that is capable of receiving a TV signal.

If you have a keitai that might be able to receive one-seg, you're fucked.
If you have a computer that you could plug a one-seg dongle into, you're probably fucked.
If you have a navigation system in your car that just happens to have a one-seg receiver built in, you're fucked.

And that's even if you've never used or even considered using the TV reception capabilities of those devices.

So, you'd have to be living in a cave, cut off from all contact with the outside world.

Also note: 「NHKで届出書の記入内容を確認のうえ、受信契約を解約します。」
They're not simply saying they'll cancel the contract if you submit the form. That sentence can be construed to mean they'll simply check that the form has been filled in properly, but it can also mean that they'll consider cancelling the contract based on the form's content. They have the final say. The contractee is at their mercy.

EDIT: And your recycle receipt doesn't prove that you no longer have a TV. It just proves that you have recycled a TV. I doubt they'd accept that without a fight.

At least you don't need a contract for a radio.

[Russell]

I read it in a different way.

If you get rid of your TV, then contact NHK. They do not deny that it will be possible to cancel your contract.

I think it is best to show a proof that you got rid of your TV. When you go out to dispose of an old TV, you have to pay a fee, and you get a document in return. That document could be useful to submit to NHK as proof that you threw out your TV.

They're saying it's possible, but only under the conditions stipulated by them, and that includes a complete absence of any device that is capable of receiving a TV signal.

If you have a keitai that might be able to receive one-seg, you're fucked.
If you have a computer that you could plug a one-seg dongle into, you're probably fucked.
If you have a navigation system in your car that just happens to have a one-seg receiver built in, you're fucked.

And that's even if you've never used or even considered using the TV reception capabilities of those devices.

So, you'd have to be living in a cave, cut off from all contact with the outside world.

Also note: 「NHKで届出書の記入内容を確認のうえ、受信契約を解約します。」
They're not simply saying they'll cancel the contract if you submit the form. That sentence can be construed to mean they'll simply check that the form has been filled in properly, it can also mean that they'll consider cancelling the contract based on the form's content. They have the final say. The contractee is at their mercy.

EDIT: And your recycle receipt doesn't prove that you no longer have a TV. It just proves that you have recycled a TV. I doubt they'd accept that without a fight.

Hmm, dunno what a one-seg dongle is, but I only have a laptop at home, and I cannot receive TV on it. Is one-seg dongle some kind of card that can be put in a desk-top or so?

Seems my son's keitai is able to receive TV, but all others are not. How can NHK check this?

Only car navi I have is a paper map.

Did I tell you I live in a cave?

It is only because the missus insists on paying NHK's fee that we do, but otherwise I would want to get out fast. That is really fast. It would be a good excuse to throw out our TV...

[Yokohammer]

Hmm, dunno what a one-seg dongle is, but I only have a laptop at home, and I cannot receive TV on it. Is one-seg dongle some kind of card that can be put in a desk-top or so?

Seems my son's keitai is able to receive TV, but all others are not. How can NHK check this?

Only car navi I have is a paper map.

Did I tell you I live in a cave?

It is only because the missus insists on paying NHK's fee that we do, but otherwise I would want to get out fast. That is really fast. It would be a good excuse to throw out our TV...

"One-seg" is a mobile terrestrial digital audio/video and data broadcasting service that is used in, you guessed it, mobile devices (like your son't keitai). You can buy one-seg USB dongles that you simply plug into your computer. They're cheap and widely available.* So basically any computer is potentially a TV receiving device. I don't know if NHK makes a distinction between a computer that has a one-seg dongle plugged in and one that doesn't. They certainly make no distinction between a TV that has an antenna plugged in and one that doesn't. If it's capable of receiving TV, it's contractable. NHK are clearly attempting to widen the net they entrap users in ... thus all the "do you have a mobile phone?" and "do you have a computer?" questions the roving NHK thugs are using to cow people into signing lately.

* A one-seg dongle I just found on Amazon that sells for 752 yen:

31ubBOgr-NL._SY355_.jpg

[matsuki]

I don't know if NHK makes a distinction between a computer that has a one-seg dongle plugged in and one that doesn't.

They asked if I had a "PC" and then "does it have a tuner?" to which I honestly said no. That was that.

[wagyl]

I think 'Hammer is confusing the "things they say to convince you to sign the contract" with the "actual things that are necessary for the contract." These are two very different things, and this is a large part of the bad blood about the collection methods.

Yes, the NHK collection people do ask about computers with tuners and car navigation, but a lot if not all of that is just to shame you into signing up. When it comes to the documents for cancelling the contract, the fact that you no longer have a television is apparently enough, at this stage. Things may change in the future.

[Samurai_Jerk]

If they decided to go after any Internet capable device, that would mean corporate Japan would have to pay a shit-ton of money in NHK fees for every computer, tablet, and SmartPhone they issue to their employees. Somehow I don't see NHK winning that fight. I guess they could have a clause excluding corporations on the assumption that people aren't using their work devices to watch TV. In that case the excuse will be my company issued my computer and phone which is half true for me.

Anyway, I wonder in a case like mine where my TV broke and no longer receives a signal but I still use it as a monitor for my DVD player if I'm supposed to be paying.

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

In this day and age, why don't they put their garbage on a cable/bs station and have it as opt in purchase?

[Mike Oxlong]

In this day and age, why don't they put their garbage on a cable/bs station and have it as opt in purchase?

You haven't read the business plan.

[Yokohammer]

I think 'Hammer is confusing the "things they say to convince you to sign the contract" with the "actual things that are necessary for the contract." These are two very different things, and this is a large part of the bad blood about the collection methods.

Yes, the NHK collection people do ask about computers with tuners and car navigation, but a lot if not all of that is just to shame you into signing up. When it comes to the documents for cancelling the contract, the fact that you no longer have a television is apparently enough, at this stage. Things may change in the future.

I don't think so. Any receiving device, including 1seg, technically obliges you to contract with NHK. If the contract wasn't so one-sided I'd be happy to support NHK for the few things they get right. But ... for example ... did you know there's a clause that gives them access to your assets if you don't pay? The law says you have to enter into a contract, but that contract itself flouts contract law in many ways.

[wagyl]

OK, this made me dig deeper. Someone has put a copy of the contract cancellation form online.

http://sollasido.com/wp/wp-content/uplo ... 130127.jpg

It states that you are not able to cancel the contract if you have a PC with a tuner, a video recording device, or a mobile with a one-seg antenna.

I get pie for dinner tonight! (even if it is humble)

[Yokohammer]

OK, this made me dig deeper. Someone has put a copy of the contract cancellation form online.

http://sollasido.com/wp/wp-content/uplo ... 130127.jpg

It states that you are not able to cancel the contract if you have a PC with a tuner, a video recording device, or a mobile with a one-seg antenna.

I get pie for dinner tonight! (even if it is humble)

You are not only a scholar and a gentleman, but really good at digging up obscure shit on the net too. Thumbs up.

[wagyl]

Obscure shit digging masterclass:

Google image search on 放送受信契約の解約

No idea why I didn't try it before.

[wagyl]

Hammer, are you sitting down? Are your blood pressure pills up to date?

It looks like when you get mail redirected to your new address at the post office, the new forms have a carbon copy which gets sent to NHK, "for your convenience."
http://www.asyura2.com/12/hihyo13/msg/703.html

So far, the only saving grace is that the Diet failed to set a penalty for those who fail to enter into a contract with NHK.

[Yokohammer]

Hammer, are you sitting down? Are your blood pressure pills up to date?

It looks like when you get mail redirected to your new address at the post office, the new forms have a carbon copy which gets sent to NHK, "for your convenience."
http://www.asyura2.com/12/hihyo13/msg/703.html

So far, the only saving grace is that the Diet failed to set a penalty for those who fail to enter into a contract with NHK.

Oh lovely ... I hadn't heard that one.
But how is that even possible? Or legal? I suppose that's written into the contract too. You give them permission to follow your every move.

[Russell]

I wonder whether that doesn't violate some privacy law...

[yanpa]

Court sets statute of limitations for unpaid fees to 5 years (instead of the 10 demanded by NHK):

NHK受信料、5年で時効＝最高裁が初判断

[wangta]

Anyway, I wonder in a case like mine where my TV broke and no longer receives a signal but I still use it as a monitor for my DVD player if I'm supposed to be paying.

Do you really give a fuck about this kind of bullshit? It's bad enough NHK run the other bullshit re tvs that work but for you to actually be voicing this about a fucking broken tv used as a monitor and what NHK thinks about it tells me you need to take a break from Japan.

To everybody else talking about how to get out of the contract - I knew a few gaijin who sent signed letters to the NHK office of the prefectural city the first time around I lived in Japan, stating that they no longer owned a tv. The collector came around, they signed the paper he gave them and he didn't go near their apatos/houses anymore. Not one of them had got rid of their tv - ha.

Anybody got a translation for any of those NHK docs about getting out of the contract and about the penalties for not paying? I don't mean everything, just the key points. My kanji is up shit creek lately and I need to spend some time re-learning it. My last time in Japan, I was interested to receive a bill for NHK in the name of the last resident fairly regularly in my mailbox. It was another gaijin and their dues were climbing up to 400,000 yen by the time I left. I suspect if they ever returns to Japan and buy a tv they will have to cough up.

[Samurai_Jerk]

Anyway, I wonder in a case like mine where my TV broke and no longer receives a signal but I still use it as a monitor for my DVD player if I'm supposed to be paying.

Do you really give a fuck about this kind of bullshit? It's bad enough NHK run the other bullshit re tvs that work but for you to actually be voicing this about a fucking broken tv used as a monitor and what NHK thinks about it tells me you need to take a break from Japan.

No I don't really give a fuck. I was wondering in the context of reading a thread about NHK fees and how silly the system is whether or not I'm technically supposed to be paying. It's not keeping me up at night, it's not something I'd ever thought about before posting that comment, and it's not something I've thought about since till reading your comment today.

Anyway, please tell us more about your PTSD from being butt hurt in Korea.

[Russell]

Requests loom for NHK’s political coverage overseas

The government may make requests to NHK that affect its international services by promoting state views on political issues, Sanae Takaichi, new minister of internal affairs and communications, said.

“It is possible to make requests to transmit correct information on Japanese territories and other issues and to underscore the good points of Japan,” Takaichi said in an interview Friday.

The new minister was apparently referring to the sovereignty disputes over the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, claimed by China and Taiwan, and the South Korean-held islets of Dokdo, which Japan claims as Takeshima, in the Sea of Japan, which Seoul calls the East Sea.

In the next breath, however, Takaichi said the public broadcaster can make its own decisions on whether to meet such requests.

In 2006, then-communications minister Yoshihide Suga took the controversial step of ordering NHK to increase international radio coverage of the abduction issue, which concerns Japanese kidnapped in the 1970s and 1980s by North Korean spies. Following the public outcry, Japan in 2007 revised the broadcast law and weakened the minister’s authority to make such requests to NHK less-binding.

Takaichi said her ministry will also discuss the possibility of supporting NHK so it can provide its international TV service in all six official languages used by the United Nations.

More

Wondering whether viewers overseas will also be "obliged" to pay NHK a fee...

[matsuki]

In 2006, then-communications minister Yoshihide Suga took the controversial step of ordering NHK to increase international radio coverage of the abduction issue, which concerns Japanese kidnapped in the 1970s and 1980s by North Korean spies. Following the public outcry, Japan in 2007 revised the broadcast law and weakened the minister’s authority to make such requests to NHK less-binding.

How about Japanese kidnapped by Japanese?

[Russell]

Tokyo court rules that hotels must pay NHK fees according to the number of rooms with TVs

Last year, we brought you news of a court ruling in Yokohama which stipulated that anyone who owns a device capable of receiving a TV signal, regardless of whether they’ve entered into a contract with NHK (Japan’s public broadcasting station) or not, is legally obligated to pay the NHK licensing fee. An important point to note is that the fees are only paid once per household, and not according to the number of TV sets or devices capable of receiving a signal in the house.

However, a recent court decision seems to be taking the issue of NHK licensing fees in a whole new direction. On October 9, the Tokyo District Court ruled in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit that the management company behind three Tokyo hotels must first enter into a contract with the public broadcaster. Furthermore, the hotels, all three of which had refused to enter into contracts despite repeated requests from NHK, must also pay their overdue licensing fees in proportion to the number of hotel rooms with TVs.

While many people (Japanese included) flat-out refuse to pay the monthly fees, maintaining that even though they own a TV, they never watch NHK broadcasts anyway, the recent ruling by Tokyo District Court Judge Kenkichi Sakuma identifies a section in the Japanese Broadcast Act which states that any individual who is the owner of a device capable of TV reception is technically bound by obligation to enter into a contract with NHK.

As a result, he ordered the hotels to both open a contract with NHK and to pay their unpaid fees from the period of August 2013 through May 2014 according to the number of TV-equipped rooms in the hotels.

According to Asahi Digital, the hotels have approximately 280 rooms with television sets, along with units in the dining area and other locations. Taking these numbers into account, the total unpaid licensing fees that the hotels’ management company must pay adds up to a staggering 6.21 million yen.

Whether you’re an avid viewer of NHK or not, perhaps this comment from a Japanese Internet user sums up the entire court decision best: “It’s a great win for the electronic yakuza.”

More

Looking forward to hotel rooms without a TV...

[wagyl]

This is not news. It has always been this way: households can have multiple devices on one contract, but commercial enterprises are paying for each device.

What is news is being ordered to enter into a contract. There are strong grounds to say that a forced contract is not a contract at all. It is not really the job of the judiciary to change things this way, it is up to the legislature to grow some balls and define things properly and set up some penalties for non-compliance, if they were truly serious about this. the fact that they haven't for some 64 years tells me they are not serious.

[Takechanpoo]

i just moved to Musashimurayama and got a mail to pay the fee from fucking NHK.
am thinking whether continue ignoring it or not....