The director of the Isle of Man's Communications Commission says BBC services would suffer if the Island withdrew from the TV licence fee agreement.
Dr Carmel McLaughlin was giving evidence to a select committee looking into the current fee.
The Island pays more than ?4 million a year in licence fees and the BBC employs three locally based journalists, as well as running an Isle of Man website.
Dr McLaughlin says services could be lost if the fee was scrapped.
The committee, made up of MHKs Graham Cregeen and Phil Gawne and MLC David Callister, was set up in 2009 to assess possible changes in the TV licence.
Chairman of the Communications Commission and Home Affairs Minister Adrian Earnshaw also gave evidence at the hearing in the Legislative Council Chamber in Douglas today (Monday).
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