RTE wants to introduce a compulsory fee to offset the €65 million a year loss.
The national broadcaster is pushing the Government to bring in a charge for all households whether or not they have a TV. RTE warned it doesn't have a "sustainable future" after a massive drop in people paying the licence fee.
RTE director of strategy, Rory Coveney, said: "The public funding system, by common consent, is not working. We believe that some sort of household-based charge, decoupled from a television, is what's required to accurately capture the viewing that's going on."
Read more: All the people who don't have to pay their TV licence
He was speaking in front of the Oireachtas Media Committee on Wednesday at a meeting to discuss future business models for broadcast media, Extra.ie reports. Mr Coveney said Raidió na Gaeltachta and Lyric FM doesn't have a big enough audience to sustain itself.
He added: "We have a very significant proportion of people now who aren't paying [the TV licence fee]." He warned that this number could increase as the number of homes without a TV is also rising.
But the Government has no plans to change the current licence fee structure as Media Minister Catherine Martin unveiled the Future of Media Commission Report. The report revealed new plans to implement recommendations.
This includes a technical working group that has been established to examine the various options for the improve the current system. The group will report to Minister Martin in the first quarter of the year.
Additionally, it will also include the development of equality, diversity and inclusion standards by Coimisiún na Meán, a comprehensive review of Irish language services across the entire media sector and the introduction of a range of new funding supports through a new media fund, with priority being given by Minister Martin to local democracy reporting and courts reporting schemes.
Minister Martin said: "This plan sets out how Government intends to give effect to the accepted recommendations within the Commission’s report, and is a blueprint for enabling the continued development of public service media in Ireland in light of the transformation which the sector has been undergoing. A key element of the ongoing implementation will be stakeholder engagement, and my officials will shortly be inviting a range of stakeholders to participate in the process."
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