I don't understand why anyone would object to paying a $20 a month for dozens of the best channels in the world. They complain in Britain becaus they see the licence as a "tax" or so they say, where in Australia your average telly is probably the world's worst or you pay hundreds of dollars a month for satellite with even more adverts on it. Not a great choice.

Exactly, I will have no problem with paying for a TV license in the UK, you get what you pay for and here it is free.

I'm with Dicko on this one.

As for the BBC - it ain't bad - but it does border-line tabloid CNN style stuff like the rest of them. Look at BBC World.

It's the people and the programmes that people love. And the quality of production although I detect alot of polish rather than substance once in a while.

I remember turning on the TV in London and there was a breathless bloke telling the camera 2 or 3 salient points in about 20 ways in a nice accent fillng time for 20 minutes. They've been doing this for as long as I can remember.

All of a sudden it seemed that serious, TV, newsbroadcasting can be based on nothing other than theatrics and style. Which it is. Anyone who does any PR work or briefing knows it's all in the delivery. TV medium is all about sound bites and summary - and attempting to add some sort of value and weight.

Which the BBC probably does do best, or well.

I don't see it as a problem.

We don't watch US shows, nor 7, 9 or 10 apart from Masterchef(!). I can't fathom the sort of person that complains about Australian TV - why are they watching the rubbish in the first place?

We get all the best stuff from the UK and world movies anyway.

Now if the BBC stopped sending programmes, then we'd have a problem!

I've developed a real taste for French Movies over the last couple of years. Personally I reckon they develop charactors way better than the Americans. They are possibly as good if not better at charactor development in movies as the Brits. They sure do work their plots well.

Watched this the other night... Based on a true story as well. Mesrine public enemy no 1 A French Gangster from the 70's, Gripping Movie. Definitely one of the best Gangster movies I've seen.

Never quite understood the interest in television, when there is such an interesting world out there to actually see for real. I think television has done immense damage to the fabric of western societies. People sit like idiots staring at a window into a world of make believe that usually isn't very convincing in its portrayal.

Tonight my wife watched some BBC rubbish about Palestine - the army radios in the vehicles were built 20 years after the events being portrayed, and the Maglight torch didn't come out until the 1980s, but my wife cheerfully believed all that she saw. Which really is the danger of the medium - people believe it.

I do think the TV license system in the uk is an arrogant anachronism - forcing people who never watch the BBC to pay for it, on the grounds that they must prefer watching it to commercial channels.

BBC is OK but ain't that grand, and their export channels such as Beeps BBC Entertainment are a complete joke. Sorry.

The BBC really helped educated people once upon a time. I guess things have changed, but without the licence fee you have nothing but commercial dross.

I dont see that much has changed really, the BBC is still a wonderful service that the majority would be happy to pay for and we would be much the worse for it's demise.

The BBC can be (and often is) biased towards certain issues and ideas. Global warming, Palestine, war in Iraq, socialism etc are common themes.

I seldom see the BBC rip into Mugabe over his treatment of white farmers, or the economic and social damage he has created by his despotic rule. If he had been white he would have been a prime target.

I realize you either haven't noticed it, or do not want of admit it, so I can gauge your reply Chris, but it is very evident, and not appropriate for a national broadcaster.

Personally when I lived in the UK I would have been happy to see it close down.

That's OK we cant all like the same thing.

Even if we have to pay for it.

Not completely true - ABC and SBS are funded through tax revenue. It's a hidden tax, rather than a separate tax like the tv licence in the UK.

In 2009/10, ABC received approx $930 million from the federal budget.
In 2009/10, SBS received just over $210 million from government funding.

I saw that movie, and if the story was really true that guy lived an incredible life. SBS is great for it's international movies and tv series. Watching the Danish series The Killing at the moment , which is really good.

And that's why both those channels are pretty decent, although The ABC might just as well rename itself BBC Australia. SBS is one of the best broadcasters around in my opinion.