One of the areas that people will look back and laugh at in technological history is in relation to television.

In the mid-to-late eighties my favourite TV Show was MacGyver. It had a good mixture of science (which I was studying at the time) and a hero saving the world on a weekly basis.

I would plan other activities around the time that the show aired so I didn’t miss the weekly episode.  It is the same concept that has applied to television broadcasting since the nation first saw Bruce Gyngell on TV at 7pm on 16 September 1956.

A television executive made decisions on the best time to broadcast a particular show and the public could choose to tune in at that time or miss out altogether.

Fast forward 60 years and the world of television is undergoing a revolution that will change the way we consume our weekly fix of sitting in front of the box.

With the availability of huge amounts of storage space at reasonable prices and the ability to transmit data at increasingly higher speeds, the world of streaming TV is no longer an option in the future – it is at the point when many people spend more time in front of the TV watching a streaming service than watching a broadcast service.

Netflix is often the name many associate with this but they are just one of many players in this game – some free and some with a monthly fee. Names such as Stan; Presto; Amazon Video; Crackle; Vudu and even YouTube are common streaming services.

The normal broadcasters are adding their own versions of what they call catch-up TV with iView; SBS OnDemand; Plus7 and more. Even Foxtel, in the past just a broadcaster of over one hundred simultaneous channels, is seeing the writing on the wall by packaging On-Demand services with their monthly subscription.

An inspection of the numbers just from Netflix will give you some insight into the impact that streaming is having. Netflix started in 1998 as a DVD-by-mail service. It began streaming in 2007 – only nine years ago – and now serves over 190 countries with 81 million paying subscribers worldwide. With revenue of US$6.8 billion it gives you an idea of the changing world we live in. With all that choice, I just need to find the streaming service that has all seven seasons of MacGyver!

President of Local Government New South Wales (LGNSW), Councillor Keith Rhoades and the Chief Executive Officer of LGNSW, Donna Rygate have indicated that they will be visiting Bourke on the September 14 as part of their ongoing commitment to meet with as many member councils as they can. Prior to Bourke they will visit Brewarrina Shire Council.

Council is still awaiting the outcome of its application for funding under the Water and Sewage Infrastructure Backlog Programme with funding being available via Restart NSW. Council has two projects for which applications for funding have been submitted with these being funding for a new Water Treatment Plant and funding an additional pond at the Sewerage Treatment Facility. The first instalment for the rates is due on Wednesday, 31 st August 2016.

If you are having difficulties meeting your obligations in relation to the payment of rates please contact the Revenue Officer at Council so that, if possible, suitable arrangements can be put in place.

Representatives of CAPRA Pty Ltd, the proponents of the proposed Abattoir were in Bourke yesterday and met with representatives of Council regarding the status of the planning approval for the Abattoir. Members of the Murray Darling Basin Authority will be in Bourke on August 10 to meet with invited members of the community to discuss the Northern Basin Review and other water management issues. ​