The British Broadcasting Corporation, almost always referred to by its abbreviation "the BBC",is the world's largest broadcaster.Unlike other broadcasters in the UK, it is a public service based, quasi-autonomous, statutory corporation run by the BBC Trust. In common with the public broadcasting organisations of many other European countries, it is funded yearly by a television licence fee charged to all UK households which own a television capable of receiving broadcasts, rather than being underwritten directly by the Government of the United Kingdom.