Ok to clarify, the boat fees were included in the course fees I mentioned. Re your question about comparing AU to US, as far as I know, most things are cheaper in the US than Australia - at least with food and electronics
Not sure about scuba diving but US equipment seems cheaper from my research into getting my own gear.
My courses generally have 2 boat dives/day or 3 shore dives/day and I believe they count towards the AOW even if I am with an instructor? I guess even if that is not the case I will definitely have 24 dives logged on my own without an instructor by October when I should be doing the deep specialty. But again, I don't see how this should be included in AOW as I would have done the dives even if I did not want to get my AOW. I am actually doing the specialties as I am interested in them, and getting AOW will just be incidental to that.
I agree that cheap does not equal good quality instruction often. I have been very happy with my instructors as well as the price. It is nice to get both! I had to do extra dives to get my OW above the standard and it didn't cost more than a normal OW course at many other dive centres. I had trouble in my early dives with doing mask clears so I got individual attention with helping me fix that problem. Failing was a possibility as well as the instructor gave a few examples of people who had failed in the past to show what can go wrong. I think this is a good thing as it stops students getting complacent in learning skills.
Finally, my post was not meant to imply your course was expensive. I was just giving my own example of price and path to AOW as you asked who would pay for it.
Cost is a big factor for a lot of people so you will get many people doing it on the cheap, whether or not it gives them good training. I guess if I was instructor I probably wouldn't want those kinds of people as they are likely argue about every single cost. From my own experience in running a business, it is best to avoid people who are only concerned about price.