Declaring Primary Commercial Television Broadcasting Services in the Mildura/Sunraysia TV1 Licence Area
The ACMA is seeking comments on its proposal to make a declaration specifying a Primary Commercial Television Broadcasting Service (Primary Service) for each of the three commercial television broadcasting licences in the Mildura/Sunraysia TV1 licence area. It also seeks comments more broadly on the approach taken to specifying a Primary Service.
The ACMA would apply a similar approach to making a declaration for each commercial television broadcasting licence at the end of the relevant simulcast or simulcast equivalent period.
The ACMA is seeking written submissions on the matters raised in this discussion paper and other issues considered relevant by 28 May 2010.
The discussion paper is available in PDF (188 kb) or Word (164 kb) formats.
Submissions should be directed to Manager, Digital Television Regulatory Analysis
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Email: Mail: |
Australian Communications and Media Authority |
| Enquiries about matters raised in this paper should be directed to Jeanette Knowler on +61 (0)2 9334 7895, or by email DTRAS@acma.gov.au. | |
Submissions received
The following submissions are available in PDF format.
Background
The introduction of multi-channelling has created a two-track regulatory system for commercial television broadcasting services, in which a number of obligations apply to the analog service and its digital simulcast, but not to the other streams of programs transmitted by the same licensee in digital mode.
During the period in which each analog service and its digital equivalent in a licence area must be simulcast, the concept of a ’core commercial television broadcasting service‘ (core service) is used by the legislation to identify the service to which certain regulatory provisions of the BSA apply. Generally, the legislation identifies the core service as the digital simulcast service of the analog service.
If a commercial broadcasting licensee does not provide an analog service, this legislative approach is not available. This is the case after the end of a simulcast period for a licence area when analog television services have ceased or upon commencement of multi-channelling in the case of the small number of services provided by digital-only licences. In these instances, the ACMA may declare one of the standard definition multi-channels provided by a commercial television broadcasting licensee to be the Primary Service for the licence.
