Australia - Pay TV - Regulatory - Content Overview and Analysis

Synopsis

This report was archived in September 2007 and has not been updated since February 2006. The key attraction of pay TV is the multitude of programs that are not available on Free-to-air (FTA) TV. This multichannelling aspect is limited by the regulations expressed in the Broadcasting Services Act 1992, which essentially deals with Australian content and special interests content (anti-siphoning). This report overviews and summarises these regimes and includes current and historical data and information, as well as our considered analysis. The report provides a valuable background to separate reports on programming and content supply, such as those addressing the Foxtel-Optus content sharing arrangement of 2002. Please note that this report is updated infrequently and contains only minor updates for 2005 and 2006 were reported.

Table of Contents

• 1. Synopsis
• 2. Overview
  • 2.1 Codes of practice
  • 2.2 Content regulation proposed by ACCC
  • 2.3 Productivity Commission review
    • 2.3.1 Draft conclusions – 2001
    • 2.3.2 Final report – 2002
• 3. Australian content
  • 3.1 Introduction
  • 3.2 2005 update
  • 3.3 Content expenditure statistics
  • 3.4 Brief history of Australian content policy
    • 3.4.1 Voluntary guidelines
    • 3.4.2 Review 1998 – from voluntary to enforced local content regulations
    • 3.4.3 Review 2002
• 4. Anti-siphoning
  • 4.1 Overview
  • 4.2 Anti-siphoning review - 2001
    • 4.2.1 Events recommended to be removed from the list
    • 4.2.2 Events recommended to be added to the list
    • 4.2.3 Future review of the rules
  • 4.3 Anti-siphoning review – 2004
    • 4.3.1 De-listing
  • 4.4 Anti-siphoning analysis
• 5. R and X classified material
• 6. Advertising
• 7. Related reports

• Table 1 – Pay TV content expenditure – 1995 - 2005
• Table 2 – Pay TV content expenditure requirements – 1998 - 2005
• Table 3 – Expenditure on children’s programming by commercial TV licensees – 2000/1 - 2004/5

• Exhibit 1 – Anti-siphoning list - 2005
• Exhibit 2 – Calendar of events on the anti-siphoning list – 2006
• Exhibit 3 – Anti-siphoning list 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2010