Peter McGauran (Gippsland, National Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for her question. The sequence of events here, as she well knows, is that legislation was passed in October last year to allocate two channels on the broadcasting spectrum for new digital services. Channel A will enable new free-to-air, in-home digital television services. Channel B can be used for a wider range of services, potentially including mobile and television services. Neither channel will be permitted to be used for traditional commercial television or in-home subscription broadcasting services because we believe that these channels should be used to offer new and innovative digital services to consumers.

Channel B will be subject to an access regime to prevent the possibility of holders of channel B licences monopolising the limited transition capacity on channel B. ACMA will allocate the channels and the ACCC will also be involved in the allocation process, and in the monitoring and enforcement of competition related obligations placed on the licence holders. The channels are expected to be allocated this year and new services are anticipated to commence by 2008. ACMA and ACCC have both undertaken public consultation processes on their respective roles in the allocation of the channels. The outcomes of these consultation processes are assisting ACMA, the ACCC and the government to determine the most appropriate processes and conditions for allocating A and B—in other words, a final decision on the allocation system is yet to be reached.

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