Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021

Administered by Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts

Legislation au F2021L00763 Not in force Legislative Instrument

Legislation content

Explanatory StatementIssued by the authority of the Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the ArtsAustralian Communications and Media Authority Act 2005

Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021

 

Authority

 

Subsection 14(1) of the Australian Communications and Media Authority Act 2005 enables the Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts (the Minister), to direct ACMA in the performance of its functions or the exercise of its powers, including in relation to the conditions of licences issued under the Radiocommunications Act 1992 (the Act).

Subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 provides that where an act confers a power to make, grant or issue any instrument of a legislative or administrative character (including rules, regulations or by-laws), the power shall be construed as including a power in the like manner and subject to the like conditions (if any) to repeal, rescind, revoke, amend or vary any such instrument.

Purpose

 

The purpose of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021 (the Instrument) is to repeal the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009  (the Direction).

 

The Direction required the Australian Communications and Media Authority (the ACMA) to determine a technical standard which ensures that domestic reception equipment used for receiving digital television broadcasting or datacasting services have a parental lock capability. ACMA made the Broadcasting and Datacasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2010 to comply with the Direction.

The Broadcasting and Datacasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2010 was due to sunset on 1 October 2020. In response ACMA consulted on and made the Broadcasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2020, fulfilling the objective of the Direction without the need for an additional direction.

 


The Direction also employs the term ‘domestic digital television receiver’ as defined in the Radiocommunications Act 1992. This definition will be repealed, along with the provisions relating to datacasting transmitter licences, by schedule 9 of the Radiocommunications Legislation Amendment (Reform and Modernisation) Act 2020 (the Reform and Modernisation Act) upon its commencement in June 2021. It is therefore appropriate and timely for the Instrument to repeal the Direction, as its primary purpose has been met and it will contain outdated definitions. The protections provided by the Technical Standard will continue to be in operation.


Background

Background of the Direction

It was the Australian Government’s intention that, together with the classification of television content already in place under the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice 2004, mandating parental locks in digital television receivers would further protect children from viewing material which may be inappropriate or harmful and support parents and guardians in protecting their children from such content. The Direction was made under subsection 14(1) of the Australian Communications and Media Authority Act 2005 to support this objective. ACMA made the Broadcasting and Datacasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2010 to comply with the Direction.

Background of the Reform and Modernisation Act

In 2015 the then Department of Communications conducted a review (the Spectrum Review) of the policy and regulatory changes that were needed to cope with the increase in demand for spectrum and changes in technology, markets and consumer preferences since 1992. Following Government consideration of the review, the Radiocommunications Act 1992 was amended in 2020 by the Reform and Modernisation Act, which implemented recommendations of the Spectrum Review, including by simplifying regulatory structures and streamlining regulatory processes.

Regulation Impact Statement

 

In 2015, the Spectrum Review was certified by the Department as an independent review for the purposes of assessing regulatory impacts. The Spectrum Review has been certified as an independent review for RIS purposes (OBPR ref:19096). The Reform and Modernisation Act give effect to the recommendations of the Spectrum Review. The instrument repeals regulation made obsolete by the amendments of the Reform and Modernisation Act.

 


Consultation

 

The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications (the Department) consulted with ACMA on the repeal of the Direction.

 

Notes on Sections

 

Section 1 – Name of instrument

This section provides that the name of the Instrument is the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021.
 

Section 2 - Commencement

 

This section provides that the instrument of repeal commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation, which may be accessed online at www.legislation.gov.au.

 

Section 3 – Authority This section provides that the instrument of repeal is made under subsection 14(1) of the Australian Communications and Media Authority Act 2005 and subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

 

Section 4 – Schedule

 

This section provides that each instrument that is specified in Schedule 1 to this instrument is repealed as set out in the Schedule.

 

Schedule 1 – Repeal

 

This schedule lists instruments to be repealed.

 

Item 1 of the schedule provides that the whole of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 is to be repealed.


Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

 

Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021

This Disallowable Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Bill/Disallowable Legislative Instrument

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021 (the Instrument) repeals the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 (the Direction).

The Direction required the Australian Communications and Media Authority (the ACMA) to determine a technical standard which ensures that domestic reception equipment used for receiving digital television broadcasting or datacasting services have a parental lock capability. ACMA made the Broadcasting and Datacasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2010 to comply with the Direction.

The Direction also employs the term ‘domestic digital television receiver’ as defined in the Radiocommunications Act 1992. This definition will be repealed by the Radiocommunications Legislation Amendment (Reform and Modernisation) Act 2020.

It is therefore appropriate and timely for the Instrument to repeal the Direction, as its primary purpose has been met and it will contain outdated definitions.

 

Human rights implications

This Disallowable Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

 

Conclusion

This Disallowable Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

 

The Hon Paul Fletcher MP

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts

Overview

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021 (the Instrument) is an initiative of the Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, enacted under the authority of subsection 14(1) of the Australian Communications and Media Authority Act 2005. This instrument was introduced to repeal the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 (the Direction), which had previously mandated the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to establish a technical standard ensuring that domestic equipment for receiving digital television broadcasting or datacasting services included a parental lock capability. The primary purpose of the Direction was to enhance child protection by ensuring that parental locks were integral to digital television receivers, thereby supplementing the existing television content classification system. With the Direction's objectives now fulfilled by the Broadcasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2020, and considering the forthcoming repeal of outdated definitions in the Radiocommunications Act 1992, the Instrument serves to streamline regulations and eliminate redundancy.

Scope and Application

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021 is a legislative instrument that repeals the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009, which required the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to determine a technical standard for domestic reception equipment to have a parental lock capability. This instrument is made under the authority of the Australian Communications and Media Authority Act 2005 and the Acts Interpretation Act 1901, and it is a disallowable legislative instrument that has been deemed compatible with human rights. The repeal is timely as the primary purpose of the Direction has been met and it contains outdated definitions, particularly in light of the forthcoming repeal of the term 'domestic digital television receiver' as defined in the Radiocommunications Act 1992, which will occur with the commencement of the Radiocommunications Legislation Amendment (Reform and Modernisation) Act 2020. The technical standards set by ACMA to meet the objectives of the Direction, such as the Broadcasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2020, remain in effect despite the repeal.

Key Provisions

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 Instrument of Repeal 2021 (the Instrument) serves to repeal the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Development of Technical Standards for Domestic Digital Television Reception Equipment) Direction No. 1 of 2009 (the Direction) (Section 4 and Schedule 1). The Direction mandated the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to establish a technical standard ensuring that domestic equipment for receiving digital television broadcasting or datacasting services included a parental lock capability. Pursuant to this Direction, ACMA developed the Broadcasting and Datacasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2010. Given that the objective of the Direction has been achieved through the new Broadcasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2020, and considering the definition of 'domestic digital television receiver' in the Radiocommunications Act 1992 will be repealed by the Radiocommunications Legislation Amendment (Reform and Modernisation) Act 2020, it is deemed appropriate to repeal the Direction. The Instrument imposes obligations on ACMA to ensure the repeal of the Direction and to cease any activities or functions that were governed by the Direction (Section 4 and Schedule 1). ACMA is also tasked with ensuring that any related technical standards or guidelines remain in effect to protect children from viewing inappropriate content. The repeal of the Direction does not affect the ongoing enforcement of the Broadcasting Services (Parental Lock) Technical Standard 2020, which continues to mandate parental lock capabilities on digital television reception equipment. There are no specific offences or penalties outlined in the Instrument itself, as its primary function is the repeal of an existing direction. However, any breaches of the repealed Direction prior to its repeal would have been subject to the penalties specified within the original Direction or under other applicable legislation, such as the Radiocommunications Act 1992. The repeal of the Direction does not introduce new penalties but ensures that any previous obligations under the Direction are no longer in effect, streamlined by the ongoing enforcement of the new technical standard. The repeal of the Direction is part of broader legislative reforms aimed at modernising and simplifying the regulatory framework for communications in Australia. This is achieved through the Radiocommunications Legislation Amendment (Reform and Modernisation) Act 2020, which addresses changes in technology, markets, and consumer preferences. The Instrument ensures that outdated regulatory provisions are removed, maintaining an efficient and effective regulatory environment for the communications sector.

Legal classification tags

Area of Law
Communications Law
Instrument
Instrument of Repeal
Concepts
Commencement Provisions
Repeal & Amendment
Regulatory Standards

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.