Notice of Additional Condition on Commercial Radio Broadcasting Licence No. 4103

Overview

The Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (BSA) was enacted to establish a regulatory framework for the broadcasting services in Australia. This legislation was introduced to address the need for a coherent system to manage the allocation of radio and television frequencies, the licensing of broadcasters, and the oversight of content to ensure it adheres to community standards. The Act was enacted by the Parliament of Australia with the policy objective of ensuring that broadcasting services are managed in a manner that promotes the cultural, political, and social well-being of the nation. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), as mentioned in the notice, plays a critical role in enforcing the provisions of the BSA by imposing conditions on broadcasting licences to maintain compliance with industry standards and community expectations.

Scope and Application

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has proposed to impose an additional condition on the commercial radio broadcasting licence number 4103 held by Commonwealth Broadcasting Corporation Pty Ltd, which applies specifically to the Kyle & Jackie O Show or any other show hosted by or featuring Kyle Sandilands and/or Jacqueline Henderson. This licence condition, effective for five years from its commencement date, mandates that the Licensee adhere to clause 2.2 of the Commercial Radio Australia Code of Practice 2017, or any equivalent provision in any replacement code registered by the ACMA under section 123 of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992. The Licensee must ensure that the Program does not broadcast content that is highly offensive or contains strong and explicit sexual references by the standards of an ordinary reasonable listener. Furthermore, the Licensee is required to commission an independent audit of its governance framework by a compliance expert, with the auditor’s report to be submitted to both the Licensee and the ACMA within seven days of completion. The Licensee must then provide the ACMA with a board-approved implementation plan within three months of receiving the auditor’s report, detailing the steps taken to implement the auditor’s recommendations, along with a written report to the ACMA every 12 months thereafter, detailing the status of recommendations and progress against the implementation plan.

Key Provisions

Pursuant to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (BSA), the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has proposed to impose an additional condition on the commercial radio broadcasting licence number 4103 held by Commonwealth Broadcasting Corporation Pty Ltd. This condition applies to the "Kyle & Jackie O Show" or any other show hosted by or featuring Kyle Sandilands and/or Jacqueline Henderson, either alone or in combination with other presenters or guests (section 1). The condition will be in effect for a period of 5 years from the date of Gazettal of this licence condition (section 1). Under the proposed condition, the Licensee must ensure that the Program does not broadcast content that is highly offensive or contains strong and explicit sexual references by the standards of an ordinary reasonable listener (section 2). This requirement is directly aligned with clause 2.2 of the Commercial Radio Australia Code of Practice 2017 (revised in 2018) or any equivalent provision in any replacement code registered by the ACMA under section 123 of the BSA (section 2). To achieve this, the Licensee is mandated to commission an independent audit of their Governance Framework by a compliance expert within 6 months from the date of Commencement of this licence condition (section 3). The auditor’s report must be provided to both the Licensee and the ACMA within 7 days after the audit's completion (section 3). Additionally, the Licensee must prepare and submit to the ACMA a board-approved implementation plan within 3 months of receiving the auditor’s report. This plan should detail the steps taken or to be taken to implement all recommendations made by the auditor, including specific timeframes for implementation (section 4). The Licensee must comply with this implementation plan and its stipulated timeframes unless the ACMA grants written permission to modify them (section 4). Finally, the Licensee is required to produce a written report to the ACMA every 12 months, starting 12 months after the implementation plan is submitted, detailing the status of the audit recommendations and the progress made against the implementation plan (section 4). Failure to comply with the provisions of this additional licence condition may result in various consequences, including but not limited to, enforcement actions by the ACMA under the BSA. The specific penalties for non-compliance are not detailed in the notice, but they may include fines, public reprimands, or even the potential revocation of the broadcasting licence. The exact nature and extent of the penalties would depend on the severity and circumstances of the breach, as determined by the ACMA.