Radiocommunications (Datacasting Transmitter Licence Limits) Direction No. 1 of 2001

Administered by Department of Communications and the Arts

Legislation au F2004B00487 Not in force Legislative Instrument

Legislation content

Commonwealth of Australia

 

 Radiocommunications Act 1992

Radiocommunications (Datacasting Transmitter Licence Limits) Direction No. 1 of 2001

 

I, RICHARD KENNETH ROBERT ALSTON, Minister for Communications,  Information Technology and the Arts, give the following Direction to the Australian Communications Authority under subsection 106(9) of the Radiocommunications Act 1992.

Dated 10 January 2001

 

 

 

RICHARD ALSTON

Minister for Communications, Information Technology
and the Arts

_________________

Citation

 1. This Direction may be cited as the Radiocommunications (Datacasting Transmitter Licence Limits) Direction No. 1 of 2001.

Interpretation

 2. (1) In this Direction, unless the contrary intention appears:

Act means the Radiocommunications Act 1992.

applicant means an applicant for a datacasting transmitter licence.

associate, in relation to an applicant, means:

 (a) for a body corporate:

 (i) a director or secretary of the body; or

 (ii) a related body corporate; or

 (iii) a director or secretary of a related body corporate; or

 (iv) a business partner of the body; or

 (v) an individual who controls at least 15 per cent of the voting power or holds at least 15 per cent of the issued shares in the body; or

 (b) for an individual:

 (i) the individual’s spouse; or

 (ii) another person who, although not legally married to the individual, lives with the individual on a genuine domestic basis as the spouse of the person; or

 (iii) a business partner of the individual; or

 (iv) a body corporate in which the individual controls at least 15 per cent of the voting power or holds at least 15 per cent of the issued shares; or

 (v) a body corporate of which the individual is a director or secretary; or

 (vi) a body corporate that is related to a body corporate of which the individual is a director or secretary; or

 (c) for any person––any other person (other than the ACA) who has a relevant agreement with the applicant that:

 (i) entitles one of the parties to the agreement to operate a transmitter under a datacasting transmitter licence issued to another person; or

 (ii) provides for the acquisition of a datacasting transmitter licence.

datacasting service area means an area specified in a paragraph below, comprising the areas described in the indicated Schedule or Schedules to the determination made by the ABA under subsection 34(3) of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 on 22 December 2000:

 (a)  Schedule 1 (Sydney/Central Coast/Newcastle); or

 (b)  Schedules 4, 5 and 6 (Melbourne); or

 (c)  Schedule 13 (Brisbane/Gold Coast/Sunshine Coast); or

 (d)  Schedule 9 (Perth); or

 (e)  Schedules 7 and 8 (Adelaide); or

 (f)  Schedule 12 (Canberra and surrounding regions); or

 (g)  Schedules 10 and 11 (Darwin and Batchelor); or

 (h)  Schedules 2 and 3 (Wollongong).

related body corporate has the meaning given by the Corporations Law.

relevant agreement means an agreement, arrangement or understanding:

 (a) whether formal or informal or partly formal and partly informal; and

 (b) whether written or oral or partly written and partly oral; and

 (c) whether or not having legal or equitable force and whether or not based on legal or equitable rights;

other than an agreement between carriers provided for by or under the Telecommunications Act 1997, Part XIC of the Trade Practices Act 1974 or the Telecommunications (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 1997.

specified group of persons means an applicant and all of the associates of the applicant.

 (2) For this Direction, 2 or more specified groups of persons having one member in common are taken to be one specified group of persons.

Datacasting transmitter licence limits

 3. When determining a price-based allocation system for allocating and/or issuing datacasting transmitter licences under subsection 106(1) of the Act in which two datacasting transmitter licences will be offered in each datacasting service area, the ACA must determine procedures imposing a limit of one datacasting transmitter licence per specified group of persons in a datacasting service area.

Particular procedures

 4. Without limiting the power of the ACA to determine a price-based allocation system for allocating and/or issuing specified transmitter licences, in determining the system mentioned in section 3 the ACA must ensure that the system requires:

 (a) an applicant to notify the ACA of the applicant’s associates; and

 (b) the ACA to accept the first bidding instruction file received by the ACA from an applicant taking part in an auction as the only bid file of members of a specified group of persons; and

 (c) the ACA to exclude an applicant who has failed to comply with requirements determined under paragraph (a) from taking part or continuing to take part in an auction.

 

 

 

Overview

The Radiocommunications (Datacasting Transmitter Licence Limits) Direction No. 1 of 2001 was issued under the Radiocommunications Act 1992 by Richard Alston, the Minister for Communications, Information Technology, and the Arts. This legislative instrument was enacted to address the need for fair and equitable allocation of datacasting transmitter licenses within specific service areas. The Australian Communications Authority (ACA) is tasked with ensuring a price-based allocation system that limits the number of licenses any specified group of persons can hold to one per service area. This is intended to prevent monopolistic practices and promote competition in the datacasting sector. The policy objective of this direction is to establish a transparent and competitive framework for the issuance of datacasting transmitter licenses, ensuring that multiple groups can participate in the market without any single group gaining an undue advantage. By defining a specified group of persons and limiting their license acquisitions, the Direction aims to foster a diverse and competitive broadcasting environment. The ACA is mandated to implement the allocation system in a manner that includes requirements for applicants to disclose their associates, accept only one bid per specified group, and exclude non-compliant applicants from participating in license auctions.

Scope and Application

The Radiocommunications (Datacasting Transmitter Licence Limits) Direction No. 1 of 2001 applies to applicants for a datacasting transmitter licence under the Radiocommunications Act 1992. The Direction specifically regulates the allocation and issuance of datacasting transmitter licences, ensuring that no more than one licence is issued per specified group of persons in each datacasting service area. The scope of the Direction includes entities and individuals who are considered associates of an applicant, as defined in the Direction, and it mandates the Australian Communications Authority (ACA) to implement a price-based allocation system that enforces these limits. The Direction is applicable nationally, as it pertains to the issuance of licences under the Commonwealth of Australia’s Radiocommunications Act 1992. The Direction does not explicitly state exclusions or exemptions, but it does provide a comprehensive definition of who is considered an associate and how the specified groups of persons are determined. This includes both corporate and individual applicants, and their associates, thereby ensuring that the allocation process is fair and does not favour any particular group over another.

Key Provisions

The Radiocommunications (Datacasting Transmitter Licence Limits) Direction No. 1 of 2001, issued under the Radiocommunications Act 1992, lays down specific requirements for the allocation of datacasting transmitter licences. Under section 3, the Australian Communications Authority (ACA) must establish procedures that limit the allocation to one datacasting transmitter licence per specified group of persons within each datacasting service area. This is when the ACA is determining a price-based allocation system, offering two datacasting transmitter licences per service area. This legislation imposes several obligations on the ACA and applicants for datacasting transmitter licences. The ACA must ensure that any price-based allocation system they determine includes specific procedures, such as requiring applicants to notify the ACA of their associates (section 4(a)). Furthermore, the ACA must accept only the first bidding instruction file received from an applicant as the bid file for members of a specified group of persons (section 4(b)). Additionally, any applicant who fails to notify the ACA of their associates is to be excluded from participating or continuing to participate in an auction (section 4(c)). Under this Direction, there are no explicit provisions detailing offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences for non-compliance. However, the implications of non-compliance could include disqualification from the auction process for failing to meet the notification requirements, which could significantly impact an applicant's ability to obtain a datacasting transmitter licence. The Direction does not specify monetary penalties or other legal consequences for breaches, but the exclusion from the auction process represents a substantial enforcement mechanism.

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Telecommunications Law
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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.