Network Insight Institute

Joanne Yates

Joanne Yates, Executive Director, SPAA

There are a couple of other contextual points. The first is that this review is taking place at a time when the government is proposing changes to the ownership and control provisions of the Broadcasting Services Act. We need to be mindful of the potential implications that those changes may have for the whole broadcasting regulation regime. It is very important that we preserve the cultural objectives that Parliament requires under the Broadcasting Services Act, no matter what the other ownership and control provisions might end up looking like.

The second point is that this review does not provide the scope for us to effectively consider any of the content requirements for subscription television. That is at a time when the market is contracting, and where we may also see a contraction in the number of channel and service offerings down the track. That may or may not occur, but is something to watch out for.

Both of those things have the potential to lessen the amount of high quality Australian drama, and other genres of Australian programming, provided to Australian audiences. From SPAA's point of view, the standard has been an important mechanism in guaranteeing that Australian audiences receive Australian programs across a broad range of genres and, more specifically, in genres which are vulnerable, i.e. those that appear in subquotas, such as children's and documentary. The standard has also been successful in achieving, to a degree, another important objective of the Broadcasting Services Act that was alluded to in the first session: support for a viable independent production sector. In our submission we say that that objective should be strengthened.

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