2003 - 04 Annual Report - Sbs

62Digital Agenda ReviewSBS provided comments on the Digital Agenda Reformscontained in the Copyright Amendment (Digital Agenda)Act 2000. SBS supported the submissions made to thereview by other media organisations and, in particular,supported online radio and television material beingavailable for use by educational institutions. SBShighlighted the importance of broadcasters retainingaccess of copyright material for the purposes of fairdealing.ACCC Report on Emerging Market Structuresin the Communications SectorSBS provided comment to the Department ofCommunications, Information Technology and theArts on the Australian Competition and ConsumerCommission report into Emerging Market Structuresin the Communications Sector. SBS highlighted thatpublic broadcasters are well placed to incubate newtechnologies and concepts as a way of developing newbusiness models for digital broadcasting. SBS alsosupported the anti-siphoning regime as an important wayof ensuring coverage of significant sporting events onfree-to-air TV.Defamation Law ReformSBS, along with 10 other media and media industryorganisations, made a submission in response to theFederal Attorney General’s Discussion Paper proposinga uniform national defamation law. The group wassupportive of the concept of national law and outlinedagreed key principles necessary to create a simple anddurable law that was understood and accessible by bothmedia and individuals in the community.enormous television audiences (14.9 million for the 2002World Cup) and consistency with the listing of other majorteam sports warrant the inclusion of these events in thenew list.Classification LegislationSBS, along with other media organisations, participatedin consultations with the Office of Film of LiteratureClassification and Attorney General’s Departmentconcerning proposed changes to the uniformclassification scheme in relation to the ‘MA’ classification.Although SBS classification is determined by the SBSBoard under the SBS Act, it has been the practice toadopt a similar approach to the rest of the industry inrelation to program classifications.Commonwealth Games Arrangements BillIn 2003, the Victorian Government introduced theCommonwealth Games Arrangements (FurtherAmendment) Bill which proposed to restrict mediarecording and broadcast of Commonwealth Gamesevents without prior authorisation from the 2006Commonwealth Games Corporation. The Bill alsoprovided for substantial financial penalties if mediaorganisations breached the proposed provisions. In itssubmission, SBS argued that the use of a fair amount ofCommonwealth Games event material should be allowedif it is used in legitimate news and other coverage,consistent with the fair dealing provisions contained in theCopyright Act 1968. SBS also requested an amendmentto the definition of ‘Commonwealth Games events’ toexclude live sites and cultural sites associated with theCommonwealth Games.Anti-SiphoningFollowing the release of the 2006–10 anti-siphoninglist under the Broadcasting Services Act, SBS made asubmission to Government seeking the inclusion of the2010 World Cup and preliminary competitions involvingthe Australian representative soccer team. World Cupevents had previously been included on both antisiphoningand anti-hoarding lists which ensured thatevents of major significance are available to Australianaudiences on free-to-air television. SBS argued thatthe consistent airing of all games in the World Cup, the