AnnuAl REPORT 2011-2012 - Sbs

Transmission
SBS television services
SbS’s television services are transmitted throughout
Australia using analogue and digital terrestrial and satellite
services (Appendices 21-22). SbS is also retransmitted on
the cable subscription services of Optusvision and Foxtel,
and the satellite subscription services of Foxtel.
in line with the Australian Government’s digital switchover
timetable, SbS’s analogue television services to regional
Queensland were concluded on 6 December 2011 and
to southern New South Wales on 5 june 2012.
enhanced digital self-help services (digital) have been rolled
out to: cardwell and Glenden in Queensland; and batlow,
tumbarumba, talbingo, captain’s Flat, and Adelong in New
South Wales. An additional 40 enhanced self-help services
are being planned for Queensland, tasmania, Western
Australia, South Australia and the Northern territory.
Analogue
• 115 terrestrial transmitters provided by: broadcast
Australia (103), imparja (10) and Watsons technical
Services (2).
• 329 retransmission services.
• Four Optus Aurora satellite services accessed by more
than 100,000 direct to home receivers.
Digital
• 247 digital terrestrial transmitters provided by
broadcast Australia, which cover all capital cities and
major regional centres.
• 115 retransmission services.
• Six digital multiplexes via the Optus D1 satellite,
reaching all of Australia.
• Seven vASt direct-to-home satellite services via Optus
c1 satellite reaching all of Australia.
the first SbS digital tv service to be restacked, in
accordance with the Government’s decision to release
broadcasting spectrum that will become available as a
result of the digital switchover (the digital dividend), changed
channel on 21 March. Planning for the rest of the restack is
well under way. SbS is working closely with the Australian
communications and Media Authority to ensure any
potential impact on SbS’s audiences is minimised.
NITV
in readiness for the formal launch of Nitv as an SbS
service on 1 july 2012, the Nitv signal was added to
SbS’s suite of services on the vASt platform. Nitv’s
analogue tv service on the Aurora satellite platform and the
transmission services at Alice Springs, Mt isa and bourke
have been extended to at least December 2012, when
Nitv will become available as part of SbS’s digital terrestrial
tv services broadcast on the free-to-air platform.
SBS radio services
SbS radio transmits throughout Australia using analogue
and digital services.
Analogue
SbS Radio broadcasts two analogue services each
in Sydney, Melbourne, Wollongong and canberra and
one service to other capital cities and Newcastle (see
Appendix 11, 23).
• 15 terrestrial radio transmitters provided by broadcast
Australia.
• 163 self-help transmitters.
Digital radio
SbS provides a simulcast of SbS Radio’s analogue
services and two digital only music channels SbS chill,
SbS PopAsia and from july 2012, SbS Pop Desi and
SbS PopAraby. SbS Radio’s current digital services are
listed at Appendix 11. two SbS Radio services are also
available on the Foxtel digital satellite subscription service
and through SbS digital television transmissions.
SbS is taking part in a digital radio trial in canberra using
the DAb+ technology. the trial has been operating since
2010 under a scientific licence issued by the AcMA. the
trial was extended in 2011 and again in july 2012 for a
further 12 months. the trial enables SbS to transmit its
digital radio services to canberra audiences. SbS is also
taking part in trials of an on channel repeater to improve
the coverage of digital radio in the Melbourne central
business district.
AnnuAl RepoRt 2011 – 2012 45