[the australian] THE federal government has been presented with a broad array of potential media and telecommunications reforms.
This has come about as part of its promise to consider overhauling the way the industry is regulated in a convergent media era.
A survey by The Australian of media and telco executives stresses the difficulties that Broadband and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy will face in balancing competing corporate interests after the $43 billion National Broadband Network is constructed.
Although most chief executives agree many media and communications laws are out of date, there is little industry-wide consensus on the best way to tackle the challenges and opportunities brought about by the digital economy. Copyright, anti-siphoning, spectrum allocation, ownership rules, mandatory digital radio in cars, local content quotas and the operational separation of Telstra are just some of the issues executives say should be examined by the Gillard government.
"The rapid rate of technology innovation is facilitating the introduction of new services and competitors, and we are now seeing dramatic shifts in consumer behaviours," FetchTV chief executive Scott Lorson said.
"The introduction of the NBN, expansion of free-to-air digital channels, and continued improvements in mobile services will accelerate these shifts. The regulatory challenge is to calibrate the need to encourage and protect long-term investment and local production, while accelerating the introduction of new services, increasing diversity, and facilitating greater competition and choice."
Senator Conroy outlined in March an expansive second-term agenda that included a promise to conduct a broad review of media and communications laws. "Many regulations are out of date already and others will be as soon as the national satellite television service and NBN are up and running," he said. "Others are well intentioned but inadequate for the convergent media era."
The responses hint at what will be a fascinating debate about how different corporations view the future of media.
"The current regulatory framework was created in an era of media oligopolies," ABC managing director Mark Scott said. "Now, there are multiple players: anyone with a mobile phone, laptop or camcorder can be a broadcaster. Commercial business models are being challenged.
"Given the speed and impact of the communications revolution, the review should be as broad as possible, recognising that audiences are fragmenting and that we are consuming media differently."
News Limited chairman and chief executive John Hartigan argued for a market-based response from the government, including the use of analog spectrum vacated by the free-to-air networks as part of the digital switchover.
"News has a long-held view that regulatory intervention in the media industry is counter-productive to efficient growth, encouraging competition and circulation of the widest possible spread of information, entertainment and opinions throughout the community," Mr Hartigan said. (News Ltd publishes The Australian).
The preservation of copyright was arguably the most common response from executives, who are concerned that the digital medium make it easier to misappropriate original content.
"I'd like to see recognition somewhere in the review of content and the origination of content being protected, rather than content being effectively stolen by middle men," Fairfax Media chief executive Brian McCarthy said.
Mr McCarthy was speaking days after Fairfax lost a Federal Court case against the use of headlines in The Australian Financial Review by the LexisNexis information service.
His comments were echoed by Foxtel chief executive Kim Williams and West Australian Newspapers chief Chris Wharton.
"Our challenge is to maintain the business at a time when the copyright laws are under assault and our content is being commoditised by free services," Mr Wharton said.
Senator Conroy is in the middle of preparing a new set of anti-siphoning laws governing television sports broadcasting, which has been the subject of fierce debate between Foxtel (which is 25 per cent owned by News Limited) and free-to-air broadcasters.
Both sides appear to have settled on a compromise but say now that Labor's deals with the Greens and independent MPs make the outcome less certain.
Mr Hartigan and Mr Williams called for more sport to be taken off the list, which prevents Foxtel bidding directly for listed events.
Ten chief executive Grant Blackley said anti-siphoning rules were "vital" for consumers.
"The requirements to keep major sport free will be equally relevant when Australia completes its switchover to digital TV in 2013 and the full suite of free digital channels will be available to all," Mr Blackley said.
'Telstra's role in a post-NBN world was also front of mind for telco executives. AAPT chief Paul Broad said regulatory reform should be pushed across industry to encourage competition and prepare for a new world where content is independent of infrastructure and carriage.
"Carriage and content delivery are two separate areas that should be considered separately, and regulations need to ensure no one player has anti-competitive control in any area or across both," Mr Broad said.
He said a ubiquitous 4G network capable of delivering 100Mbps to 98 per cent of Australians was dependent on allocation of spectrum to all-comers, not limited to select players.
The influence of the independent MPs may help shape the review, including the so-called reach rules that prevent a television station owning more than 75 per cent of national audience.
"The only thing I have a view on is that I'd like there to be some flexibility in how we use our spectrum for subscription services," Prime Media Group chief executive Ian Audsley said. "If we had some latitude, it would allow a regional service such as ours to get into the content game."
Chief executives demand change from Conroy
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