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Final report of the Digital Radio Advisory Committee

2. A Framework for DRB

DRB SERVICES

DRB has the potential to extend the current range of radio broadcasting services, and DRAC members support the exploration of new programming formats, including channel splitting. In addition to a greater range of services, some directed at presently underserved niche markets, DRB could permit the provision of different levels of services, such as on-demand services. The data capacity of DRB could also be used to broadcast data, graphics and images associated with the main program service. Existing legislation may preclude the provision of some of these services.

Recommendation 11: DCA should identify what legislative amendments may be needed to facilitate the provision of DRB services.

TRANSITION TO DRB

Most DRAC members proposed that the transition to DRB be conducted in two phases:

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• a development phase-beginning in 1998-99, where services are planned and frequencies assigned, and licences are offered to existing broadcasters and narrowcasters, as per Recommendation 6, to simulcast and experiment with, and develop, the new DRB technology and services⁸; and

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• full service provision-where new entrants are eligible to enter via a planning process coupled with the existing Broadcasting Services Act 1992 allocation systems.

At the beginning of the second phase, permanent, operational DRB services would commence and new entrants would be permitted to bid for commercial licences to provide DRB services, subject to spectrum availability. New community licences would depend on the Minister reserving spectrum, or the ABA determining such capacity should be made available through its licence area planning process.

The Committee recognised there would be some overlap between phases, with full service provision likely to commence in some parts of the country while the development phase is still underway elsewhere. DRAC views the provision of flexibility for the industry to experiment with, and develop, the new technology, as an important aspect of introducing DRB, because it would allow the tailoring of services to the Australian market.

In addition, the majority of DRAC members proposed that, during the development phase, broadcasters accepting a DRB licence would be required to commence transmission within a prescribed period, or be required to surrender the licence for reallocation.

The amount of work in planning and converting services, and in developing new services, should be assessed quickly by DCA to enable dates to be set for the conversion and development phases.

Recommendation 12: The transition to DRB should be in two phases:

SIMULCASTING

DRAC members considered that there should be simulcasting of analog and digital services during the development phase. However, prescriptive requirements for simulcasting (eg stipulated percentage of broadcast time) were not supported by the Committee, on the grounds that they would limit the broadcasters' ability to develop new services.

The Committee believed that, in practice, there would be commercial imperatives for the simulcasting of some, if not most, programming in the medium term because the majority of broadcasters would seek to reach the widest possible audience. Cost considerations would also suggest that DRB receivers would be unlikely to become the dominant radio receiver in the short term.

The CLC argued that the range and quality of free-to-air broadcasts must not be compromised until radio audiences have demonstrated an overwhelming acceptance of DRB services. The Centre believes simulcasting or other requirements should be imposed, if necessary, to achieve this objective.

Recommendation 13: There should be no prescribed simulcasting requirements.

END OF ANALOG SERVICES

Although DRAC agrees that simulcasting would facilitate a smooth transition for existing broadcasters and would protect continuity of services to rural and remote areas, it is not clear that simulcasting would assist public migration to digital technology. DRAC considers more consequential factors affecting consumer acceptance of DRB would be the cost and convenience of receivers, and the diversity and relevance of new services.

One strategy would be to simply set an end date for analog transmissions which would force consumers to purchase digital receivers. However, this would be unlikely to be well received. Large sections of the community use radio as a primary source of information and entertainment, and such an approach should not be canvassed without careful consideration of the potential difficulties. It is also possible that, in some more remote areas, analog services would need to continue for an extended period as it would not be practicable for terrestrial digital services to duplicate analog coverage.

Recommendation 14: No target date should be set for phasing out analog services.

DRB COVERAGE

There may be technical difficulties associated with matching DRB coverage to existing AM and FM radio coverage. The use of VHF band III may provide improved wide-area coverage in rural areas at a lower cost, compared with L band, and further investigation of the potential use and availability of this spectrum is proposed. However, in some rural areas the costs involved in duplicating the coverage of high power medium frequency services may necessitate the relatively long-term retention of analog services in these areas.

Current coverage patterns of broadcasting services have been developed over a period to reflect areas of community of interest. Preserving these in a DRB environment would continue to further diversity objectives and ensure the relevance of program delivery to individual areas.

At the same time, DRB services would seem to afford opportunities to better shape the coverage patterns in existing markets. For example, suburban and local coverage would be possible with DRB technology, though local coverage may extend beyond current licence area boundaries and it may therefore be logical to review the licence area boundaries in light of that change. If this were to occur, then local/suburban coverage could be implemented in a way which was both spectrum and cost-effective. The most effective provision of local services might be achieved by setting aside enough spectrum to create a series of contiguous cells.

The Committee took the view that commercial considerations would probably result in a greater concentration of DRB services in metropolitan and main provincial areas, and the Government should be proactive in ensuring the provision of services to regional and remote areas. Introducing DRB provides an opportunity not only to maintain the level of service to rural and remote areas, but also to improve it, and every effort should be made to ensure this potential is realised. Communications in general are as vital to rural Australia as to metropolitan areas, not just for the sake of business but for the social cohesion of remote communities. In addition to entertainment and education tailored to regional areas, information services such as weather reports, stock and crop prices, and emergency details could be provided via DRB.

Recommendation 15: Existing radio coverage areas should be duplicated wherever possible. However, DRAC recognises that retaining existing high powered analog transmitters may be the most economical way of providing services in some regional areas. DCA should consider strategies which could be adopted to encourage the early development of DRB services in rural and remote areas, noting that the use of VHF spectrum for DRB may provide a commercially viable solution to introducing DRB in these areas.

SATELLITE

The use of satellite systems for DRB has the potential to deliver services more effectively to regional and remote Australia, and early international reservation of DRB satellite spectrum would be essential in order to preserve Australia's opportunity for establishing satellite-delivered DRB in the future. Advanced information for a proposed Australian DRB satellite has been published in accordance with International Telecommunication Union procedures.

Satellite services might go some way towards providing a solution to the difficulties associated with providing services to regional and remote areas, though they would be likely to dilute local content.

Satellite DRB technology using the Eureka 147 system is still in the early stages of development. Another possibility for satellite DRB is the WorldSpace system, a commercial venture to provide direct satellite digital audio and multimedia broadcasting services for underserved communities including the Middle East, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and South America. WorldSpace and Eureka 147 receivers are not compatible, and Australia is not expected to be in the footprint of AsiaStar, the satellite WorldSpace will launch to serve the Asian region. However, WorldSpace has indicated it may consider options to cover Australia.

The Committee recognises that one of the major advantages of the Eureka 147 system is the commonality of receivers for terrestrial and satellite transmissions, but it also notes the possibility that a range of subscription television delivery technologies, such as cable, ADSL⁹ and DVB standard satellite services¹⁰, will be available to deliver a range of services to fixed audiences at lower costs than the Eureka 147 system.

However, these technologies will generally deliver audiovisual services, whereas the focus of DRB will be likely to be audio services. In addition, cable and ADSL technologies would be unlikely to provide services to rural areas, and remote communities and homesteads. The main market for satellite DRB may therefore be mobile and portable reception, and it may not be commercially viable to provide a Eureka 147 satellite service for this audience.

Further development work is being undertaken in Europe on the use of Eureka 147 for satellite delivery. The way should be left open for Australia to adopt other systems of delivery should the Eureka 147 satellite system fail to realise expectations. Despite the potentially high cost of providing satellite services, satellites offer an enormous advantage for a country like Australia, and DRAC considers that planning for developing satellite services should continue.

Recommendation 16: Terrestrial services should be introduced in the first instance, having regard to future satellite services. Meanwhile, planning for developing satellite services should continue.

8. This is similar to the model adopted in Canada, where existing broadcasters who intend mainly to simulcast have been offered automatic access to digital spectrum, while applications for new services will be considered on a case by case basis.

9. ADSL - Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line-the technology enabling the transmission of digital video services through existing telephone networks.

10.DVB standard satellite services - the digital video broadcasting standard developed in Europe for cable, satellite and terrestrial broadcasting, and being adopted in most countries throughout the world, with the exception of the USA.

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• Document ID: 9401 |
• Last modified: 6 February 2008, 2:25pm