The content on this page and other DCITA document archive pages is provided to assist research and may contain references to activities or policies that have no current application. See the full archive disclaimer.

Reliable communications, free of interference, will be needed for the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006.

To ensure that communications services run smoothly, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has signed a service agreement with the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games Corporation. The corporation will provide broadcasting, radio communications and telecommunications support.

Under the agreement ACMA will assign specific frequencies for the Games' radio communications and conduct site inspections so the likelihood of radio communications interference or telecommunications cabling problems is minimised.

ACMA will also dedicate a team of up to 30 technical staff from around Australia to provide on-site assistance and advice throughout the event. The team will be known as the ‘Melbourne 2006 Games Work Force', and its members will be chosen for their technical and practical skills, and their ability to operate under pressure.

ACMA's services are part of the Australian Government's $280 million package of support to the Victorian Government to assist with the preparation and staging of the Games.

As well as communicating with more than 4500 athletes from the 53 countries and 18 territories of the Commonwealth, Games organisers at Melbourne will need to be able to address the needs of an expected one million spectators, including thousands from overseas.

The Games organisers will need to stay in touch with more than 5000 service providers and 15 000 volunteers. High-quality communications facilities will be vital for more than 3000 local and international media personnel producing footage for a global television audience of about a billion.

Without reliable communications, the organisers would find it difficult to communicate with personnel dealing with site security, crowd control, time-keeping, catering, transport and emergency services across the Games venues, and athletes would battle to stay in touch with their coaches during training.

The media could find its coverage hobbled if the communications service is unable to support radio microphones or television feeds.

Ensuring a trouble-free communications service for the Games demands careful management of communications equipment through licensing. A fiexible approach is needed to provide the range of radio frequencies used in transmitting voice, data and television, and it is important to ensure that the Games sites are free of interference from radio equipment that is unauthorised or has been set up poorly.

Communications equipment that is safe to operate in one country may not be safe in another. Differences between countries in such things as power supply, voltage or operating frequencies can pose a danger to the equipment operator and others nearby.

During the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games the Australian Communications Authority, ACMA's predecessor, processed more than 1000 applications for additional spectrum and resolved over 100 radio interference complaints.

ACMA planners estimate that the broad demand for resources for the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games may be as little as a third the size of the Sydney Olympics demand.

Melbourne's fiatter terrain means there are interference issues, and ensuring reliable networks may prove challenging.

At the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, most radio interference problems related to land mobile equipment and wireless microphones. Land mobile equipment operates in all directions and can easily intrude on other communications services. Due to their large numbers at such events, wireless microphones can interfere with each other, especially when their signals are amplified.

Without careful management, one broadcast can suddenly be received on top of another. There can be unpleasant static or breaks in reception.

It will be vital to be able to provide additional radio frequencies during this fast-paced international event.

To meet the anticipated high demand on the radio frequency spectrum, ACMA has put in place an embargo to reserve vacant parts of the spectrum.

Ahead of the Games, ACMA will conduct a radio communications audit of the facilities at each venue to ensure the electromagnetic compatibility of all devices and check the level of radio emissions.

Another of ACMA's functions is to ensure all radiocommunication services used at the Games are licensed. It has already issued apparatus licences to assist in tracking the Queen's Baton Relay as it progresses around Australia.

Besides issuing apparatus licences, ACMA oversees the frequencies used in the global positioning system technology which pinpoints the baton's location at any time. Transmitters in the baton also communicate data such as travelling speed, motion, direction and distance travelled by satellite. Baton-Cam, two tiny cameras mounted in the baton, transmits video footage of the relay to the official Games website.

The services ACMA is providing are just one example of how the Australian Government is contributing to the success of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games through its $280 million package of funding and support.

Visit www.acma.gov.au/acmainter for information on ACMA's involvement in the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, or go to www.melbourne2006.com.au to find out more about the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.

• Document ID: 31069 |
• Last modified: 6 February 2008, 11:52am