Anti-siphoning laws in Australia

Further information: Anti-siphoning law

Anti-siphoning laws in Australia regulate the media companies' access to significant sporting events. In 1992, when the country experienced growth in paid-subscription media, the Parliament of Australia enacted the Broadcasting Services Act that gave free-to-air broadcasters preferential access to acquire broadcasting rights to sporting events. The anti-siphoning list is a list of major sporting events that the Parliament of Australia has decided must be available for all Australians to see free of charge and cannot be "siphoned off" to pay TV where people are forced to pay to see them.

The current anti-siphoning list came into effect in 2006 and expires 31 December 2010. The Minister for Communications can add or remove events from the list at his discretion. There are currently ten sports on the anti-siphoning list plus the Olympic and Commonwealth Games. Events on the anti-siphoning list are delisted 12 weeks before they start to ensure pay TV broadcasters have reasonable access to listed events, if free-to-air broadcasters decide not to purchase the broadcast rights for a particular event. Any rights to listed sporting events that are not acquired by free-to-air broadcasters are available to pay TV. For multi-round events where it is simply not possible for free-to-air networks to broadcast all matches within the event (e.g. the Australian Open) complementary coverage is available on pay television. The Federal Government is obliged by legislation to conduct a review of the list before the end of 2009. The current anti-siphoning list requires showing listed sports on the broadcaster's main channel.

Listed Events

• Olympic Games
  • Each event held as part of the Olympic Games.

• Commonwealth Games
  • Each event held as part of the Commonwealth Games.

• Horse Racing
  • The Melbourne Cup.

• Australian Rules Football
  • Each match in the AFL Premiership competition, including the Finals Series.

• Rugby League Football
  • Each match in the NRL Premiership competition, including the Finals Series.
  • The State of Origin Series.
  • Each international rugby league test match involving the senior Australian representative team.

• Rugby Union Football
  • Each international test match involving the senior Australian representative team.
  • Each match in the Rugby World Cup.

• Cricket
  • Each test match involving the senior Australian representative team played in either Australia or the UK.
  • Each one day cricket match involving the senior Australian representative team played in Australia or the UK.
  • Each one day cricket match involving the senior Australian representative team, played as part of a series in which at least one match of the series is played in Australia.
  • Cricket World Cup.

• Football
  • English Football Association Cup Final.
  • The 2010 FIFA World Cup.

• Tennis
  • The Australian Open.
  • Wimbledon.
  • French Open men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals.
  • US Open men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals.
  • Each rubber in each tie in the Davis Cup when an Australian representative team is involved.

• Netball
  • Each international match involving the senior Australian representative team.

• Golf
  • Australian Masters.
  • Australian Open.
  • US Masters.
  • British Open.

• Motorsports
  • Formula 1 World Championship when held in Australia (i.e. Qantas Australian Grand Prix).
  • Moto GP when held in Australia (i.e. IVECO Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix).
  • Super Cheap Auto 1000.

See also

Sports broadcasting contracts in Australia

References

• Westfield, Mark (2000). The gatekeepers: the global media battle to control Australia's pay TV. Pluto Press Australia. ISBN 9781871204193.
• Broadcasting Services Act 1892. Commonwealth Consolidated Acts. Retrieved 2010-05-15.