Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

The government will protect Australian content on commercial television by offering licence fee rebates to broadcasters in 2010 and 2011. A rebate of 33 per cent will apply to licence fees payable on revenue earned the period 1 January to 31 December 2010 and a rebate of 50 per cent will apply to licence fees payable on revenue earned in the period 1 January to 31 December 2011. The rebates are just one part of a package of measures to address the structural changes facing free-to-air television at a time when media consumption habits are changing because of the rising use of the internet and as we make the switch to digital television. We make no apology for moving to protect Australian content in this environment. In the Digital dividend green paper, released in January, the government indicated its intention to clear 126 megahertz of spectrum currently used by free-to-air broadcasters for new services. This is a significant microeconomic reform.

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