The Government has offered Australia's three mobile operators, and vividwireless, renewal of their existing spectrum allocated on 15 year licences in the late 90s and early 2000s at set prices, while the Government expects to rake in $3 billion.
The US Supreme Court will hear an appeal against a decision that struck down the "pandering" provision of a law aimed at stamping out child pornography.
A federal court in Atlanta ruled last year that making it a crime to request or offer a "visual depiction" of a child involved in sexual activity whether or not the material actually exists was in conflict with the constitutional protection of free speech.
"Non-commercial, non-inciteful promotion of illegal child pornography, even if repugnant, is protected speech under the First Amendment," the three-judge bench ruled.
The judges also expressed concern that the law could make innocent behaviour illegal, suggesting that it could be used, for example, against a grandparent who sent an email headed "Good pics of kids in bed" showing grandchildren in their pyjamas.
The law in question is contained in the Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to End the Exploitation of Children Today (PROTECT) Act passed in 2003. Part of the reasoning behind allowing charges to proceed whether or not the material exists was to make it easier to prosecute even if authorities are unable to get hold of the images.
The Supreme Court appeal is being heard at the request of the federal government. Solicitor General Paul Clement said traffickers of child pornography "deserve no sanctuary."
David Bass
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