Stuart Corner
Monday, 21 May 2007 12:14
IT Policy -
Regulation
Page 1 of 2
Legislation introduced into Parliament last week will extend laws governing content on the Internet to content, including live streamed services delivered to mobile phones and other convergent devices.
Tabling of the
Communications Legislation Amendment (Content Services) Bill follows a lengthy period of policy formation and substantial industry and stakeholder consultation, including a review by DCITA, the report of which was released in April 2006.
The existing Schedule 5 to the Broadcast Services Act already provides a regulatory framework for stored content delivered over the Internet. However it does not extend to ephemeral content such as live streamed audiovisual services, nor to services over other types of networks such as the mobile telephone network.
The Bill will see Schedule 5 replaced with new Schedule 7that will regulate live streamed content services, mobile phone-based services, and services that provide links to content. As far as possible, the bill aims to align new regulations with the regulation of content distributed through traditional media.
Under the new scheme, a content service provider will need to remove access to prohibited content or potential prohibited content if ACMA issues them with a 'take-down' notice for stored or static content, or a 'service-cessation' notice for live content, or a 'link deletion' notice for links to content.
Communications minister, senator Helen Coonan, said the new legislation did not represent a form of censorship: "Adults will continue to be able to access content that would be inappropriate for children."
Providers of new content services will be given the opportunity to develop industry codes covering obligations under the regulatory framework and the ACMA will have the power to determine industry standards where it considers that industry codes are deficient.
