Conectivity: access to effective communications services

Results

Analysis

We support all Australians, wherever they live or work, to have access to effective telecommunications and postal services.

The work of the department and our portfolio agencies also contributes to Australia's efforts to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was agreed by 193 Member States at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in New York in September 2015. The agenda culminated in 17 clear goals to reach by 2030, which form a roadmap for global development efforts to 2030 and beyond. The goals apply equally to Australia and Australians as they do internationally. Our work to support access to communications contributes directly to Goal 9 — Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation, and foster innovation; and Goal 11 — Sustainable Cities and Communities: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Access to effective telecommunications services

To analyse the effectiveness of our activities to promote access to telecommunications services, we have considered:

• our administration of the telecommunications USO, and development of a new Universal Service Guarantee (USG) for the future
• our support to improve regional communications, including through:
  • the Mobile Black Spot Program
  • support to the 2018 Regional Telecommunications Review
  • support for improved mobile communications service delivery more generally, including emergency telecommunications
• our oversight of NBN Co Limited (NBN Co)
• information regarding oversight of telecommunications services complaints, informing the telecommunications Consumer Safeguards Review

Universal Service Obligation (USO)

The USO is a long-standing consumer protection to ensure everyone in Australia has access to basic voice telephony regardless of where they live or work. We closely monitor Telstra’s delivery of the USO, which is currently delivered under the Telstra Universal Service Obligation Performance Agreement (TUSOPA). Telstra must provide:

• (on request) timely access to a standard telephone service to every premises in Australia
• payphone services

Our monitoring activities include monthly meetings and analysis of the reporting required under the TUSOPA. In 2018–19, we also commenced an audit of Telstra’s standard telephone services fixed‑line connection and repair performance data and processes to further ensure service quality and access are being achieved in line with the USO.​​​Universal Service Obligation 2018–19​Telstra is required to provide annual performance reports. Our assessment of the 2018–19
report determined Telstra met 100% of its performance obligations under the current
arrangements (measure 1, USO).

Telstra receives $270.0 million per year for delivering the USO, comprising $230.0 million
to deliver standard telephone services and $40.0 million to deliver payphone services.
In broad terms, payments are a combination of government funding (of $100.0 million
annually) and funding from industry through the telecommunications industry levy.

Developing the new Universal Service Guarantee (USG)

In December 2017, the Australian Government announced it would develop a new USG to provide all Australian premises, irrespective of location, with access to broadband as well as voice services. A new USG will incorporate the existing USO.

In 2018, we undertook a comprehensive program of work to examine the feasibility and cost implications of different approaches to the USG. Our work found that, while savings could be made in the delivery of voice services by moving away from the existing copper networks in NBN Co's fixed wireless and satellite areas and using alternative technologies like mobile and satellite, there would be strong concerns in regional areas about the closure of Telstra’s copper network and countervailing costs for NBN Co. A full description of our USG work is in the Development of the Universal Service Guarantee — Summary Report.

In December 2018, the Australian Government announced the USG will be built around the NBN supporting broadband services and most voice services. As mentioned above, the USG will also incorporate the existing USO under which Telstra continues to provide voice services outside NBN Co’s fixed‑line footprint. Since this announcement, we have been planning and progressing further USG development work, such as market research into the use of payphones. We have also been working to progress the proposed statutory infrastructure provider legislation planned to underpin the broadband component of the USG.

Mobile coverage and the Mobile Black Spot Program

Mobile phone population coverage in regional, rural and remote areas of Australia is primarily driven by the investment decisions of the three mobile network operators (Telstra, Optus and Vodafone). This investment is, in turn, influenced by factors such as operator financial position, the cost of infrastructure investment and consumer demand.

As discussed in the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) Communications Report 2017–18, released in February 2019, mobile coverage now reaches more than 99% of Australia’s population (measure 2). This is around 32.5% of the country’s geography. Competitive private sector investment has delivered quality mobile outcomes for the majority of Australians.

To encourage mobile coverage in small communities and along regional transport routes, we provide financial incentives through administering the Mobile Black Spot Program. The Australian Government has committed $380.0 million to the program from 2015–16 to 2022–23, including $160.0 million for two new rounds, rounds 5 and 6. Round 5 guidelines were released in April 2019. Round 6 is expected to commence after the round 5 process is complete.

Under the first four rounds of the program, the government’s commitment has leveraged a total investment of more than $760 million, which is funding delivery of 1047 new base stations across Australia. At the end of June 2019, 725 new base stations had been deployed, including 155 deployed during 2018–19.

The base stations deployed through the program at the end of 2018–19 are providing more than 146,000km² of new handheld coverage, improved mobile coverage to an estimated 91,698 premises and 7557km of major roads coverage across regional and rural Australia.

Mobile Black Spot Program 2018–19

Additional rounds of the Mobile Black Spot Program, to the value of $160.0 million, will be funded under a $220.0 million Stronger Regional Digital Connectivity Package. This package also includes $60.0 million for a new Regional Connectivity Program. This is part of the government’s response to the 2018 Regional Telecommunications Review — Getting It Right Out There, which we supported throughout 2018.

We are currently developing the Regional Connectivity Program on a place-based model, targeting investment to maximise economic opportunities and benefits for regional, rural and remote Australians.

Improved emergency telecommunications

Australians use their mobile phones to access services, including emergency services.

We supported the government to amend the Telecommunications Act 1997 in March 2019 to improve access to telecommunications for emergency organisations and help carriers provide services in emergencies.

Emergency service organisations are now able to access NBN Co towers and related infrastructure. This means fire, police and ambulance services will be able to more readily deploy telecommunications equipment, improving their ability to protect the community.

Also, the Minister can now specify temporary facilities, including temporary towers, as low‑impact facilities in an emergency and other circumstances. This means that in times of emergency, telecommunications carriers will be able to deploy temporary facilities more readily, and continue to provide services to the community in times of need.

National Broadband Network (NBN) and NBN Co

The NBN is ensuring all Australians have access to high-speed broadband services. NBN Co, the company responsible for planning, rolling out and operating the NBN, is a government business enterprise. We support the Minister in providing shareholder oversight of NBN Co’s work. In cooperation with the Department of Finance, we monitor NBN rollout, consumer migration and consumer experience, as well as the policy and regulatory settings relating to the NBN. We also provide advice to the Minister on the government’s financial investment, including NBN loan settings.

Publicly reported information from NBN Co shows that positive consumer experience on the NBN increased over 2018–19. For example, NBN connections completed correctly the first time were 91%, remaining relatively steady across the year. During 2018–19, the agreed timeframes for installations were met 96% of the time, and agreed timeframes for fault restorations were met 91% of the time. This was a slight improvement compared to 2017–18. Fault rates reported by NBN Co declined by over 30% to an average of 0.6 faults per 100 connected homes and businesses in June 2019, compared to 0.9 faults in June 2018. These figures reflect the impact of efforts by regulators, industry and government to address issues affecting the consumer experience, including the ACMA’s implementation of rules governing NBN complaint handling.

NBN rollout information is published in NBN Co’s weekly progress reports. At 30 June 2019, 5.5 million premises were using services provided over the NBN. Approximately 86% of Australia’s 11.6 million premises were ‘ready to connect’ to NBN services, including 95% in regional areas (measure 3). A total of 2.9 million additional lots/premises were made ready to connect during the year.

National Broadband Network 2018–19

Telecommunications services complaints

Telecommunications services complaints data provides valuable insight into the effectiveness of services. Assessing the 2018–19 results, we considered trends in complaints to industry and complaints escalated to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO).

On 1 July 2018, new record keeping rules, which were developed and which are enforced by the ACMA, came into effect to enable monitoring of industry complaints-handling performance. The data collected under the rules for the first and second quarters of 2018–19 showed that there was a 10.2% increase in complaints per service in operation between quarters. This data provides a baseline for future reports by the ACMA. This will inform our future policy development.

In the previous reporting period (2017–18), there were 167,831 complaints made to the TIO. Between 2015–16 and 2017–18, complaints to the TIO increased year on year, after having declined from a high of 197,682 in 2010–11.

As at 30 June 2019, the TIO had released information about complaints it had received in 2018–19 up to December 2018. Between July and December 2018, the TIO recorded 60,998 new complaints, an approximately 27% decrease on the number of complaints it received during the preceding six‑month period from January to June 2018.

The TIO’s reporting noted complaints about each of the three key service types (landline, mobile and internet) all decreased on the previous six-month reporting period. However, while overall an assessment of complaints showed positive results (measure 5, telecommunications complaints), towards the end of the July to December 2018 reporting period there was a slight increase in complaints about internet services against the general downward trend.

In relation to services delivered over the NBN, the TIO’s reporting showed the number of connection or changing provider complaints has remained at below 1% of premises being added to the network. It also showed there has been a sustained decrease in the number of service quality complaints as a proportion of total premises on the network.

During 2018–19, Communications Alliance released quarterly telecommunications Complaints in Context reports based on data provided by the TIO. The reports cover five participating providers (Telstra, Optus, Vodafone, amaysim and Pivotel). They provide information on complaints about each provider to the TIO as a proportion of the services the provider has in operation.

The reports published in 2018–19 showed a general downward trend until the January to March 2019 quarter, where Telstra, Optus and Vodafone experienced an increase in new complaints (data for amaysim and Pivotel remained mostly steady). In releasing the January to April 2019 figures, Communications Alliance noted results for that quarter’s report had been influenced by adverse weather events and natural disasters over the reporting period.

Telecommunications Consumer Safeguards Review

Since the turn of the century, the Australian telecommunications industry has been undergoing an unprecedented transformation driven by new technologies, increased competition, rapidly changing consumer preferences and change in industry structure caused by the rollout of the NBN. During 2018–19, we continued progressing the telecommunications Consumer Safeguards Review, including consideration of the effectiveness of existing safeguards, and what future protections are required.

After a consultation period on the review’s first tranche of proposals, in November 2018 the Australian Government released our report and recommendations on complaints handling and redress in the telecommunications industry. Since the report’s release, we have been working with industry, regulators and the TIO to improve the telecommunications complaints‑handling, resolution and redress framework.

We also released a discussion paper on proposals to reform reliability of services in November 2018, and we have been engaging with industry, consumer groups and regulators on reliability safeguards.

Access to effective postal services

To analyse the effectiveness of our activities to promote access to postal services, we have considered our:

• oversight of Australia Post
• oversight of postal services complaints

Australia Post

Australia’s postal market is competitive for most services but Australia Post has an exclusive right to deliver letters. We administer the Australian Postal Corporation Act 1989 and the Australian Postal Corporation (Performance Standards) Regulations 2019. In cooperation with the Department of Finance, we also provide oversight of Australia Post as a government business enterprise.

The Australian Postal Corporation Act requires Australia Post to meet community service obligations, including performance standards defined in the regulations. Those performance standards include requirements about frequency, accuracy and speed of mail delivery, street posting boxes and retail outlets.

Australia Post provides us with quarterly updates on how it is tracking against its community service obligations. Performance information for the year is published in Australia Post’s annual report. As at 30 June 2019, quarterly reports to end March 2019 had been provided to the department. Our assessment of these quarterly reports determined that Australia Post has to date met 100% of its 2018–19 community service obligations (measure 1, community service obligations).

Australia Post 2018–19

Postal services complaints

We monitor reporting on postal services complaints as an indicator of the health of the postal industry. In April 2018, the Postal Industry Ombudsman (PIO) published a report titled Review of Australia Post complaints about carding, Safe Drop and compensation. The report made six recommendations about how Australia Post could improve its complaint handling. In June 2019, the PIO published its Follow-up report on Australia Post’s response to the Ombudsman’s recommendations, which found Australia Post had made significant progress in implementing improvements. The report noted a 30% reduction in complaints to the PIO about Australia Post in the first half of 2018–19 compared to the same period in 2017–18. This is evidence of a positive result in 2018–19 (measure 5, postal complaints).

The PIO noted that while the number of complaints Australia Post received directly in 2017–18 was unchanged from 2016–17 (1.1 million), parcel volumes grew by over 10% in the same period and the number of complaints received by the PIO decreased by 10%. Complaints to the PIO about Australia Post and its subsidiary StarTrack have continued to decline since their peak in 2014–15.

Australia Post complaints received to the Postal Industry Ombudsman shows Australia Post complaints received to the PIO from 2007–08 to 2017–18. Data for 2017–18 is the latest available full-year data at the time of writing.

Australia Post complaints received to the Postal Industry Ombudsman

Connectivity: inclusiveness of communications services

Results

Analysis

To analyse the effectiveness of our activities in increasing Australians’ participation in and access to communications services, we have considered:

• affordability of telecommunications services
• access for people with disability
• our digital safety regulatory framework

Affordability of telecommunications services

Communications services are essential to meaningful participation in our economy, society, education and democracy. The affordability of those services is a key element of digital inclusion.

To analyse the affordability of telecommunications services, we have considered:

• trends found in recent Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) reporting
• telecommunications affordability indexes, which revealed the price change for typical mobile and fixed bundles over 2018–19 showed positive results for most Australians
• NBN pricing

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) reporting

Under section 151CM of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, the ACCC must monitor and report each year on telecommunications charges paid by consumers. These reports inform our policy development and underpin our regulatory settings.

The most recent report, the ACCC Communications Market Report 2017–18, was released in February 2019. It found affordability is improving, with the prices of telecommunications services falling in real terms in 2017–18 compared to 2016–17 across most categories. For example, in 2017–18 a consumer would typically have paid, in real terms, 8.3% less for a mobile plan and 1.5% less for a fixed broadband plan than in the preceding year. For fixed broadband services:

• NBN prices reduced by 4% in real terms, when comparing similar NBN retail plans
• non-NBN fixed broadband prices increased slightly, in real terms, by 0.5%

Affordability indexes

We track a range of affordability indexes. These indexes are based on the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. They show in 2017, the most recent year for which data is available, that the affordability of communications services improved for the average household, and for typical mobile and fixed bundles (measure 6). The share of disposable income spent on communications services decreased from 3.5% in 2016 to 3.3% in 2017. Over the same period, there was a slight increase in the proportion of low‑income households spending a large amount of their disposable income on communications services (which is defined as spending a share of income on communications services more than three times the median share for the whole population). Similarly, there was a slight increase in the proportion of low‑income households potentially under-utilising communications services.

National Broadband Network (NBN) pricing

We have policy and shareholder oversight of NBN Co, including wholesale pricing of NBN services. Wholesale pricing contributes to the retail prices consumers pay for fixed broadband plans. NBN Co’s current pricing strategy seeks to find the right balance between enabling retail providers to offer quality services at affordable prices on a sustainable basis, and enabling reinvestment in NBN Co’s network.

At 30 June 2019, wholesale pricing for NBN Co’s 50/20 megabits per second plan, which was taken up by approximately 51% of households connected to the NBN, was $45 per month.

We also have policy responsibility for licence conditions placed on Telstra which, among other things, requires it to have a Low‑Income Measures Assessment Committee.

Access for people with disability

We maintained the impact of our programs in 2018–19 by continuing to deliver the National Relay Service (NRS) and maintaining the framework for captioning (measure 7). To analyse the effectiveness of our programs to improve connectivity for people with disability in 2018–19, we considered:

• the NRS
• reporting by free-to-air television broadcasters on captioning compliance
• progress towards audio description for Australian television

National Relay Service (NRS)

The NRS, which is provided under contract and funded from our Public Interest Telecommunications Services Special Account, allows people who are deaf, hard of hearing and/or have a speech impairment to make and receive phone calls. The NRS relayed approximately 1.2 million calls in 2018–19. Costs incurred under the contract in 2018–19 totalled $28.2 million. These costs were fully recovered through the telecommunications industry levy.

We prepare provider performance quarterly reports, which are accessible from our NRS webpage. These indicate usage of the service was steady in 2018–19, and consistent with 2017–18 in relation to call minutes, total calls made and emergency service calls. A trend that has become well-established in previous years relates to the growing use of Internet Protocol-based technologies. Captioned relay accounts for the bulk of the NRS calls made, and the next most used technologies are internet relay (including use of the NRS app) and text message relay. This suggests NRS users, like other telecommunications consumers, are willing to select from the range of alternative low-cost, ubiquitous technologies on offer to meet their telecommunications needs.

The shift from quarterly to monthly reporting and invoicing provided us the opportunity for more frequent review of the delivery of the NRS relay component by the contractor, Australian Communication Exchange Ltd (ACE). We have also taken over responsibility for NRS information activities and launched Accesshub in February 2019. Accesshub is located on our website and provides information about the communication options available for people who are deaf or have a hearing or speech impairment.

In June 2019, following a limited tender process for provision of the NRS, we awarded Concentrix Services Pty Ltd the new contract, to be taken over in a staged transition commencing in November 2019. The new contract provides for improvements to the current service, including a new ‘text and listen’ option for text message relay. All existing relay channels will continue to be available for NRS users with the exception of captioned relay options through the CapTel handset. New captioned relay options for internet relay calls are becoming available as part of the new contract.

Television captioning

We advise the government on policy for television captioning, while the ACMA is responsible for administering captioning regulation.

As at 30 June 2019, the ACMA had released information about captioning compliance for 2017–18. For this period, the ACMA stated that all subscription TV services reported compliance with their captioning targets and free TV services reported a high level of compliance with their captioning target requirements.

Television audio description

Audio description is a verbal commentary that complements an underlying video soundtrack to provide greater access to television content for people who are blind or vision impaired. In March 2019, the Australian Government wrote to free-to-air broadcasters and Free TV Australia inviting them to propose a plan for the introduction of audio description. This followed a report by the Audio Description Working Group, which we chair, released in 2018.

Based on this information and our advice, the government is carefully considering the way in which audio description can be best introduced.

The digital safety regulatory framework

We work on effective consumer safeguards and protections for the digital environment to support Australians to interact safely online.

To analyse the effectiveness of our digital safety regulatory framework, we considered:

• online gambling regulation and data showing the spending by Australians on illegal offshore gambling websites
• the effectiveness of restrictions on gambling promotions during live televised sporting events
• data from the Office of the eSafety Commissioner and results from the national eSafety survey

Data informing these areas of considerations show positive results in 2018–19 for the effectiveness of the digital safety regulatory framework (measure 8).

Online gambling regulation

Government policy is to bring individuals who gamble into the Australian regulated market where harm minimisation measures have been strengthened, particularly since the commencement of the National Consumer Protection Framework for Online Wagering in November 2018.

Australians should be aware there are limited harm minimisation and consumer protections on gambling websites that are not licensed and regulated in Australia. Consumers run a high risk of winnings or deposits not being paid out by disreputable operators. As the services are based overseas, there is little legal recourse for Australian customers.

In the previous reporting period, the ACMA established an Interactive Gambling Taskforce, which has targeted education, engagement and enforcement action to disrupt and deter prohibited and unlicensed offshore gambling services. In October 2018, the taskforce published its report Disrupting Illegal Offshore Gambling.

The report shows the investigation and enforcement activity of the taskforce has had the greatest impact in disrupting offshore gambling. Investigations were conducted into 138 websites. Of these, 58% were not providing services into Australia. This figure rose to 83% following ACMA compliance action. This approach led to the withdrawal of prominent offshore gambling sites from the Australian market, including 33 of the most popular wagering sites and 33 of the most popular gaming sites, and a downward trend in offshore gambling expenditure by Australians. Australian offshore gambling — Global Betting and Gaming Consultants (GBGC) dataset (gross gambling yield US$ million) shows the forecasted decrease in monies spent on offshore gambling websites by Australian consumers.

Australian offshore gambling — Global Betting and Gaming Consultants (GBGC) dataset (gross gambling yield US$ million)Source: ACMA (October 2018). Disrupting Illegal Offshore Gambling: 12-month report into the ACMA’s actions under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, page 11.

In 2018–19, we consulted with industry stakeholders on other disruptive measures including the blocking of illegal offshore wagering websites. Once implemented, the scheme will complement the ACMA’s enforcement actions and will help reduce the provision of illegal wagering services to Australians.

In January 2019, the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 was amended to prohibit betting on the outcome of lottery and keno draws.

Restrictions on gambling promotions during live sporting events

We developed a new legislative framework to allow for stronger gambling advertising restrictions during the previous reporting period.

In March 2018 new restrictions were developed by the ACMA in consultation with broadcasters, which prohibit gambling promotions during live sporting events within certain hours. The new restrictions reduce audience exposure to gambling advertisements, particularly during children’s viewing hours.

In September 2018 rules developed by the ACMA under the new legislative framework came into effect, which restrict the showing of gambling promotions during online streams of live sporting events. These restrictions are, to the extent possible, similar to those imposed on the broadcast of live sporting events. These rules mark the first time ‘broadcast-like’ programming standards have been applied to online services.

Industry compliance with new restrictions will be made publicly available in the ACMA’s
2018–19 Annual Report. To date, the ACMA reported zero breaches of the new restrictions by broadcasters. This demonstrates that broadcasting providers are complying with their gambling promotions obligations, and so child audiences are less exposed to gambling promotions during the time periods they are most likely to view live sporting events.

Online safety

The government established the Office of the eSafety Commissioner in 2015, with a mandate to coordinate and lead online safety efforts across government, industry and the not-for-profit sector. The office provides eSafety information and resources for Australians on its website. In 2018–19, the number of visits to the eSafety office’s website grew to 1.2 million, up 56% compared to 2017–18. This increase indicates messages promoting online safety are being delivered to a strongly growing audience.

A key role of the Office of the eSafety Commissioner is to receive complaints by Australians about offensive and illegal online content. In 2018–19, the eSafety office received 531 reports of cyberbullying and 950 reports of image-based abuse. Compared to 2017–18, these figures increased significantly. The office investigated 12,126 items of prohibited and potential prohibited content in 2018–19.

Overall, these results indicate a strong and growing awareness of eSafety among the Australian public and a growing take up of services to assist Australians.

The statutory review of the Enhancing Online Safety Act 2015 and Schedules 5 and 7 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992, undertaken by Ms Lynelle Briggs AO in 2018 (the Briggs Review), found the Office of the eSafety Commissioner has been very successful since it was established in 2015.

The review also concluded Australia’s current regulatory arrangements need to be modernised to ensure they are fit-for-purpose in the current digital environment and are consistent with community expectations. The review findings are guiding our work to update Australia’s online safety regulatory framework and bring forward a consolidated Online Safety Act. The rapid pace of change in the online environment means it is important to keep reviewing and adapting our regulatory settings.

The National Online Safety Awareness Campaign, Start the Chat, proved effective at raising awareness of the importance of having a conversation with children and young people about online safety. It also increased awareness about resources available at the eSafety website.

Another key development was our release of the Online Safety Charter — Consultation Paper in February 2019. When finalised, the charter will be an important foundation document to shape the direction of future reform of online safety policy and legislative arrangements in Australia. The charter will be voluntary. It will set out the government’s expectations for social media services, content hosts and other technology companies in enhancing online safety for Australian users. The charter is being revised following stakeholder feedback, and will be finalised in 2019.

Other identified gaps in the existing online safety framework are being addressed through funding for new programs to be administered by the Office of the eSafety Commissioner. These new online safety programs were announced in early 2019, and include:

• an Early Years Online Safety Program to provide tailored training, support and resources for the early childhood sector
• an Online Safety Grants Program to support non-government organisations to deliver online safety and training projects, focusing on projects that address gaps in resources, or services for more vulnerable communities and regions
• programs to develop and roll out resources and training to frontline workers to enable them to tackle technology-facilitated abuse among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, and women with intellectual disabilities

The Online Safety Research Program was started in 2018–19 and will run until June 2023 at a cost of $3.8 million over five years. This program will establish an annual national eSafety survey to track eSafety issues and trends over time.

Case study: The Christchurch terror attacks

The terror attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand on 15 March 2019 highlighted the ability of individuals to exploit digital platforms and content hosts to disseminate footage of their crimes. The attacks were livestreamed on Facebook, and later uploaded widely to other services, including YouTube.

The actions of digital platforms in the aftermath of the incident fell short of community expectations. In a joint initiative with industry, we co-chaired with the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet a new Taskforce to Combat Terrorist and Extreme Violent Material Online. Comprising government and industry representatives, the taskforce prepared advice to government on practical, tangible and effective measures to combat the upload and dissemination of terrorist and extreme violent material.

In June 2019, the taskforce’s report to government provided a set of agreed actions and recommendations relating to prevention, transparency, deterrence, detection and removal, and capacity building. These agreed actions represent an important step forward in collaborations between industry and government on online safety matters. However, in the longer-term, the government has signalled its willingness to consider further regulation where voluntary commitments do not meet community expectations. We will continue to monitor the implementation of the agreed actions to inform the need for our future regulatory action.

Connectivity: sustainable economic growth

Results

Analysis

We support economic growth through:

• advising on the policy settings for take-up of the NBN
• engagement with international forums on post and spectrum outcomes
• promoting investment in the Australian communications sector

National Broadband Network (NBN) take-up

Through take-up, consumers are unlocking the economic benefits of the NBN. As part of promoting sustainable economic growth through the communications sector, we support the Minister in his role as a shareholder Minister oversighting NBN Co.

At 30 June 2019, we had met our target for NBN take-up, with more than 5.5 million premises having taken up an NBN service, representing 56% of the 9.9 million ready-to-connect premises (measure 9). Of these, approximately 2.0 million were connected outside major urban areas. With take-up on target, the network is already having a significant impact on the lives of Australians and the economy, helping drive the growth of new businesses, industry productivity, jobs, educational opportunities and access to healthcare options.

In commissioned research for NBN Co, AlphaBeta, a data analytics and economics firm, has estimated the impact of NBN take-up. In addition to take-up on the network contributing to up to $10.4 billion a year to the national economy by 2021, access to the NBN is having a direct and more immediate impact on the quality of life for many Australians. For example, AlphaBeta estimated that access to the NBN is reducing social isolation, with regional Australians 40% more likely to use the internet to reduce social isolation compared to non‑NBN-connected users. The network is also providing additional pathways for women to engage with the job market, with the number of self‑employed women working part‑time in NBN-connected regions growing at five times the pace of regions without the NBN.

International engagement on post and spectrum outcomes

In promoting international outcomes that support Australia’s economic growth, we represent Australia at meetings of the:

• Universal Postal Union (UPU)
• International Telecommunication Union (ITU), including the ITU‑Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R)

The UPU sets rules for international mail and the ITU is responsible for international cooperation in the use of information and communications technologies. ITU-R’s mission is to ensure the rational, equitable and efficient use of the radio‑frequency spectrum and satellite-orbit resources.

The work we do through these forums is important to Australia’s communications framework, including to Australian businesses staying competitive in a global market.

In assessing our effectiveness we considered our achievements in these forums. We achieved positive results through international engagement in 2018–19 (measure 10).

Universal Postal Union (UPU) congresses

The Postal Union Congress, held every four years, is the main international meeting of the UPU. We also attend extraordinary congresses and in September 2018, we led the Australian delegation to the Extraordinary Congress of the UPU in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. At the congress, we secured agreement to defer proposed additional costs on net importing countries, including Australia, until 2022.

In a strong show of support for our Pacific neighbours, we were instrumental in negotiating an agreement that will reduce the financial burden on small island developing states. The congress agreed to reduce the annual membership fees for small island developing states with populations under 200,000 by up to 90%.

Under the previous arrangements, some states’ membership fees exceeded their annual postal revenue, resulting in non-payment and loss of membership rights. The agreement relieves financial pressure on postal operators in Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Tuvalu, as well as six Caribbean and two African island states. Senior officials from Nauru and Tonga travelled to the congress to present their case, and expressed their sincere appreciation for Australia and New Zealand's combined efforts to ensure their voices were heard. This work underscores Australia’s leadership role locally and globally and helps Australia achieve outcomes in a multilateral context that directly benefit Australian consumers and business.

Telecommunication conferences

The ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, held every four years, is the ITU's top policymaking meeting. It is the most important event for influencing decisions on the future role of the organisation and its ability to support the development of telecommunications worldwide.

In consultation with other government agencies and industry stakeholders, we led Australia’s preparation for, and participation in, the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2018 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The delegation, led by our Minister, successfully secured conference outcomes that aligned with Australia’s policy objectives and Australia was re-elected to the ITU Council for a further four-year term. We also secured support for proposals to strengthen administration and management, most notably to improve the consideration of a gender perspective throughout the ITU and to establish a review of the ITU regional presence.

We also attend the annual ITU Council meetings, as well as a range of ITU working groups, expert groups and advisory groups. Our attendance is effective in representing Australia’s strategic interests in the work of the ITU and in keeping the ITU working within its mandate.

Radiocommunication conferences

The World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC), held every three to four years, is the main international meeting of the ITU-R. The next WRC is scheduled to take place in Sharm el‑Sheikh, Egypt, from 28 October to 22 November 2019.

The 2017 Review of the ACMA recommended the head of delegation role for the WRC should be transferred from the ACMA to the department. We successfully implemented this recommendation in 2018–19, in collaboration with the ACMA. The ACMA will continue to support the delegation in a technical capacity. We led Australia’s delegation to the Asia‑Pacific Telecommunity Preparatory Group’s fourth meeting of this WRC cycle in January 2019, as well as to the second, and final, Conference Preparatory Meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, in February 2019.

Investment and economic growth in the Australian communications sector

We advise government on policy settings that enable the communications sector to invest and innovate, to compete internationally and to meet consumer needs. Our work to promote sustainable economic growth through the communications sector includes:

• administering the carrier powers and immunities framework
• supporting industry deployment of 5G mobile services, the next generation of mobile wireless network technology
• working closely with .au Domain Administration (auDA)

The communications sector makes up a relatively small proportion of the Australian workforce (105,800 people directly employed compared to 12.6 million in the total economy in August 2018 (Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (June 2019) 6202.0 Labour Force, Australia May 2019.)). It also makes up a small proportion of Australia’s GDP ($43.7 billion in 2017–18, which is approximately 2.5% of overall GDP (Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (October 2018) 5204.0 Australian System of National Accounts, 2017–18, table 2.)). Nonetheless, it has a broader impact on the general economy, compared to many other sectors.

For example, we estimate GDP contribution critically enabled by the communications sector in 2016–17 at $766.328 billion (measure 11). This figure is up $36 billion compared to 2015–16. This estimate uses Australian Bureau of Statistics data on the GDP contribution from industries that use 5% or more of their total intermediate inputs from the communications sector (Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (June 2019) 5209.0.55.001 Australian National Accounts: Input-Output Tables, 2016–17, table 2). GDP critically enabled by communications services shows GDP critically enabled by communications services since 2008–09.

GDP critically enabled by communications servicesNote: Data not available for 2010–11 and 2011–12. Figure is in current price terms. Source: Estimates based on Australian Bureau of Statistics (various dates) 5209.0.55.001 - Australian National Accounts: Input-Output Tables.

Investment in the sector is critical to unlocking economic growth as technologies continue to develop and improve over time. Measuring investment as a proportion of output in the communications sector provides insight into the level of investment in the sector. Investment includes funds for 5G infrastructure (for example, small cells), fixed-line broadband access networks, transmission networks, submarine cables, wireless facilities and data centres. Data for 2017–18 is the most current available. In 2017–18, investment as a proportion of output in the communications sector totalled 51% (measure 12).

We seek to promote growth and investment in the telecommunications sector through our policy and regulatory settings. Our aim is to provide certainty and minimise the regulatory burden on communications providers by imposing only those rules that are necessary to protect competition and consumer outcomes.

Carrier powers and immunities

The carrier powers and immunities framework we administer gives telecommunications companies some powers to enter land. This allows them to install and maintain some types of telecommunications facilities, and provides some immunities from state and territory legislation. These powers and immunities reduce the barriers faced by telecommunications companies and enable them to continue to support economic growth.

In 2018–19, we engaged carriers and large land and property owners to promote a shared understanding of the framework and ways to improve its operations. Improving understanding of the framework helps it to operate more efficiently.

Preparing for 5G

The imminent investment in and rollout of 5G represents a transformative step change from previous generations of mobile technology and takes us closer to global hyper connectivity than ever before.

5G is expected to support a wide range of immediate commercial and industrial applications across the economy — including in transportation, health, manufacturing and agriculture. Our April 2018 paper, Impacts of 5G on Productivity and Economic Growth, found that multifactor productivity growth could add an additional $1300 to $2000 or more in GDP per person after the first decade of 5G rollout.

The Australian Government launched 5G — Enabling the future economy, its strategy to support the rollout and take-up of 5G, in October 2017. The strategy included making spectrum available in a timely manner.

In 2018, we supported the Minister to make the decisions needed for the 3.6 gigahertz auction by the ACMA, which is the spectrum band to be used for early adopters of 5G. The auction concluded in December 2018 with spectrum successfully allocated to four bidders. We are also supporting the rollout of 5G through our leadership of the Australian delegation to the WRC. High-level spectrum allocation decisions are made through this forum.

The 5G Working Group, which we lead, provides a forum for government and industry to discuss 5G issues. These include how various industry sectors might use 5G technology, as well as the regulatory and other settings required to enable its delivery and uptake. In 2018–19, the working group met twice, focusing on the potential role of 5G in healthcare and the future operation of the group, which had to be reviewed by 30 June 2019 under its terms of reference.

In April 2019, industry members of the working group provided Australian Government officials with an update on 5G developments following the 2019 Barcelona World Mobile Conference and in anticipation of the commercial launch of 5G in Australia. Optus and Telstra have now launched commercial 5G services in limited footprints across Australia and Vodafone is expected to launch 5G in 2020.

The .au Domain Administration

The .au domain is an intrinsic part of the identity of many Australian businesses and organisations operating on the internet. The auDA is the independent, not-for-profit entity that oversees operation and management of the 3.0 million .au domains. It is essential that Australia’s .au domain administrator is modern and fit-for-purpose, and supports the interests of Australia’s internet users.

The 2018 Review of the .au Domain Administration made several recommendations focused on better governance. Throughout 2018–19, we worked closely with the auDA to support it implementing the recommendations. This work continues to include reforms to the auDA Board and membership, and greater consultation with the wider internet community on policy positions.

Connectivity: program resourcing (input), activity and efficiency

Results

Analysis

This section provides an analysis of our program resourcing, output and efficiency:

• expenditure against our digital technologies and communications services budget program (program 1.1)
• the effectiveness of our portfolio oversight activities
• our efficiency delivering program 1.1 administered items

Program expenses

In 2018–19, expenses for digital technologies and communications services totalled $1.847 billion (measure 13), which was 4% less than budgeted in our 2018–19 Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements in February 2019, and 3% less than expended for program 1.1 in 2017–18.

Of program 1.1 expenditure, $1.328 billion was paid to the national broadcasters (ABC and SBS), which is 72% of the total program.

Oversight of communications portfolio entities

We engage with Australia Post, NBN Co, and the ACMA, to support their governance, sustainability and achievement, and work together to support participation and growth in arts and cultural activity, including ABC and SBS.

Our oversight activities focus on:

• entity corporate planning and annual reporting
• Budget and operational funding
• advising the Minister on governance arrangements, including Board appointments
• operational policy settings

In 2018–19, we undertook all required activities, for effective oversight (measure 14).

Efficient program delivery

Our approach to program delivery focuses on the efficient management of public resources.

We delivered 14 of 17 program 1.1 administered items on time and on budget in 2018–19 (measure 15). Further information on each is included in Administration of program 1.1 administered items.

Creativity and culture: inclusiveness

Results

Table 2.7 Results for measures related to creativity and culture - inclusiveness

Analysis

To analyse the effectiveness of our activities in increasing Australians’ participation in diverse creative and cultural experiences, we have considered:

• engagement with the national cultural institutions
• our programs to encourage participation in small communities and regional areas

Engagement with the national cultural institutions

The national cultural institutions directly promote participation in Australia’s rich creative and cultural heritage, and develop our diverse creative practitioners. We engage closely with these institutions and advise government on governance, policy and funding matters:

• Australia Council
• Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS)
• Creative Partnerships Australia
• Screen Australia
• the national collecting institutions:
  • Australian National Maritime Museum (ANMM)
  • Bundanon Trust
  • Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House (MoAD)
  • National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA)
  • National Gallery of Australia (NGA)
  • National Library of Australia (NLA)
  • National Museum of Australia (NMA)
  • National Portrait Gallery of Australia (NPGA)

To inform our policy advice and to support institutions in tracking their activity, we provide a framework for regular reporting against key measures. The reporting provides insight into audience attendance and experience, access to our national collections, digitisation, education programs, funded activities and collaborations.

Since reporting started in 2012–13, trends show that in‑person visitor numbers to the national collecting institutions remain high, even in an increasingly digital environment. Visitor numbers totalled 10.4 million during 2018–19 (measure 16a), meeting targets set for the year (see In-person visits to national collecting institutions).​In-person visits to national collecting institutionsNote: Off-site visits include visits to travelling and outreach programs/supported events/exhibitions (including viewing artworks and cultural objects loaned from collecting institutions).​National cultural institutions are progressively using more digital technologies. This is
reflected in the growing percentage of objects in national collections available online,
presented in Objects in national collections accessible online, held by national collecting institutions. Improved digital access is an important aspect to inclusiveness
and is supporting greater audience participation (see Website visits to the national cultural institutions). The percentage of
objects held by national collections accessible online had grown to 8.7% and website
visits to the national cultural institutions totalled 49.5 million in 2018–19 (measures 16b
and 16c), exceeding targets set for the year.

​Objects in national collections accessible online, held by national collecting institutions​Website visits to the national cultural institutionsNote: Data form 2012-13 and 2013-14 was collected but has been omitted from teh graph. A change in analytics methodology between 2013-14 and 2014-15 means that earlier years are not compatible to the data shown.

Departmental programs to support inclusion in the creative and cultural sectors

To analyse the effectiveness of our creative and cultural programs in supporting inclusion of Australians in regional, rural and remote communities, we considered:

• the rollout of our regional grant programs
• the Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan Scheme

In assessing the effectiveness of our work for people with disability, we considered the advancement against the 2009 National Arts and Disability Strategy.

Our assessment showed positive results were achieved in 2018–19 (measure 17).

Administered items - regional grant programs

To encourage participation in creative and cultural experiences in regional, rural and remote communities, we provide funding through the following:

• Regional Arts Fund
• Festivals Australia
• National Collecting Institutions Touring and Outreach Program
• Visions of Australia regional exhibition touring program

Further information on the objectives and operations of these programs in 2018–19 is provided in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan Scheme

The Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan Scheme provides certain legal protections for cultural objects lent by overseas lenders for temporary public exhibition in Australia. It limits the circumstances under which lenders, exhibiting institutions, exhibition facilitators and people working for them can lose ownership, physical possession, custody or control of objects while on loan to an approved Australian institution. The scheme is intended to encourage the lending of significant cultural objects from overseas for display in Australia.

Twelve cultural institutions located in six states and territories are approved to participate under the scheme. These institutions hold exhibitions accessed by Australians from both metropolitan and regional areas. In 2017–18, the scheme supported 11 institutions to display 26 exhibitions to a combined audience of more than 3.5 million visitors. Figures for 2018–19 were not available at the time of preparing this annual report.

National Arts and Disability Strategy

The National Arts and Disability Strategy, an initiative of the Australian Government and state and territory governments through the Meeting of Cultural Ministers, is focused on improving access to and participation in the arts by people with disability. Under the strategy, we are funding:

• the online portal of accessible arts and cultural activity, ARTfinder National, for launch in 2019–20
• delivery and evaluation of the Art+You pilot program in South Australia. Art+You assists artists to articulate their art goals in their National Disability Insurance Scheme plans

Case study: National Arts and Disability Strategy consultation

In 2018, the Australian Government and state and territory governments consulted people with disability, carers and organisations about the future for the National Arts and Disability Strategy. The consultation reached nearly 400 people online, and 300 people face-to-face in eight capital cities and seven regional towns.

We released a report on the consultation in February 2019. One finding was that the major barrier to access and inclusion in the creative and cultural sector is negative attitudes towards disability. Opportunities for people with disability to participate in cultural life — as creators, decision-makers, audiences and customers — are improved when the community has positive attitudes towards people with disability and an understanding of accessibility.

The collaborative nature of creative and cultural activities can create positive outcomes for artists, arts workers and audiences with disability. However, people with disability experience barriers to accessing arts education and training, and career development. They are also sometimes excluded from opportunities to lead.

The stories and ideas that people shared will help to shape a renewed National Arts and Disability Strategy.

Creativity and culture: growth

Results

Analysis

To analyse the effectiveness of our activities to promote growth in creative and cultural
activity, we have considered:

• the economic value of creative and cultural activity
• philanthropic funding to the creative and cultural sectors

The economic value of creative and cultural activity

Creative skills will be key to Australia’s future growth. In January 2019, our Bureau of Communications and Arts Research released a working paper, Creative Skills for the Future Economy. The paper examined the role of creativity in economic growth. It found that over 9% of all people employed in Australia at the most recent census in 2016 held a creative qualification as their highest level of qualification. Creative skills have been integral to fast‑growing industries over the past decade.

Our Bureau of Communications and the Arts publication Cultural and Creative Activity in Australia 2008–09 to 2016–17, released in October 2018, presents analysis on results to
2016–17. The publication shows creative and cultural activity contributed approximately $111.7 billion to the Australian economy in 2016–17, equating to around 6.4% of GDP (measure 18). Creative and cultural activity: GDP national account basis shows the trend.

Creative and cultural activity: GDP national account basis

We monitor annual growth in creative and cultural activity based on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Our analysis measures the economic activity driven by creative and cultural industries as well as the wages received from creative and cultural occupations.

We rely on externally collected data in order to establish these figures. Data was not available within the reporting period to allow us to calculate the contribution of creative and cultural activity in 2017–18. This is a long-term measure and as such trend results provide sufficient information for appropriate performance information, to inform a judgement on long-term performance against our purpose.

Our programs and policies support Australia’s creative industries in producing original, compelling and accessible content, and enable creatives to generate income, retain intellectual property and contribute to the economy. These are:

• our administered items
• Location Offset, and Post, Digital and Visual (PDV) Effects Offset
• Foreign Actor Certification Scheme
• Resale Royalty Scheme
• Artbank
• Australian Music Industry Package

Administered items

We deliver the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards and the Public and Educational Lending Right schemes to support the growth and development of Australian writing. Further information on the objectives and operations of these administered items in 2018–19 is included in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

Location offset, and Post, Digital and Visual (PDV) Effects Offset

To encourage large-budget film and television projects to film in Australia, the government’s Location Offset provides a 16.5% tax rebate on productions that spend at least $15.0 million on qualifying Australian production expenditure. To support the work of Australia’s post-production, digital and visual effects sector, the PDV Effects Offset provides a 30% tax rebate on productions that spend at least $500,000 on qualifying Australian PDV expenditure, regardless of where a production is filmed.

In 2018–19, the Minister issued 93 final certificates to applicants for the Location Offset and PDV Offset. The qualifying Australian production expenditure of these productions totalled $801.4 million, with an estimated rebate payable to these productions of $176.0 million. The Film Certification Advisory Board issued a further 32 provisional certificates for the offsets.

Foreign Actor Certification Scheme

The Foreign Actor Certification Scheme assesses applications for foreign performers to enter Australia to work on film and television productions. The scheme ensures Australian industry personnel are given a fair opportunity to secure employment in film and television productions shot in Australia, and that Australian voices continue to be heard in Australian productions. In 2018–19, we certified 126 foreign actors under the scheme.

Resale Royalty Scheme

Under the Resale Royalty Scheme, visual artists are entitled to a royalty payment of 5% of the resale price for eligible works of art resold commercially for $1000 or more. As at 30 June 2019, the scheme had generated $7.2 million in royalties for 1821 artists from 19,120 resales since its establishment in 2010.

Artbank

Artbank is a program within the department with core objectives to provide direct support to Australian contemporary artists through the acquisition of their work, and to promote the value of Australian art to the broader public. It increases the sustainability and accessibility of the Australian visual arts industry, supports practising artists, and encourages engagement with, and appreciation of, Australian contemporary art. In 2018–19, Artbank purchased 72 new works. Artbank funds its operations through the leasing of artworks from its collection. Through 2018–19, 5793 works were leased to clients.

Australian Music Industry Package

In 2018–19, the Australian Government announced a $30.9 million package of measures over five years from 2019–20 to support and develop the Australian contemporary music industry. This includes the Live Music Australia initiative providing funding of $20.0 million over four years from 2020–21 to enable Australian businesses to host domestic live music events featuring Australian artists including in regional and remote Australia.

Philanthropic funding to the creative and cultural sectors

Philanthropy and corporate sponsorship play an essential role in the sustainability and growth of Australia’s creative and cultural sectors. Fostering this culture of support is important and includes giving, investment, partnership and volunteering as well as bringing donors, businesses, artists and arts organisations together. We oversee Creative Partnerships Australia, which is the Australian Government’s primary body for encouraging and facilitating greater private sector support for the arts.

We estimate annual private sector support to the arts based on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent results from 2017–18 estimate private sector support to the arts at $319.1 million (measure 19a). This is up $19.1 million compared to 2016–17. Results since 2001–02 are presented in Private sector support for the arts in Australia (estimate).

Private sector support for the arts in Australia (estimate)

We maintain the Register of Cultural Organisations, a list of cultural organisations that can receive tax deductible gifts. The register aims to strengthen private sector support for the arts and encourages Australians to contribute to the nation’s vibrant cultural life. In 2017–18, donations to organisations listed on the Register of Cultural Organisations totalled over $135.9 million, up $25.3 million compared to results calculated the previous year (measure 19b).

Creativity and culture: protecting and promoting Australian culture

Results

Analysis

We work to protect and promote arts and culture, by providing support for:

• national elite performing arts training organisations
• Indigenous languages and arts
• international engagement

The work of the department and our portfolio entities to protect, preserve and promote Australian culture also contributes to Australia's efforts to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This work contributes directly to Goal 11 — Sustainable Cities and Communities: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

On a national level, we ensure that Australia’s cultural heritage is diverse and accessible.

Support to national elite performing arts training organisations

With our support, the national elite performing arts training organisations provide Australia’s most talented performing artists with the opportunity to excel in their chosen fields. The seven national elite performing arts training organisations are:

• > Australian Ballet School
• > Australian National Academy of Music
• > Australian Youth Orchestra
• > Flying Fruit Fly Circus
• > National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Association Dance College
• > National Institute of Circus Arts
• > National Institute of Dramatic Art

Across these organisations, 1056 students successfully completed courses in 2018, meeting our target (measure 20). A total of 3702 people auditioned for 833 new core course places offered in 2019, demonstrating significant continued demand for elite performing arts training (22.5% success rate).

The arts training organisations continue to effectively leverage their Australian Government funding. Data compiled at the most recent reporting period (1 October 2018 to 28 February 2019) shows 57% of their combined income is obtained from sources such as other grants, philanthropic fundraising and fees for service (see Combined arts training organisations income, 1 October 2018 to 28 February 2019).

Combined arts training organisations income, 1 October 2018 to 28 February 2019

Further information on the objectives and operations of the national elite performing arts training organisations administered item in 2018–19 is included in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

Indigenous languages and arts

We contribute to preserving, protecting and celebrating Australia’s art and culture, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices and languages, for generations to come. Our programs and policies to support, preserve and celebrate Indigenous arts and languages include:

• International Year of Indigenous Languages (IY2019)
• our administered items
• Indigenous Grants Policy
• digital labelling trial for Indigenous products

Our Indigenous languages and arts programs achieved positive results in 2018–19 (measure 21a).

International Year of Indigenous Languages (IY2019)

The United Nations General Assembly declared 2019 the International Year of Indigenous Languages. We have developed an Australian Government Action Plan for the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages. A key aim is to raise awareness of the critical state of Australia’s first languages and to contribute to their preservation. Australia is also participating in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) steering committee.

A key component of our IY2019 action plan is partnering with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies and the Australian National University to develop a National Indigenous Languages Report. Scheduled for release in late 2019, the report will provide information on the state of Australia’s Indigenous languages and data on how they are critical to daily lives.

Administered items

In order to support Indigenous cultural expressions, we deliver the Indigenous Languages and Arts program and the Indigenous Visual Arts Industry Support program. Further information on the objectives and operations of these administered items in 2018–19 is included in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

Case study: Digitising endangered Pilbara languages

In a remote town, more than 1000km north-east of Perth, South Hedland’s Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre project is preserving some of the world’s oldest languages. With funding support from our Indigenous Languages and Arts program, the language centre is making Indigenous languages available on educational apps for smartphones.

This project is establishing Wangka Maya as a hub of digital innovation, with mobile apps that capture and preserve Pilbara language and culture in exciting new formats. A series of up to 10 mobile apps are being released, teaching words and phrases of critically endangered Pilbara languages including Banyjima, Karriyarra, Ngarla, Nyangumarta, Nyamal and Putijarra. The apps will contain multilingual narration, imagery, animation, music and video technology to support learning and engagement in an innovative and culturally sensitive manner.

Indigenous Grants Policy

To improve on-the-ground service delivery, and stimulate greater economic development, we are participating in the trial of the Indigenous Grants Policy. The then Prime Minister and the then Minister for Indigenous Affairs announced the trial on 12 February 2018. The trial is testing how best to increase the involvement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in funded programs. Our Indigenous Languages and Arts and Indigenous Visual Arts Industry Support programs are participating in the trial.

Digital labelling trial for Indigenous products

The government has provided $150,000 to Desart to trial the use of QR Code labelling that will improve information to consumers on authentic Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander products. The digital labelling will help consumers make informed, ethical purchases and increase economic and cultural opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists and designers.

The trial will commence in 2019–20 with three art centres, Tangentyere in the Northern Territory, Martumili in Western Australia and Girringun in Queensland.

Australian creativity and culture internationally

We work with international and domestic partners, both within the arts sector and across governments, to support and celebrate Australian creativity and culture internationally.

To assess the effectiveness of our activities, we considered the:

• investments we make in cultural diplomacy
• work we do to protect movable heritage objects that are culturally significant
• support we give to the Australian screen industry, which is described in the section on The economic value of creative and cultural activity
• introduction of a new program to amplify Australia’s voice in the Pacific

Our programs to celebrate Australian creativity and culture internationally achieved positive results in 2018–19 (measure 21b).

International Cultural Diplomacy Arts Fund

Through the International Cultural Diplomacy Arts Fund, we invest in activities that advance Australia’s cultural interests and reputation abroad and strengthen Australia’s international people-to-people relationships. Further information is included in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

We also continued to provide secretariat support for the operation of the Australia‑Singapore Arts Group. The group aims to enhance cultural relations between the two countries by promoting sustainable artistic and cultural activities.

Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986

The Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986 protects Australia’s movable cultural heritage. It regulates its export and provides for the return of illegally exported foreign cultural property to Australia. The Act gives effect to Australia’s obligations under the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property 1970. During 2018–19, we issued 36 permits for the permanent export of movable cultural heritage under the Act and eight temporary permits.

Amplifying Australia's Voice in the Pacific

In November 2018, the Australian Government announced the Amplifying Australia’s Voice in the Pacific program as part of a suite of measures aimed to strengthen Australia’s engagement with the Pacific region. We will administer $17.0 million over three years from 2019–20 to Free TV Australia, to deliver 1000 hours per year of Australian television content to broadcasters in the Pacific.

Preserving and promoting Australian cultural heritage

We work to preserve and promote Australia’s cultural heritage through:

• our administered items
• our Indigenous repatriation work
• the allocation of additional funding to Bundanon Trust

Administered items

To protect and promote Australian cultural heritage we deliver the following administered items:

• National Cultural Heritage Account
• Marking 250 years since James Cook’s first voyage to Australia in 1770
• ANMM — Maritime Museums of Australia Project Support Scheme
• NLA — Community Heritage Grants
• Museums and Galleries Australia bursaries

Further information on the objectives and operations of these administered items in 2018–19 is included in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

Indigenous repatriation

Returning ancestral remains and secret sacred objects back to Country helps to promote healing, justice and reconciliation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Through the Indigenous Repatriation Museum Grants Program, we make funding available to eight major museums. For more information refer to Administration of program 2.1 administered items.

We are also responsible for advocacy and facilitating the return of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestral remains from overseas collecting institutions and private holders. In
2018–19, we facilitated six overseas repatriation handover ceremonies from eight collecting institutions — two ceremonies in Sweden, one in the United Kingdom and three in Germany. As a result of these repatriation ceremonies, the remains of 98 Aboriginal ancestors were returned to Australia. We worked with representatives from 20 communities and representative bodies to facilitate these returns.

This demonstrates the Australian Government’s ongoing commitment to upholding the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, by working with overseas collecting institutions and governments to support change in collecting ethics and advocate for the return of ancestors.

Bundanon Trust Masterplan

The Australian Government announced funding of $22.0 million over three years from
2019–20 to implement Bundanon Trust’s Masterplan development. The development will expand the Riversdale property to protect and display the Trust’s significant art collection, provide essential visitor and staff services, repurpose heritage buildings for public use and provide additional on-site accommodation. The masterplan will increase visitation and provide greater access to and engagement with the collection.

Creativity and culture: protecting and promoting Australian content

Results

Analysis

To analyse the effectiveness of our activities to protect and promote Australian content we considered our regulatory frameworks for:

• classification, content and copyright
• media

Australia's content regulatory framework - classification, Australian content and copyright

The regulatory framework to protect Australian content includes classification, quotas and expenditure obligations for broadcasters, and copyright.

In assessing the effectiveness of the content regulatory framework, we found positive results were achieved in 2018–19 (measure 22).

Classification

To help inform consumer choices about entertainment content, and support parents to protect children from inappropriate content, we maintain regulations that generally require films and computer games to be classified before they can be legally made available to the Australian public.

Throughout 2018–19, we continued to provide support to the Classification Board and Classification Review Board, to enable them to make classification decisions.

In October 2018, the Minister approved the Netflix Classification Tool for ongoing use, following a pilot in 2017. We have subsequently established an ongoing monitoring program of tool decisions through a memorandum of understanding with Netflix.

The Classification Board made 2833 classification decisions during the reporting period, all within statutory time limits, compared to 3156 decisions in 2017–18. There were 163 complaints about Classification Board decisions, compared with 249 in 2017–18. The Classification Review Board reviewed, upon application, four decisions of the Classification Board.

The Netflix Classification Tool determined 1923 decisions, and the International Age Rating Coalition (IARC) Tool determined 317,550. There were three complaints about decisions made by the IARC Tool and six complaints about decisions made by the Netflix Classification Tool.

Australian content (including quotas and expenditure obligations for broadcasters)

An objective of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 is to promote the role of broadcasting services in developing and reflecting a sense of Australian identity, character and cultural diversity. This objective is met through our policy work on Australian content quotas and expenditure obligations.

Over 2018–19, we have continued to monitor complaints and investigations into content and expenditure obligations as well as the evolving marketplace for delivering broadcast and other video content to Australian consumers.

All commercial television licensees met their transmission quotas and sub-quota requirements in 2018. The program expenditure reported by metropolitan and regional television licensees to the ACMA for 2017–18 shows licensees spent $1.6 billion on Australian programs, an increase of 1% ($18.0 million) on 2016–17.

During the reporting period, independent monitoring and industry reporting demonstrated commercial radio stations’ compliance with the quota obligations.

Copyright

Copyright encourages industries and creators to make and disseminate new creative works, while also allowing appropriate access to, and use of, these works in the public interest.

High levels of copyright infringement can have a negative impact on the creative industry through lost earnings. Our annual consumer survey on online copyright infringement enables us to monitor levels of copyright infringement. The 2019 survey showed:

• lawful consumption of digital content has continued to rise
• consumers are generally paying more for digital purchases and subscriptions than they were in 2018
• efforts to remove access to infringing websites remain an effective way to influence individual behaviour, with 37% of respondents indicating they would seek lawful access to material if they encountered a blocked site. This is illustrated in Figure 2.15Cross-reference

Volume of lawful and unlawful digital files consumed from January to March 2019 compared to the same period in 2018Note: The infringement survey was conducted in March 2019. While the volume of unlawful video games has also risen significantly, this may be due to specifically asking consumers in 2019 to include games played on their mobile phone or tablet, and possible consumer uncertainty as to their lawfulness.

During 2018–19, we progressed copyright reform initiatives to:

• provide copyright industries with a more effective and efficient way to address online infringement on foreign websites through amendments to the Copyright Act 1968
• protect internet service providers and cultural, educational and disability organisations who work to ensure online infringement does not occur on their systems (safe harbour scheme) through updated procedures in the Copyright Regulations 2017
• fulfil the government’s commitment to protect international sound recordings through amendments to the Copyright (International Protection) Regulations 1969

In April 2019, following extensive consultation, the department’s Bureau of Communications and Arts Research released the final report of its Review of Code of Conduct for Australian Copyright Collecting Societies. The review examined the extent to which the code remains the best mechanism to promote efficient, effective and transparent administration of copyright licences. We have worked closely with collecting societies to assist them to implement recommendations.

We continue to monitor the amount paid to content creators by major collecting societies as a way of assessing the ongoing effectiveness of the copyright system in rewarding creators. In 2017–18, the amount the two declared collecting societies have paid to their members has remained steady:

• the Copyright Agency reported it paid a total of $123.9 million to members, of which 84% was distributed to Australian rights holders
• Screenrights reported it paid a total of $42.8 million to members, of which 59% was distributed to Australian rights holders

Australia's media regulatory framework

Our work to facilitate a fit-for-purpose media regulatory framework includes making sure there is an appropriate balance between the need to support industry sustainability and the need to provide appropriate protections for the Australian community.

To assess whether our activities are promoting a fit-for-purpose media framework, we considered:

• the progress of media reforms
• audiences, broadcasting complaints and investigations
• audience metrics from the national broadcasters (the ABC and SBS)

In assessing the media regulatory framework, we found positive results were achieved in 2018–19 (measure 23). This is based on data that shows large media audiences continue (including for the national broadcasters), and broadcasting complaints are low in number.

Progress of media reforms

In 2018–19, we continued to work with our industry partners, including regional broadcasters, to determine whether our regulatory frameworks remain fit-for-purpose. We will progress this body of work in 2019–20.

We administer the Regional and Small Publishers Cadetship Program, the Regional Journalism Scholarship Program and the Supporting Under-represented Sports program, which formed part of the 2017 Broadcasting and Content Reform Package. For information on the delivery of these programs, refer to Administration of program 1.1 administered items .

As part of the media reforms, the government committed to set up an Inquiry into the Competitive Neutrality of the National Broadcasters. In September 2018, the panel delivered its report to government. The government released the report on 12 December 2018 and further action now sits with the national broadcasters. We also assisted in an Efficiency Review of the National Broadcasters, which was led by Mr Peter Tonagh and Mr Richard Bean (with support from KordaMentha). Their report was provided to the Minister in December 2018, and then to the national broadcasters in February 2019.

Audiences, broadcasting complaints and investigations

In 2018–19, we continued to monitor broadcasting complaints and investigations to assess whether Australian television content and classification regulatory and policy frameworks remain fit-for-purpose and support the creation and distribution of Australian content.

The ACMA is responsible for receiving broadcasting complaints and undertaking investigations into broadcasters’ compliance with codes of practice, licence conditions and standards related to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992. In its 2017–18 Annual Report, the ACMA reported the following:

• there were no complaints or investigations involving compliance with the regional commercial television local content licence condition to broadcast minimum amounts of material of local significance
• there were no complaints or investigations involving compliance with the regional commercial radio local content licence condition to broadcast prescribed amounts of material of local significance between 5am and 8pm on business days
• all metropolitan commercial television broadcasting licensees reported meeting primary channel (55%) and non-primary channel (1460 hours) transmission quotas for Australian content in 2017
• due to changes in primary affiliation arrangements with metropolitan licensees that took effect from 1 July 2016, 12 regional licensees failed to broadcast the required number of hours of Australian content on their non-primary channels

We continue to monitor media audiences. ACMA’s 2017–18 Communications Report, published in January 2019, found:

• free-to-air television continues to hold the largest share of viewing hours, although this is in decline
• a majority of Australians watch some form of video content online
• Netflix remains the most popular subscription video on demand service, with 3.9 million Australian subscribers

The national bradcasters

Approximately 83% of Australians believe the ABC performs a valuable role in the Australian community. The ABC’s 2017–18 Annual Report revealed no change in community sentiment compared to 2016–17. In 2018, combined national audience reach across television, radio and online was estimated at 70.2% over the period of one week. This represents an increase of 0.7% compared to the ABC’s estimated net reach in 2017 (69.5%).

In its 2017–18 Annual Report SBS reported it had maintained overall audience reach across its channels and platforms, reaching approximately 13.0 million Australians each month on TV and 3.1 million on digital platforms.

These metrics demonstrate the importance of the national broadcasters to the Australian community. They reflect the important role the ABC and SBS play in shaping Australia’s sense of identity and informing, entertaining and reflecting the cultural diversity of Australian communities.

Creativity and culture: program resourcing (input), activity and efficiency

Results

Analysis

This section provides an analysis of our program resourcing, output and efficiency:

• expenditure against our arts and cultural development budget program (program 2.1)
• the effectiveness of our portfolio oversight activities (in both the arts and communications sectors)
• our efficiency delivering program 2.1 administered items

Program expenses

In 2018–19, expenses for arts and cultural development totalled $712.2 million (measure 24) , which was 2% more than budgeted in our 2018–19 Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements in February 2019, and 5% more than expended for program 2.1 in 2017–18.

Payments to portfolio entities made up a large proportion — around 65% — of program 2.1 expenses. This reflects the importance we place on the activities of our portfolio entities, which provide increasing numbers of Australians with access to art and cultural experiences.

It is worth noting that payments to the national broadcasters (ABC and SBS) are made under program 1.1, in recognition of the work ABC and SBS do to promote connectivity for the millions of Australians who engage with the broadcasters’ platforms every month. However, it’s clear the national broadcasters are also important to achieving our creativity and culture purpose, through the production and broadcast of Australian content, stories and conversations.

Oversight of arts and cultural portfolio entities

We engage with portfolio entities to support their governance, sustainability and achievement, and work together to support participation and growth in arts and cultural activity, including with the national broadcasters (ABC and SBS). Portfolio entities are listed in the section on Engagement with the national cultural institutions.

Our oversight activities focus on:

• entity corporate planning and annual reporting
• Budget and operational funding
• advising the Minister on governance arrangements, including Board appointments
• operational policy settings

In 2018–19, we undertook all required activities, for effective oversight (measure 25).

Efficient program delivery

Our approach to program delivery focuses on the efficient management of public resources.

We delivered all program 2.1 administered items on time and on budget in 2018–19 (measure 26). Further information on each is included in Administration of program 2.1 administered items.