{"id":"F2012L02431","name":"Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) 2012","slug":"television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":90405,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2012L02431-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Endnotes","sectionType":"section","heading":"Endnotes","content":"#### Endnotes\n\nEndnote 1—About the endnotes\n\nThe endnotes provide information about this compilation and the compiled law.\n\nThe following endnotes are included in every compilation:\n\nEndnote 1—About the endnotes\n\nEndnote 2—Abbreviation key\n\nEndnote 3—Legislation history\n\nEndnote 4—Amendment history\n\nAbbreviation key—Endnote 2\n\nThe abbreviation key sets out abbreviations that may be used in the endnotes.\n\nLegislation history and amendment history—Endnotes 3 and 4\n\nAmending laws are annotated in the legislation history and amendment history.\n\nThe legislation history in endnote 3 provides information about each law that has amended (or will amend) the compiled law. The information includes commencement details for amending laws and details of any application, saving or transitional provisions that are not included in this compilation.\n\nThe amendment history in endnote 4 provides information about amendments at the provision (generally section or equivalent) level. It also includes information about any provision of the compiled law that has been repealed in accordance with a provision of the law.\n\nMisdescribed amendments\n\nA misdescribed amendment is an amendment that does not accurately describe how an amendment is to be made. If, despite the misdescription, the amendment can be given effect as intended, then the misdescribed amendment can be incorporated through an editorial change made under section 15V of the Legislation Act 2003.\n\nIf a misdescribed amendment cannot be given effect as intended, the amendment is not incorporated and “(md not incorp)” is added to the amendment history.\n\nEndnote 2—Abbreviation key\n\n| ad = added or inserted | orig = original |\n| ---------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------- |\n| am = amended | par = paragraph(s)/subparagraph(s) |\n| amdt = amendment | /sub‑subparagraph(s) |\n| c = clause(s) | pres = present |\n| C[x] = Compilation No. x | prev = previous |\n| Ch = Chapter(s) | (prev…) = previously |\n| def = definition(s) | Pt = Part(s) |\n| Dict = Dictionary | r = regulation(s)/rule(s) |\n| disallowed = disallowed by Parliament | reloc = relocated |\n| Div = Division(s) | renum = renumbered |\n| exp = expires/expired or ceases/ceased to have | rep = repealed |\n| effect | rs = repealed and substituted |\n| F = Federal Register of Legislation | s = section(s)/subsection(s) |\n| gaz = gazette | Sch = Schedule(s) |\n| LA = Legislation Act 2003 | Sdiv = Subdivision(s) |\n| LIA = Legislative Instruments Act 2003 | SLI = Select Legislative Instrument |\n| (md not incorp) = misdescribed amendment | SR = Statutory Rules |\n| cannot be given effect | Sub‑Ch = Sub‑Chapter(s) |\n| mod = modified/modification | SubPt = Subpart(s) |\n| No. = Number(s) | underlining = whole or part not |\n| o = order(s) | commenced or to be commenced |\n| Ord = Ordinance | |\n\n> Note: > Note: Table of Instruments\n\n| Title | Date of FRLI registration | Date ofcommencement | Application, saving ortransitional provisions |\n| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------- | ------------------- | --------------------------------------------- |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) 2012 | 12 December 2012 (see F2012L02431) | 11 December 2013 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2013 | 7 November 2013 (see F2013L01904) | 11 December 2013 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2014 | 19 December 2014 (see F2014L01768) | 20 December 2014 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2015 (No. 1) | 23 December 2015 (see F2015L02116) | 24 December 2015 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2016 (No. 1) | 16 December 2016 (see F2016L01981) | 17 December 2016 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2017 (No. 1) | 30 June 2017 (see F2017L00844) | 30 June 2017 | - |\n| Broadcasting Services (Technical Planning) Guidelines (Consequential Amendments) Instrument 2017 (No. 1) | 29 September 2017 (F2017L01299) | 30 September 2017 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2017 (No. 2) | 4 December 2017 (F2017L01571) | 5 December 2017 | - |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2018 (No.1) | 22 June 2018(F2018L00836) | 23 June 2018 | |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2020 (No.1) | 30 June 2020(F2020L00863) | 30 June 2020 | |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2021 (No.1) | 30 June 2021(F2021L00918) | 30 June 2021 | |\n| Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) Variation 2024 (No.1) | 24 June 2024(F2024L00750) | 25 June 2024 | |\n\n> Note: > Note: Table of Amendments\n\n```html\n

ad. = added or inserted am. = amended rep. = repealed rs. = repealed and substituted

Provision affected

How affected

Section 2

rep. LA s.48D

Section 5

am. F2017L01299.

Section 6

am. F2017L01299.

Section 7

am. F2017L01299.

Schedule 1

Clause 1

am. 2013 No. 1; am. 2014 No. 1

Clause 2

am. 2013 No. 1; am. 2014 No. 1

Clause 3

am. 2013 No. 1; am. 2014 No. 1

Schedule 2

Clause 1

am. 2014 No. 1

Clause 2

am. 2014 No. 1

Schedule 3

Clause 1

am. 2014 No. 1

Clause 2

am. 2013 No. 1; am. 2014 No. 1; am. 2015 No. 1; am. 2016 No. 1; am. F2017L00844; am. F2017L01571; am. F2018L00836.

Clause 2, table

am. 2020 No.1, am. F2021L00918, am. F2024L00750

\n```\n\n> Note 2\n\n> Note: All legislative instruments and compilations are registered on the Federal Register of Legislation kept under the Legislation Act 2003. See http://www.legislation.gov.au.","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":6,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument has not materially changed its fundamental scope: it remains a legal and technical definition of the Melbourne television licence area. The many variations recorded in the endnotes (2013–2024) update boundaries, technical tables or consequential references (for example, to technical planning guidelines) but do not broaden the instrument from defining a licence area into a different kind of regulatory scheme. In short, the content has been adjusted and refined repeatedly, but the Plan’s core purpose—defining the licence-area for Melbourne—has stayed the same."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple variations over time: table shows at least 11 separate variations/amendments between 2013 and 2024","Cross-references to other instruments and guidelines (Broadcasting Services Act framework and Broadcasting Services (Technical Planning) Guidelines / consequential amendments in 2017)","Multiple Schedules (Schedules 1–3) containing technical tables or maps that were amended repeatedly","Amendments to core sections (sections 2, 5, 6, 7) indicating changes to definitions or operative mechanics","Technical content (coordinates, transmitter parameters or tables) requiring specialist interpretation by engineers","Potential nested interactions: changes to Plan trigger effects in licensing administration, spectrum planning and commercial market definitions","Endnotes and commencement details that must be tracked to know which version applies in time"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this instrument does (plain English)**\n\n- This instrument, the Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) 2012, formally defines the geographic \"licence area\" called \"Melbourne\" for television broadcasting purposes. It sets out the legal boundaries, and associated technical or tabular material (in the Schedules), that determine where a television broadcasting licence covers for the Melbourne area.\n\n- It is made under the Broadcasting Services Act framework (the statutory power to make licence-area plans) and is the reference document regulators and broadcasters use to decide whether a particular transmitter or service lies inside or outside the Melbourne licence area.\n\n**Who it affects**\n\n- Broadcasters and prospective licensees: organisations that hold, apply for, or operate television broadcasting licences that are described by licence areas (they must comply with the Plan; it determines where their licence rights and obligations apply).\n- Technical planners and network engineers: those who plan transmitter locations, frequencies and power to serve the licence area and to manage interference with neighbouring licence areas.\n- Regulators and administrators (the Minister / ACMA and their staff): they use the Plan to administer licences, interpret entitlement boundaries, and amend technical guidance or licence conditions.\n- Indirectly, advertisers and distributors: because licence-area boundaries influence market definitions for local advertising and carriage arrangements.\n\n**How it matters (mechanics, not politics)**\n\n- Legal effect: the Plan creates the legal definition of the Melbourne television licence area. That definition is used to determine where a licence's regulatory rights apply (for example, where a licence holder can claim to be the licensed broadcaster for Melbourne) and is a trigger for other statutory rules that depend on licence-area definitions.\n\n- Technical effect: the Plan’s Schedules typically contain technical tables, coordinates or maps used in transmitter planning and interference management. Changes to those Schedules can require broadcasters to adjust transmitter parameters or rollout plans.\n\n- Administrative effect: the instrument is periodically varied (the endnotes list variations from 2013 through 2024). Each variation updates the Plan’s technical or geographic content; the process and commencement dates are recorded in the endnotes.\n\n**Official purpose-claims and a quick test of their implications**\n\n- Official purpose (as claimed in explanatory material for this type of instrument): to provide legal certainty about the geographic extent of the Melbourne television licence area and to support technical planning and spectrum management.\n\n- How that purpose translates into costs and incentives:\n - Who pays: broadcasters bear the direct compliance and technical-adjustment costs (eg, changing transmitter parameters, updating coverage maps), and regulators bear administrative costs to maintain and publish the Plan.\n - Incentives and trade-offs: a clear, up‑to‑date licence-area plan reduces regulatory uncertainty for licence holders and spectrum managers but can impose costs when boundaries or technical parameters are changed. Because the Plan fixes legal boundaries, broadcasters’ commercial strategies (market segmentation, advertising sales, transmitter investments) are shaped by it.\n - Opportunity costs and substitution: a stricter or narrower definition of a licence area can shift broadcasters’ investment into different transmission infrastructure or content targeting strategies; conversely, broader or adjusted boundaries can allow licence-holders to claim a larger audience for commercial purposes.\n - Implementation risk and compliance burden: frequent variations (see the amendment table) create a recurring administrative burden for industry to track and comply with changes; mapping and coordinates must be accurate to avoid disputes about whether a transmitter/service falls inside the area.\n - Bureaucratic discretion: the instrument is subject to ministerial/regulatory amendment; that discretion is routine but means licence-area definitions can change without Parliament passing a new Act. The endnotes show multiple variations and consequential amendments to technical guidance (notably in 2017).\n\n**What this instrument does not do**\n\n- It does not itself grant broadcasting licences or set licence conditions such as content quotas or licence fees. It only defines the geographic area (and related technical detail) used by the licensing regime.\n\n**Key provisions and mechanics (where to look in the instrument)**\n\n- The operative parts are the primary clauses that name the licence-area and the Schedules that contain detailed geographic/technical material. The endnotes identify amendments to core sections (sections 2, 5–7) and multiple clauses in Schedules 1–3, indicating that both definitional text and the tabular/technical material have been updated over time.\n\n**Bottom line**\n\n- The Plan is an administrative/technical instrument that fixes the Melbourne television licence area for regulatory and technical purposes. Its practical effects fall on broadcasters and technical planners, who must follow the Plan when operating transmitters and when making commercial decisions tied to the legal extent of a licence area. Successive variations update technical or boundary details; these updates reduce uncertainty if accurate, but impose recurring adjustment and compliance costs on affected parties."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"rejected","complexity_score":2,"rejection_reason":"This is a navigation/metadata page (endnotes only) containing no substantive legislative content. It lacks the actual operative provisions of the Television Licence Area Plan — no licence conditions, no technical specifications, no geographic boundaries, no regulatory requirements. Analysis requires the full legislative instrument rather than its compilation endnotes.","scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This is an endnotes compilation page, which by design serves a single administrative purpose: tracking amendments. It has not expanded beyond its original function of documenting version history."},"complexity_factors":["Document is purely administrative/metadata — contains no operative legal provisions","Only 2 substantive tables: instrument history and amendment history","No defined terms, conditional logic, or cross-references to primary legislation","Abbreviation key uses standard legislative drafting conventions (12 common abbreviations)","Content is entirely descriptive/historical rather than prescriptive"],"plain_english_summary":"The endnotes compile the amendment history and abbreviation key for the Television Licence Area Plan (Melbourne) 2012 — a paper trail showing how the plan changed through 12 variations between 2012 and 2024. \n\nIt helps broadcasters, ACMA, and legal users confirm which version is in force, when changes took effect, and what provisions were amended so they can determine where stations may broadcast and which technical rules apply."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012","history":"/api/acts/television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012/history","analysis":"/api/acts/television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/television-licence-area-plan-melbourne-2012/documents"}}