7Digital channel plan

7 Digital channel plan

(1) The allotment of additional channels to holders, allowing the holders to transmit programs in analog and digital modes during a simulcast period, will be done in a digital channel plan made by the ACMA under section 12.

(1A) Subject to subsection (1B), a digital channel plan may allot channels to holders in a licence area, allowing the holders to transmit in digital mode after a simulcast period for the licence area.

(1B) A digital channel plan must not allot channels to holders in a licence area if a television licence area plan for the licence area has come into force.

Note Clause 7AA of Schedule 4 to the Act provides that this Scheme, and a digital channel plan, to the extent to which they allot channels for a particular licence area, cease to have effect when the television licence area plan for that licence area comes into force.

(2) A digital channel plan may deal with:

(a) all licence areas (other than licence areas dealt with in Part B of this scheme); or

(b) 1 or more specified licence areas (other than licence areas dealt with in Part B of this scheme); or

(c) a specified part of a licence area (other than a specified part of a licence area dealt with in Part B of this Scheme).

Note As a result of subsection (2), there may be more than 1 document available at any time with the title digital channel plan.

(3) A digital channel plan may also deal with the allotment of additional channels to national broadcasters affected by the national television conversion scheme.

(4) A digital channel plan may also deal with the allotment of channels during a simulcast period to holders of commercial television broadcasting licences allocated under section 38B of the Act.