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Press release ACMA: Macquarie Media Group (MMG) has divested 12 regional radio licences in accordance with an enforceable undertaking accepted by the Australian Communications and Media Authority in July 2007. [/html]

[html] MMG announced earlier today that the sale of these and other licences had been completed in the last few days. The licence areas where MMG was required by ACMA to sell one of its licences are: Atherton, Charters Towers, Mt Isa, Emerald, Roma and Kingaroy in Queensland; Young in New South Wales; Warragul in Victoria; and Burnie, Devonport, Queenstown and Scottsdale in Tasmania.MMG was given prior approval by ACMA for a transaction in July 2007 relating to its acquisition of Southern Cross Broadcasting (Australia) Limited. The transaction resulted in MMG controlling a number of regional television licences in addition to its regional radio licences. MMG gave an enforceable undertaking to ACMA that required it to sell 12 of its radio licences.Under the media diversity rules in the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (the BSA), diversity in regional radio licence areas is measured by the number of points in those areas. Divestment of licences by MMG was required because the transaction created an unacceptable media diversity situation in nine licence areas and resulted in a reduction in the number of points in three licence areas where an unacceptable media diversity situation already existed. The divestment of the 12 licences by MMG restores the number of points in the relevant regional radio licence areas to pre-transaction levels.MMG also gave an enforceable undertaking to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), however the ACCC’s involvement related only to issues in Tasmania. The undertaking given to ACMA included the sale of licences in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania.The enforceable undertaking given by MMG is available on ACMA’s website. Schedule 1 to that undertaking, which reveals the divestment period, has been kept confidential on account of its potential to affect the sale price of the licences. Schedule 1 will be published in the near future.Further information concerning the relevant licence areas is provided in the Register of Controlled Media Groups and in ACMA’s Media Diversity Report.Media contact: Donald Robertson, ACMA Media Manager on (02) 9334 7980.

Backgrounder

Under section 61AB of the BSA, an unacceptable media diversity situation will exist in a regional licence area of a commercial radio broadcasting licence if the number of points in the licence area is less than four.A registered media group (a group of two or more media operations) is worth one point in a licence area. In general, a media operation (a commercial television licence, a commercial radio licence or a newspaper that is associated with the licence area of a commercial television or commercial radio licence) that is not part of a media group is also worth one point.Sections 61AG and 61AH prohibit transactions that result in an unacceptable media diversity situation, or which reduce the number of points in a licence area in which an unacceptable media diversity situation already exists. Section 61AJ provides that before a transaction takes place that would result in an unacceptable media diversity situation coming into existence, or which would reduce the number of points in a licence area in which an unacceptable media diversity situation already exists, a person may apply to ACMA for approval of the transaction.If certain preconditions are satisfied, ACMA may approve the transaction and specify a period during which action must be taken to restore the number of points in a licence area. This period cannot be more than two years.The table below indicates the licence areas in which MMG was required to divest a licence, the licences sold, and the purchasers of those licences.

Table 1: Macquarie Media Group Divestiture Licences

Licence AreaLicence divested under ACMA undertakingPurchaser
Burnie RA17BU 558 AMTasmanian Broadcasters Pty Ltd*
Queenstown RA17XS
Young RA12LFSuper Sydney FM Pty Ltd#
Charters Towers RA14GC
Kingaroy RA14SB 1071 AM
Roma RA14ZR
* Tasmanian Broadcasters is a subsidiary of Grant Broadcasters Pty Ltd# Super Sydney FM is a subsidiary of Broadcast Operations Pty Ltd [/html]