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FAIRFAX STATEMENT ON CABINET'S DECISION ON DIGITAL TELEVISION AND DATACASTING
SYDNEY, December 21, 1999 – Mr Fred Hilmer, Chief Executive of John Fairfax Holdings Limited [ASX:FXJ] today issued the following statement on Cabinet’s decision on digital television and datacasting: "By requiring a standard definition digital signal, the Government has made digital television affordable, and is to be commended. This is therefore a victory for us and other entrants in datacasting. This decision is a win for consumers. "For Fairfax, we are cautiously optimistic that today's decision gives us adequate scope to create a commercially viable datacasting business. "With regard to the definition of datacasting, we wanted to secure the ability to provide a different kind of service – not television broadcasting – that is fundamentally interactive and which can provide news, finance, weather, commerce and Internet services. Under this definition, virtually our entire Internet and e-commerce offerings, provided by f2, and supplemented by video, could become datacasting services. "We still need to study the decision further, and we especially want to see the implementing legislation. "We believe the Government must consider new mechanisms to achieve a prompt handback of the spectrum used for analogue television. It should do so without delay. We urge a thorough examination of what can be done now to provide universal digital TV access in Australia, enabling the public to recapture and gain immense economic benefits from opening up the spectrum used today for analogue TV. Billions of dollars that can be used for health care and defence and the bush are unnecessarily locked up in the spectrum used for analogue TV. The issue of handing back that spectrum for auction for new telecoms and media services should be on the table as next year’s budget is developed. Australia can go much further, much quicker, in this regard." -- ENDS -- For further information, please contact: Bruce Wolpe, Corporate Affairs - Tel: (02) 9282 3640 Note to editors John Fairfax Holdings [ASX:FXJ] is Australia’s leading publishing group. Its mastheads include The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian Financial Review, The Age, The Sun-Herald, and BRW. In addition, the Company publishes financial and consumer magazines, and provides online and interactive services. In 1999, the Company had revenues of over $1.1 billion. Fairfax, through f2 Limited, its wholly owned subsidiary for its online and interactive businesses, is Australia’s leading content provider on the Internet, with more than 1.4 million page views, per day across a network of sites including news, business and finance, sport, auctions, real estate, employment, IT, career, and city guides and directories. |
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Fairfax > Corporate Affairs & Media Releases > Announcements > DATACASTING
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