Community broadcasting licences are subject to the licence condition that the licensee will continue to represent the community interest that it represented at the time when the licence was allocated or last renewed.
The licence condition recognises that a community broadcasting service should be able to evolve with the community. It also enables us, when renewing a community broadcasting licence, to consider a request from a licensee that the community interest it represents has evolved since the licence was allocated or was last renewed.
Community broadcasting services are important to meet the objectives of the Broadcasting Services Act. The goals of community broadcasters are to:
- promote a diverse range of broadcasting for the Australian public
- develop and reflect Australian identity, character and cultural diversity
- provide local content
The Broadcasting Services Act defines “community broadcasting services”. Licence holders must not run community broadcasting services, including temporary services:
- for profit
- as part of a business that operates for profit.
Community broadcast licensees are also required to follow codes of practice. Check the Community Radio Code of Practice for more information.
List of community licence holders
We publish details of:
- who holds the licence
- licence areas
- the community interest that the licence holder must represent
- how many community licences there are in Australia.
