Broadcast Licence Areas

Abstract This dataset provides a geographic representation of the Broadcasting Licence Areas, which are legally defined through Licence Area Plans (LAPs) under the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 and published on the Federal Register of Legislation. The polygons reflect the spatial coverage of these licence areas for mapping and analysis purposes. Broadcasting Licence Areas are administered by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) and underpin the regulation of commercial and community broadcasting services across Australia. While the dataset reflects the licence areas determined in the LAPs, the legislative instruments remain the authoritative source. In the event of an inconsistency between this data and the legislation, the definitions contained in the Federal Register of Legislations prevail. Currency Date modified: 23 December 2021 Modification frequency: As needed Data extent Coordinate reference: Geocentric Datum of Australia 1994 (GDA1994) Spatial extent North: -9.1° South: -43.7° East: 159.2° West: 96.8° Temporal extent: From April 1996 to March 2021 Source information Downloaded from Find a broadcasting licence area | ACMA on 25 September 2025. Lineage statement Broadcasting Licence Area boundaries are constructed using Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Census geography as the spatial framework. Earlier LAPs reference the Australian Standard Geography Classification (ASGC, used from 1991 Census). More recent determinations use the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS, adopted from the 2011 Census). The smallest ABS units that may be referenced in constructing Broadcasting Licence Areas are Collection Districts (CD) (ASGC) or Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) units (ASGS), higher-level ABS units are also used where appropriate. Data dictionary Attribute name Description FID Contains a unique identifier for each record within the dataset Area ID ACMA's unique Licence Area identifier Name ACMA's name for the Licence Area, including the standard classifier code. Determination Date Licence Area Plan determination date Census Date Census on which definition is based Classifier Code Standard classifier codes, where x is a licence area number from 1 to 9 RAx for radio services TVx for television services S40 for services licensed under Section 40 of the BSA Service Type Identifies the category of broadcast service associated with the record. Possible values include: Radio Services Television Services Services licensed under Section 40 of the BSA Contact Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), [e-mail]