The Government has announced that it will provide the Australian Broadcasting Authority with an additional $500,000 for this financial year to facilitate the extra work needed for the conversion of television broadcasting to digital transmission, scheduled to begin on 1 January 2001. That means that the planning teams currently working on radio licences will be able to proceed to plan.

This decision will please potential bidders such as DMG, RGCapital and other players hoping to enter the market. It will also make the Community Radio Sector happy, because the pressure for Temporary Licences (TCBLs) to become full licences is enormous in Sydney and Melbourne. Existing players in the capital cities will be less happy however – they were hoping that the process would be delayed by the introduction of digital so that they could maximise profits before new players entered the markets.