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The federal communications department has refused to release details about $30 million in sports broadcasting funding given to Foxtel, because it says documents about the deal "do not exist".
- Foxtel gets $30 million in public funding to cover "underrepresented sports"
- Correspondence and documents about deal requested under FOI laws
- Department refuses request because documents "do not exist"
This year's federal budget includes a measure worth $30 million over four years to "support the broadcast of underrepresented sports on subscription television, including women's sports, niche sports, and sports with a high level of community involvement and participation".
A Freedom of Information request filed by ABC Radio Melbourne's Mornings program, seeking correspondence and documents relating to the formulation of the measure, was declined on the basis of no such documents existing.
In declining access, the Legal Director for the Department of Communications and the Arts "refuse(d) access to the requested documents under subsection 24A(1) of the FOI Act, as I am satisfied that documents falling within the scope of your request do not exist".
Foxtel is owned by communications behemoths Telstra and News Corporation.
The ABC has sought comment from Communications Minister Mitch Fifield.
Foxtel has declined to comment.
Shareholder activist and journalist Stephen Mayne described the deal and lack of available documents as a "remarkable situation".
"My best guess would be that because the free-to-air networks were all getting a licence fee cut in the budget and the Government wants to keep sweet with all of the media, that they didn't want to have an enemy in the Murdochs," he said.
"So they just gave them $30 million and then had to come up with a reason so they've come up with this particular reason."
In May, Senator Fifield was questioned about the deal during a Senate hearing.
Labor Senator Anthony Chisholm asked why the money was not given to free-to-air broadcasters, given the aim was to increase the reach of such sports.
Senator Fifield remarked the initiative could in fact increase the number of subscriptions, and he insisted there was not a direct correlation between access to free-to-air and viewership.
"Will you review this, what is a disgraceful decision, to enable more Australians to see these niche and women's sports?" Senator Chisholm asked.
"The Government has made its decision," Senator Fifield responded.
Foxtel was available in 2.42 million homes at the end of last year, according to Roy Morgan Research.
Its quarterly results, released in May, revealed its subscriber numbers had dropped 1 per cent from the same period a year ago.
Topics: television-broadcasting, broadcasting, information-and-communication, parliament, federal-parliament, government-and-politics, budget, other-sports, sport, melbourne-3000, vic, canberra-2600, act
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