14 February 2008
CLASSIFICATION REFORMS TO STREAMLINE ADVERTISING
The Minister for Home Affairs, Bob Debus, today introduced legislation to Parliament that will simplify the National Classification Scheme for films, computer games and publications.
“Under current laws, advertising of unclassified films and computer games is prohibited, apart from a limited number of exemptions which are available for cinema releases,” Mr Debus said
“Rapid advances in technology and the increasing risk of piracy have led to products being classified close to their release date, making them difficult to market.
“The Classification Scheme will be amended to allow industry assessors to recommend the likely classification and make applications to the Classification Board in difficult cases,” Mr Debus said.
The new laws will include safeguards including giving the Board the power to revoke an assesor’s status or in serious cases bar a distributor from accessing the scheme for three years.
“These powers are designed to deter users from abusing the scheme or making inadequate assessments,” Mr Debus said.
The second part of the bill will allow trained, industry-based assessors to make recommendations to the Classification Board on appropriate classifications for any TV series released on DVD.
The new scheme for TV series will help reduce the regulatory burden on industry and the cost of classifying box sets.
The legislation aims to ensure that an audience of a film classified ‘G’ will only be shown unclassified trailers that are likely to be classified as ‘G’ or ‘PG’.
Consumers will also be given a stronger message when viewing unclassified material advising them to Check the Classification.
The proposals are contained in the Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Amendment (Assessments and Advertising) Bill 2008.
Media Contact: Samantha Wills 0448721372