The Viewer Access Satellite Television service, or VAST, is a satellite television platform in Australia, providing digital television and radio services to remote and black spot areas using the Optus C1 satellite.[1] It is partly funded by the Australian Government and managed through a joint-venture between Southern Cross Media and Imparja Television. It is a replacement for Optus Aurora and provides channels which have been absent on free-to-view satellite until now, such as a Network Ten affiliate, and the digital multichannels. Viewers accessing the service must use a VAST certified satellite television set-top box and smartcard, and go through an application process.
Contents |
On 10 January 2010, the Australian Government announced a new satellite service to deliver digital television and radio channels to Australian viewers who reside in remote, rural and black spot areas. Initially, the service was only available to viewers in and around Mildura, Victoria, to coincide with Australia's first analog television switch-off.[2] On 15 December 2010, the service was made available to viewers in the existing Remote Central and Eastern zone.[3] In April 2011, the Western VAST service began for Regional and Remote Western Australia viewers.
Anyone is entitled to view ABC and SBS transmissions on the VAST service, after completeing a successful application, regardless of location within Australia.
Several different groups of people are currently entitled to use the VAST service to receive commercial stations:
1- It is possible to apply for the Optus Aurora service instead, and then move to VAST before the 6 month period preceding digital switchover in the applicable license area.
VAST provides a minimum of 16 digital television channels to viewers, the same number of channels available in metropolitan terrestrial areas. All ABC and SBS channels are available in separate state feeds. The commercial channels are provided by Southern Cross Media, Imparja Television, Golden West Network and WIN Television.
There are three zones on the VAST service:
The zones define which channels are able to be viewed from a viewers location, commercial channels from other zones are unable to be viewed. These zone restrictions are designed to protect the interests of the networks, advertisers and sports rights holders. The zone restrictions do not apply to ABC and SBS channels.
| LCN | Channel Name [National Broadcasters] | LCN | Channel Name [Eastern Commercial Broadcasters]1 |
LCN (West) | Channel Name [Western Commercial Broadcasters]2 |
LCN | Channel Name [Other] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | ABC1 | 7 | Southern Cross Central | 6 | GWN7 | 4 | Regional News Guide | ||
| 24 | ABC News 24 | 72 | 7Two | 62 | 7Two | 4xx | Regional News Feeds4 | ||
| 22 | ABC2/ABC 4 Kids | 70 | 7mate | 63 | 7mate | 800 | VAST Information Channel5 | ||
| 23 | ABC35 | 9 | Imparja | 8 | WIN WA | ||||
| 3 | SBS One | 90 | GEM | 80 | GEM | ||||
| 30 | SBS HD | 99 | GO! | 88 | GO! | ||||
| 32 | SBS Two | 10 | Ten Central | 5 | Ten West | ||||
| 1 | One | 50 | One | ||||||
| 2xx/3xx | ABC/SBS State Feeds3 | 11 | Eleven | 55 | Eleven |
Notes:
| LCN | Region (WIN) |
LCN | Region (Southern Cross) |
LCN | Region (Seven) |
LCN | Region (NBN) |
LCN | Region (Prime7) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 401 | Cairns, Townsville | 410 | QLD, NT, NSW, VIC | 412 | Cairns, Townsville | 415 | Gold Coast, Lismore | 418 | NSW North Coast |
| 402 | Mackay, Rockhampton | 411 | Tasmania, SA & Broken Hill | 413 | Mackay, Rockhampton | 416 | Coffs Harbour, Tamworth | 419 | NSW & VIC |
| 403 | Bundaberg, Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba | 414 | Wide Bay, Sunshine Coast | 417 | Newcastle, Central Coast | 420 | Orange, Wagga Wagga | ||
| 404 | Orange, Wagga Wagga | ||||||||
| 405 | Wollongong, Canberra | ||||||||
| 406 | Albury, Gippsland | ||||||||
| 407 | Bendigo, Shepparton | ||||||||
| 408 | Ballarat, Mildura | ||||||||
| 409 | Tasmania, Mt Gambier |