Glossary
Affiliation fees
These are fees received from an affiliated network or network services for the right to broadcast the network's programs.
Amortisation
Amortisation is the write-off of intangible assets (such as production and program rights) over their expected period of use (generally several years) and occurs when the intangible assets are treated as capitalised expenses. The amortisation charge is expensed through the business' financial statements.
Australian content
Australian content is defined as content that is produced under the creative control of Australian nationals.
Casual employees
Casual employees are those persons directly employed by the business who are not entitled to paid leave. This item excludes payments to freelancers paid through an ABN.
Children's drama
Television drama made specifically for children under the age of 14 (see Drama for more information).
Commercials and program promotions
Media produced to advertise a product or service to the general public. Includes station and program promotions, which may take the form of interstitials. Also includes community service announcements.
Corporate video
Media produced specifically for corporate sector clientele, including media produced for targeted marketing and training purposes. Excludes commercials made for the general public (see Commercials and program promotions).
Depreciation
Depreciation is the financial charges made in the accounts to reflect that part of the value of the asset which may be regarded as having been used up in producing revenue in a particular accounting period. They represent the accounting process of systematically allocating the cost of a non-current asset over its expected useful life.
Digital games
Interactive software products made for the consumer entertainment market, involving a gameplay feature. Excludes products primarily designed for the purposes of training or advertising.
Directors' fee
Fees received by directors of film which are predetermined prior to the commencement of the film and can be a combination of fees, commissions or profit sharing.
Documentaries
Films or programs that provide a creative treatment of actuality other than news, current affairs, sports coverage, magazine, infotainment or light entertainment programs. Includes short documentaries. Excludes dramatised documentaries (include in Drama) and documentaries made specifically for children (include in Other children’s programs).
Drama
Programs that have a fully or partially scripted screenplay in which the dramatic elements of character, theme and plot are introduced and developed to form a narrative structure. Includes programs in which actors deliver improvised dialogue based on a scripted outline. Also includes animated drama and dramatised documentaries. Note that Situation and sketch comedy (see definition below) is a subcategory of drama.
Educational media
Media produced primarily for educational purposes. Includes media produced for schools, tertiary and other educational institutions, as well as for the general public.
Employees
This item represents all employees on the payroll for the last pay period ending June 2022. This includes persons paid on a retainer, wage or salary, managerial and executive employees and employees absent on paid or prepaid leave (except for employees paid under the Australian Government's Paid Parental Leave Scheme). It also includes employees on workers' compensation who continue to be paid through the payroll and Pay As You Go. It excludes self-employed freelance contractors with an ABN, casuals who did not work in the last pay period, non-salaried directors and volunteers.
Feature films
Films that are 60 minutes in length or longer, excluding documentaries (include in Documentaries) and telemovies (include in Television programs).
First release broadcast hours
This items represents the airtime of completed first release programmes, including time allocated for advertisements. Programme re-runs and the production time for commercials, advertisements and station programme promotions are excluded.
Format rights
Royalties received or paid for contracted use of format rights holder/licensee's technical, artistic, economical and business ideas.
Fringe benefits tax
Fringe benefits tax is a tax payable by employers on certain benefits in excess of normal wages or salaries (e.g. free or discounted goods or services) given to their employees (or associated employees) in connection with their employment.
Light entertainment
This item includes infotainment, lifestyle shows, panel shows, variety shows, game shows and reality television. It excludes programming made specifically for children (see Other children’s programs).
Middleware
Software that aids the development of a digital game, but does not function as a game on its own. Includes game engines.
News and current affairs
Programs reporting on current or recent happenings, including film coverage of international, national and local events, reports on weather and essential services. Also includes sports news bulletins and programs that interpret events through interviews or discussion with acknowledged experts.
Online productions
Productions made primarily for release on the internet. Excludes film, television and video productions that have a secondary release on the internet. Where the online production is part of a multi-platform project, it should be considered to be a separate production from those released on other platforms (e.g. short form online content related to a television series - see Short form online content).
Other children's programs
Television programs made specifically for children under the age of 14, excluding drama programs (include in Children’s drama).
Payroll tax
Payroll tax a tax levied by state and territory governments upon the amount of wages and salaries paid by a business.
PDV
PDV is acronym used for Post-production, Digital and Visual effects, and is a term used to describe the post-production industry.
Primary role
Primary role is used to categorise persons into mutually exclusive occupation categories. The primary role is the category that best reflects each persons role in the business. For employees who perform multiple roles within a business, the primary role is the category that best describes the role/activity which they spent the most time undertaking during the last pay period in June 2022.
Short films
Films that are shorter than 60 minutes in length, excluding documentaries (include in Documentaries) and telemovies (include in Television programs). Note that this item includes short features, defined as 45-55 minutes in length.
Short form online content
Short, episodic content of around 3-15 minutes created for online consumption and forming part of a web series.
Situation and sketch comedy
A subcategory of drama (see Drama for more information). Includes both situation comedy programs and programs comprised entirely of sketches that are short self-contained stories. Excludes stand-up comedy programs (include in Light entertainment). Also excludes comedy sketches featured incidentally in other types of program.
Sound editing
The process of arranging a film's soundtrack to decide its final order and content.
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
An SPV is a business created specifically to manage activities related to a single production (e.g. a feature film or television series). Production companies may have a number of related SPVs, each representing a different production they are working on.
Sports programs
Live or delayed broadcasts of competitive sport (excluding replays) and sports preview, summary and talk shows (in which replays of events are incidental). Excludes sports news bulletins (include in News and current affairs).
Tax offset or rebate
This item refers to a type of government funding some film, television and digital games companies may be eligible for. A tax offset directly reduces the amount of tax a business must pay.
Television programs
Productions made primarily for broadcast on television.
Visual editing
This refers to the process of cutting and arranging a film to decide its final order, content and presentation. This process may involve the use of digital effects and/or animation.
Workers' compensation costs
Workers' compensation is a compulsory insurance cover taken out by all employers, except for self-insured workers, according to legislative schemes to cover employees suffering injury or disease in the course of, or arising out of, employment.
Working proprietors and partners
This item refers to working proprietors or working partners of unincorporated businesses. A working proprietor operates his or her own business (a sole proprietorship), while a working partner, along with one or more other partners, operates a partnership. Working proprietors and working partners are the owners of their business and as such, they are not considered to be employees of that business.