Special Broadcasting Service Corporation (SBS)

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Special Broadcasting Service Corporation (SBS)—Report for 2020-21

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Annual Report 2021

SBS acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia.

About SBS 4

Letter to the Minister 5

SBS Values 10

Organisational Structure 11

SBS Board of Directors 12

SBS Corporate Plan 17

2020-21 Snapshot 19

A Diverse Team 20

Great People; Great Culture 21

Distinctive Network 29

Engaged Audiences 55

Inspired Communities 63

Great Business 73

Annual Performance Statement 85

Financial Statements 89

Independent Auditor’s Report 90

Statement by the Directors and Chief Financial Officer 92

Statement of Comprehensive Income 93

Statement of Financial Position 94

Statement of Changes in Equity 95

Cash Flow Statement 96

Notes to the Financial Statements 97

Appendices 121

Index of Annual Report Requirements 190

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Contents

About SBS

SBS was established as an independent statutory authority on 1 January, 1978 under the Broadcasting Act 1942. In 1991, the Special Broadcasting Service Act (SBSAct) came into effect and SBS became a corporation.

The Minister responsible is the Hon. Paul Fletcher MP, Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and theArts.

SBS Charter The SBS Charter, contained in the SBS Act, sets out the principal function of SBS.

1. The principal function of the SBS is to provide multilingual and multicultural broadcasting and digital media services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect Australia’s multiculturalsociety.

2. The SBS, in performing its principal function, must:

a) contribute to meeting the communications needs of Australia’s multicultural society, including ethnic, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities; and

b) increase awareness of the contribution of a diversity of cultures to the continuing development of Australian society; and

c) promote understanding and acceptance of the cultural, linguistic and ethnic diversity of the Australian people; and

d) contribute to the retention and continuing development of language and other cultural skills; and

e) as far as practicable, inform, educate and entertain Australians in their preferred languages; and

f) make use of Australia’s diverse creative resources; and

g) contribute to the overall diversity of Australian broadcasting and digital media services, particularly taking into account the contribution of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the community broadcasting sector; and

h) contribute to extending the range of Australian broadcasting and digital media services, and reflect the changing nature of Australian society, by presenting many points of view and using innovative forms of expression.

SBS Purpose

“SBS inspires all Australians to explore, respect and celebrate our diverse world, and in doing so, contributes to a cohesive society.”

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From the Chair and ManagingDirector

The Hon Paul Fletcher MP Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts. Parliament House ACT2600

Dear Minister,

On behalf of the SBS Board of Directors, we are pleased to present the annual report of Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) for the year ending 30 June, 2021.

This Annual Report was approved by a resolution of the Corporation Directors on 25 August, 2021 and has been prepared in accordance with the relevant requirements of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 and Special Broadcasting Service Act 1991. It also assesses the organisation’s performance against the SBS 2020-2021 Corporate Plan.

SBS was established over 45years ago to ensure Australians had access to independent, culturally relevant media, enabling all members of society to participate and contribute as part of a nation fuelled - and enriched - by migration. Today, not only is Australia’s cultural and linguistic diversity greater than ever, but society is also contending with divisive forces and technologies, and global issues such as racism and inequality are being brought to the fore.

Never has there been a stronger case for SBS and the unrivalled and valuable services we

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016 Census.

provide, as demonstrated by our engagement with Australians in 2020-21 - a period of great challenge for the country. As we reflect on the past year, we are proud of the essential role SBS has played and the strong results our team has delivered in service of audiences.

At a time when the community was in need of trusted and accurate news and information, Australians turned to SBS. Uniquely placed to engage with the diverse communities that make up contemporary Australia, SBS proved itself to be more relevant than ever before, reaching multicultural and FirstNations communities with trusted voices to help them navigate this challenging year, and in particular the complexities of COVID-19.

In our ongoing response to the pandemic, SBS continued to focus on ensuring the safety of our people as a priority. Ourteams demonstrated exceptional adaptability to ensure SBS maintained its multiplatform operations, and in some areas increased its content output, adjusting production and news gathering processes to continue delivering distinctive content and critical services for all Australians. The Board was delighted to see such organisational agility and professional execution.

Every evening, and across digital platforms, SBS WorldNews provided comprehensive coverage of the impacts of COVID-19, locally and around the world, and saw a significant

audience increase in the 12-month period as Australians turned to SBS for its unique perspective and focus on delivering audiences facts, rather than opinions. Across the same period, NITV News increased its output and provided vital updates as a trusted platform addressing issues facing FirstNationscommunities.

SBS played a particularly critical role in ensuring that the one in five Australians who speak a language other than English at home1 had access to the resources they needed to be informed and safe.

Our dedicated SBS Multilingual Coronavirus Portal provided news and information in more than 60 languages, in addition to our curated, multiplatform coverage across SBS Radio and a range of resources produced in collaboration with the Federal Department of Health. Thisincluded videos in more than 66 languages including Auslan, informing communities about the COVID-19 vaccination and Australia’s national roll out plan. In July2021, SBS also partnered with the NSW Government to launch a nation-first program to deliver vital public health messages in languages other than English, through live interpreting of the daily NSW Government COVID-19 press conference into Arabic, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Assyrian, Cantonese and Khmer, and also partnered with the Victorian Government to share their updates in Arabic, Somali andUrdu.

Letter to the Minister

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The impact and value of SBS’s services are evident, with more than eight million Australian unique visitors accessing SBS’s COVID-19 content across our in-language digital offering since the beginning of the pandemic.2 Wealso welcomed overwhelmingly positive feedback from a broad spectrum of community and political stakeholders, supportive of SBS’s work in serving our multicultural and First Nations communities. SBS is committed to supporting all Australians and it will continue to play a vital role as the nation responds to the social and economic ramifications of thepandemic.

We know the power of engaging with people in their first language to achieve this. It’swhy we have a strategic focus to serve Australia’s culturally and linguistically diverse communities with more multilingual content and services than ever before, evolving our multiplatform offerings and building on our existing SBS Radio services. Thissupports new migrants, ensures older Australians who speak a language other than English remain connected to Australian society, and helps communities maintain their culture throughlanguage.

In February 2021, SBS launched a new service for Mandarin and Cantonese speaking Australians: SBSä¸æ

2. Source: Adobe Analytics, SBS Production, 01/03/2020-30/06/2021, Unique Visitors.

(SBSChinese), a mobile-first digital offering providing more of our trusted news, information and entertainment to meet the needs of these diverse and growing communities. Thiswas supported by additional ongoing funding received in the October 2020 Federal Budget of approximately two million dollars per year. Inthe May 2021 Federal Budget, SBS was provided with a further $29 million over the next three years to enhance our language services. As part of our strategy to expand our multilingual offering across platforms, SBS is pleased to be investing some of this additional funding into producing its own Arabic and Mandarin television news bulletins.

SBS is committed to making more of its content accessible to a wider audience. To bring SBS’s original Australian stories to diverse communities in their language, we increased our growing collection of subtitled content on SBS On Demand by over 240 per cent in 2020-21. Wewere also pleased to expand our capability for audiences to log in and explore SBS OnDemand in more languages, with the introduction of Traditional Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese, joining Arabic and Simplified Chinese with in-language log-in.

SBS continued to connect with audiences and to inspire greater understanding through our ability to explore issues impacting on

our nation, sharing stories that celebrate, reflect, and resonate with contemporary Australia. We delivered a large increase in local content across platforms in 2020-21, from dramas to factual programming, entertainment and special events, highlighting issues and championing voices rarely seen or heard.

See What You Made Me Do was a stand-out example of SBS delivering a powerful cross-network event to raise awareness of a national issue with all Australians, in a way that no other broadcaster can. SBS engaged audiences across all its channels and platforms, delivering a slate of content in May 2021 to examine the important issue of domestic abuse in multiple languages and from a range of perspectives relevant to the many communities we serve. This is the kind of critical and, at times, confronting content for which SBS is known, shining a light on an important subject with the aim of having a positive impact in our society.

We also continued to entertain audiences in distinctly SBS ways. In April, we premiered the biggest commission in the network’s history, The Cook Up with AdamLiaw, a 200-episode series offering culinary inspiration and entertainment for all Australians, unifying audiences through food. We also built on our commitment to cycling, as a way of bringing

“SBS continued to connect with audiences and to inspire greater understanding through our ability to explore issues impacting on our nation, sharing stories that celebrate, reflect, and resonate with contemporary Australia.”

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people together through a shared passion for the sport, securing the exclusive broadcast rights to the Tour de France until 2030, and the exclusive free-to-air broadcast rights to the Giro d’Italia until 2025.

At a time when people couldn’t gather physically, we continued to engage with communities. AllAustralians were able to celebrate a delayed NAIDOC Week together with SBS in November 2020, when NITV made television history as home to the first all-Indigenous breakfast TV show, Big Mob Brekky. Broadcast each morning throughout the week, it was part of a network-wide offering inviting all Australians to celebrate the history, cultures and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This goes to the heart of SBS’s unique position as Australia’s multicultural and Indigenous broadcaster, and our capacity to connect communities.

SBS remains committed to its role as a leader in ensuring a more inclusive media sector in Australia. In 2020-21, SBS announced several new industry initiatives, including the Emerging Writers’ Incubator and Curious Australia, aimed at bringing the sector together to invest in the development of practitioners from backgrounds often under-represented in the industry, and storytelling on screen that promotes a more inclusive vision of Australia. These joined SBS’s suite of more than 20 initiatives designed to boost diverse storytelling, on

3. Australian Entertainment & Media Outlook 2021-2025, PwC, July 2021.

and off screen - investing in the next generation, supporting meaningful career pathways, and bringing more diverse voices and perspectives to the forefront, for the benefit of our sector overall.

Our capacity to explore and reflect the diversity of contemporary Australia is intrinsically linked to who we are and how we operate as an organisation. We are continuing to learn and improve - as many institutions are - and we are committed to not just ensuring we express our purpose through our programs, but also in all that we do.

This includes how we have responded to historical experiences of racism at SBS, which were raised at the outset of the year. SBS introduced and accelerated a range of actions, building on existing initiatives to demonstrate our commitment to being an inclusive workplace, representative of the communities SBS serves. Wetook steps to implement positive changes in areas including representation, organisational capability, transparency and measurement, and the processes and systems we use. A full list of these initiatives is included on page 24. This work is ongoing and will feed into the development of our new three-year Inclusion Strategy in 2021-22.

We are proud to report that the SBS workforce is incredibly diverse, at all levels, including the Board and Executive, genuinely reflecting the society from which our team is drawn. We remain

committed to doing more to ensure there are no barriers toinclusion.

As well as being an inclusive organisation driven by its purpose, SBS is efficient and effective in meeting the needs of contemporary Australia.

Our trusted position in the market and clear point of difference, along with a vigilant approach and contingency plans implemented in the year prior, set us up well to manage the strong economic headwinds felt by businesses across the country in the first quarter of 2020-21 due to COVID-19.

Whilst SBS accounts for only 0.8per cent of the total Australian advertising market,3 the income from our commercial activities equates to approximately 30per cent of SBS’s total operating revenue, thereby making a significant contribution to the delivery of our strategy. In2020-21, we were pleased to grow our income earned from advertising and sponsorship activities by 14 per cent year-on-year to $119.8 million; this was achieved through our ability to connect with a diverse audience and provide a market-leading user experience. This demonstrates our commitment to self-funding the evolution of our offerings to meet the ever-changing needs and expectations of Australian audiences. Over the last six-year period, SBS’s ongoing efficiency program has culminated in over $54 million of realised savings

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in 2020-21, six million dollars of which was generated this financial year.

SBS’s consistent commercial performance and efficiency savings have allowed SBS to continue reinvesting in distinctive content and the growth of our digital services.

Our financial stewardship ensures we deliver on the SBS Charter at the lowest cost to serve, leveraging our funding to deliver news and information to audiences in over 60 languages, and providing inspiring entertainment when it has been needed most. This year we grew our network metro share to 8.9per cent, reaching 10.8million Australians on TV each month4 despite a linear market decline. We also continued to grow digital audiences, with over 9.6million registered users on SBS On Demand, up 16 per cent on last year, 5 and radio podcast downloads up 65 per cent in 2020-21.6

Continual optimisation, product enhancements and improved content discovery across both linear and digital has ensured a more seamless experience for viewers. This has improved engagement with audiences over time, including a 312 per cent increase in digital consumption hours over the last six-year period. In 2020-21, improvements to the advertising experience on SBS On Demand in response to critical audience feedback saw

4. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021 v 01/07/2019-30/06/2020, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200 + 1800-2300, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Monthly Reach + Metro FTA Primetime Share + Combined Average Audiences, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

5. Janrain SBS Registered Users as at June 2021.

6. Feedpress. Uniques. 01/072020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.

complaints decrease by more than 80 per cent, demonstrating SBS’s audience-first approach.

In late 2020, SBS also implemented a new audience feedback tool to address issues more effectively, with 81.9 per cent of queries from December 2020 to June 2021 resolved with one touch, and 97.3 per cent resolved in total, with a post-resolution satisfaction score of 89 per cent. SBS will continue to deliver on its long-standing commitment to improve the experience of audiences across platforms.

The principles and policies that guide SBS’s content creation are set out in the SBS Code of Practice, which is critically important to the trust our audiences and stakeholders have in SBS. Led by the Codes Review Committee, chaired by Professor Sally Walker, the SBS Board’s governance during the year included a major review of the Code, ensuring that SBS upholds the highest standards of editorial independence and integrity, and reflecting the evolution of the media landscape in which weoperate.

In October we welcomed the appointment of Nyunggai WarrenMundine AO to the SBS Board and Audit and Risk Committee. We also farewelled Daryl Karp AM, who retired from the Board in June 2021 after 10years of service, having made a significant contribution with her deep experience in media and the arts, and as a strong advocate for SBS.

We were deeply saddened by the passing of SBS’s former Chair, Carla Zampatti AC, in April 2021. Carla served as Chair from 1999 to 2009, drawing on her business leadership experience to steer SBS through a decade of great change in the media industry.

For more than 45 years, SBS has offered a point of difference in the media landscape, evolving with our society to reflect and serve our audiences, as a home for all Australians, in all our diversity. Asour multilingual communities are growing, so too is SBS’s relevance and sense of purpose.

We are excited about the future for SBS and the plans we have to deepen engagement with our audiences and communities. With our trusted reputation, our unmatched ability to inform, entertain and engage diverse audiences, and our commitment to inspire a shared understanding and respect amongst all Australians, SBS will continue to deliver on its Charter and contribute to greater social cohesion and inclusion for the benefit of all.

George Savvides AM Chair

James Taylor Managing Director

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SBS SBS is the destination for distinctive Australian storytelling, in-depth international news and current affairs, sport that unites communities, and the world’s most distinctive dramas and documentaries. Audiences come to SBS for the bigger picture on global issues, insightful stories that explore our diverse society, and inspiring entertainment that encourages greater acceptance, appreciation and celebration of difference, in all its forms.

NITV National Indigenous Television (NITV) is the home of Indigenous storytelling, including Australia’s only national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander television news service. With programs that inspire, instil pride and lead to a greater understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and cultures, made by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, NITV helps all Australians to connect with our rich First Nations history.

SBS VICELAND SBS VICELAND’s cutting-edge, contemporary programs are made for young people, by young people, talking about the global and local issues that matter to them. International news, current affairs and sport, sit alongside exclusive and original documentaries, entertainment and movies, all hand-picked and curated by SBS for an Australianaudience.

SBS On Demand SBS On Demand is Australia’s most distinctive streaming destination, enabling SBS to deliver its Charter in a digital environment. SBS On Demand is home to more than 11,000 hours of premium, curated content from Australia and around the globe, available to audiences on their device of choice, accessible at their convenience.

SBS Radio SBS Radio is the world’s most linguistically diverse public broadcasting service - available on radio, online, digital television, social media, and a variety of podcasts. Servicing more than 60 languages, SBSRadio is dedicated to the nearly five million Australians who speak a language other than English at home, while the three music channels (SBS PopAsia, SBS PopDesi and SBS Chill) engage all Australians through music and pop culture from around the world. SBS Arabic24 and SBSä¸æ provide comprehensive services around the clock for our largest languagecommunities.

SBS Food SBS Food is a 24/7 free-to-air foodie channel for all Australians, with a focus on premium Australian and global content exploring the world through cooking, cuisine and culinary cultures.

SBS World Movies SBS World Movies is a celebration of the diversity of world cinema, featuring films from all corners of the globe, on free-to-air and in HD. Launched on 1 July, 2019 with great success, it offers a diverse range of movies building on SBS’s long legacy as the home of unique and multilingual film.

SBS Distribution SBS Distribution extends the reach, brand and commercial returns of SBS programs and services through commercial collaborations. Distribution also delivers cultural competency training to help Australian government organisations, not-for-profits and corporations navigate and maximise the benefits of cultural diversity in the workplace.

Our Diverse Offering

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SBS Values

Underpinning our success, SBS’s values inform our behaviours and actions, and influence our decisions and how we work.

We are audience obsessed We exist for them. Weare passionate about understanding our audiences’ needs and what inspires them. We make decisions with our audiences in mind. Webuild partnerships with thecommunity.

We embrace difference We bring our whole self to work. We passionately pursue our purpose and we advocate for diversity. We don’t tolerate inequality. Weconnect with people and ensure everyone isheard.

We are bold and brave We are thought provoking. We respectfully challenge eachother. Wedon’t accept the status quo. We aim for extraordinary. Werecognise that when we fail, a new learning opportunity iscreated.

We engage and participate fully We don’t sit on the sidelines. We hold each other to account whilst accepting personal responsibility. We don’t accept passengers along for the ride. We keep evolving through continuous improvement.

We look out for oneanother We foster a sense of belonging. We care for each other personally and professionally. We make it easy for people to do their job. We act as one team and support each other. Wecelebrate oursuccess.

SBS Board Chair George Savvides AM1

Directors James Taylor (Managing Director) Peeyush Gupta AM Daryl Karp AM2 William Lenehan

Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO3 Prof Sally Walker AM Dorothy West Christine Zeitz

Community Advisory Committee Chair Dorothy West

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts The Hon Paul Fletcher MP

Chief Technology Officer Darren Farnham

Director, SBS Media Adam Sadler

Director, Indigenous Content Tanya Denning-Orman

Director, TV & Online Content Marshall Heald

Director, Audio & Language Content David Hua

Director, People & Culture Stig Bell

Director, News & Current Affairs Mandi Wicks

Director, Marketing Jane Palfreyman

Chief Financial Officer Nitsa Niarchos

Managing Director James Taylor

1. George Savvides AM was Acting Chair from 3 June, 2020; his substantive appointment as SBS Chair commenced on 9 July, 2020.

2. Daryl Karp AM concluded her term on the SBS Board on 29 June, 2021, having reached the ten-year limit outlined in the SBS Act.

3. Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO was appointed to the SBS Board on 29 October, 2020.

4. SBS Executive Committee as at 30 June, 2021.

Audit and Risk Committee Chair Peeyush Gupta AM

Codes Review Committee Chair Prof Sally Walker AM

Remuneration Committee Chair William Lenehan

SBS Ombudsman Sally Begbie

Director, Corporate Strategy Sarah Yassien

Director, Corporate Affairs Clare O’Neil

General Counsel Theo Dorizac

SBS Executive Committee4

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Organisational Structure

The SBS Board of Directors, consisting of the Managing Director and non-executive Directors, is responsible for deciding the objectives, strategies and policies to be followed by SBS in performing its functions. It also ensures that SBS performs in a proper, efficient and economical manner, and with the maximum benefit to the people ofAustralia.

The duties of the Board, as set out at section 10 of the SBS Act, are to:

— Maintain the independence and integrity of SBS;

— Develop and publicise SBS’s programming policies;

— Ensure, by means of SBS’s programming policies, that the gathering and presentation by SBS of news and information is accurate and is balanced over time and across the schedule of programs broadcast;

— Ensure that SBS does not contravene: this Act or any other Act; or any directions given to, or requirements made in relation to, SBS under this Act or another Act;

— Ensure the efficient and cost-effective functioning ofSBS;

— Ensure that SBS seeks to co-operate closely with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to maximise the efficiency of the publicly funded sectors of Australianbroadcasting;

— Be aware of, and responsive to, community needs and opinions on matters relevant to the Charter;

— Develop and publicise SBS’s policies on the handling ofcomplaints;

— Ensure that the pursuit by SBS of its subsidiary functions does not detract from SBS fulfilling its Charter responsibilities; and

— Develop codes of practice relating to programming matters, and, if SBS has the function of providing a datacasting service, that service; and to notify those codes to the Australian Communications and MediaAuthority.

Board meetings and Directors’ attendance The Board met six times during 2020-21

Board Member

Meetings Attended

George Savvides AM (Chair) 6

James Taylor (Managing Director) 6

Peeyush Gupta AM 6

Daryl Karp AM 5

William Lenehan 6

Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO

Prof. Sally Walker AM 6

Dorothy West 6

Christine Zeitz 6

Board Meeting Date Location

26 August, 2020 Video Conference

25 November, 2020 Video Conference

24 February, 2021 (Strategy Day) Sydney/ Video

Conference

25 February, 2021 Sydney

28 April, 2021 Melbourne

30 June, 2021 Video

Conference

George Savvides AM Chair

George Savvides AM was initially appointed as Deputy Chair on the SBS Board of Directors on 23 February, 2017 before being appointed as Chair on 9 July, 2020. George has extensive management and board experience working in government-owned enterprises and not-for-profit organisations.

With 30 years’ experience in the Australian and NewZealand health care sector, hewas CEO of two IPO listings on the ASX, Sigma in 1999 and Medibank Private in 2014, and served as the CEO of Medibank, for 14years until 2016. He served as Chair of World Vision Australia until February 2018, and is a former Chair of Kings Group Ltd, Macquarie University Hospital and Next Science Pty Ltd. Heis currently a Board member of Insurance Australia Group Limited, NZX listed Ryman Healthcare, and BuildXactSoftware Ltd.

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SBS Board of Directors

Born in Sydney of Greek Cypriot parents, he moved to Melbourne with his family in 1992. He has an Honours degree in industrial engineering from UNSW, a Masters of Business Administration from University of Technology Sydney and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

In early 2020, George was made a member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the community, to charitable groups and to business.

During his service on the SBS Board, George has been Chair of the SBS Board Remuneration Committee and a member of SBS’s Community AdvisoryCommittee.

James Taylor Managing Director

James Taylor has 20 years’ experience across the media and telecommunications sectors, and was appointed Managing Director of SBS in October 2018.

Prior to his appointment as Managing Director, James was SBS’s Chief Financial Officer for more than six years, having joined the organisation as Head of Corporate Finance in June2012. During his time as CFO, James had oversight of the Finance, Corporate Strategy, People and Culture, SBS Media, Legal and Corporate Services teams. He has been central to the ongoing strategic direction, digital innovation and efficient operations of the publicbroadcaster.

Prior to SBS, James was Director of Strategy Consulting at Deloitte, Head of Strategy and Corporate Development at British Telecom and Director, Corporate Development at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Peeyush Gupta AM Non-Executive Director

Appointed 17 October, 2014, Peeyush Gupta AM is the Chairman and non-executive Director on a range of commercial, public sector and not-for-profit boards including as Chair of Charter Hall Long Wale REIT and Charter Hall Direct Property Management Ltd, and as a Director of National Australia Bank, SBS, Link Administration, Insurance and Care (NSW), Quintessence Labs, Western Sydney University and the Bank of New Zealand Life Insurance. This included serving on various sub-committees of these Boards including in risk, remuneration, investment and finance. Peeyush was the co-founder and inaugural CEO of IPAC Securities, a wealth management firm providing financial advice and institutional portfolio management in Australia and internationally.

Peeyush holds a Masters of Business Administration in Finance from the Australian Graduate School of Management, University of NSW, and is also an alumnus of Harvard and the London Business School. He was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in January 2019 for significant service to business and the community through governance and philanthropic roles. Peeyush chairs the SBS Board Audit and Risk Committee.

Daryl Karp AM Non-Executive Director (until 29 June, 2021)

Appointed 29 June, 2011, Daryl Karp AM is Director of the Museum of Australian Democracy. She combines extensive experience in broadcast and digital media, with a focus on content, strategy and governance. Daryl’s previous positions include CEO and Managing Director, Film Australia, Head of Factual Programs (Television), Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), and Head of Science and Documentaries/ Science and Features at the ABC. She is Chair of the Council of Australian Museum Directors, and Chair of the Canberra Writer’s Festival.

Daryl has an arts degree from Tel Aviv University, is a graduate of Wharton Business School’s Advanced Management Program and is a Fellow of the Institute of Company Directors (FAICD). Shewas awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in June2019 for significant service to the arts, particularly to the museum and galleries sector. Daryl was a member of the SBS Board Codes Review Committee and the Audit and Risk Committee. Daryl’s service on the SBS Board concluded on 29 June, 2021, having reached the ten-year limit outlined in the SBSAct.

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William (Bill) Lenehan Non-Executive Director

Appointed 15 November, 2012, BillLenehan has 45years’ experience in the television industry in Australia, holding many positions in the TenNetwork from management, administration and broadcast operations. He currently runs his own consulting business, Bilinda Pty Ltd, specialising in media, marketing and businessadministration.

Bill has held previous board positions with the National Australia Day Council, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, The Queensland Harness Racing Board, ThoroughVision Pty Ltd and the Royal Queensland Agricultural and Industrial Society. Bill is a member of the SBS Board Audit and Risk Committee and Chair of the Remuneration Committee.

Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO Non-Executive Director

Appointed 29 October, 2020, Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO is a descendant of Australia’s Bundjalung, Gumbaynggirr and Yuin First Nations.

He is a businessman, entrepreneur, company director, advisor to governments and businesses, media commentator, TV and webinar show host, author and opinion writer.

Warren is a political strategist and advocate for Australian economic reform and growth, empowering the First Nations people of Australia to build businesses and sustainable

economies. Warren’slife and career is shaped by a personal commitment to regional and Indigenous economic development. Warrenhas over 40years’ experience working in the public, business, policy, arts and community sectors.

Warren is a member of the SBS Board Audit and Risk Committee.

Prof. Sally Walker AM Non-Executive Director

Appointed 23 February, 2017, Prof. Sally Walker AM is a lawyer by training. After practising law for some years, she joined the Law School at the University of Melbourne where she developed new courses in Media, Communications and Information Technology Law. She is the author of The Law of Journalism in Australia.

Sally was later appointed as Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Melbourne. She left that role to take up an appointment as Vice-Chancellor of Deakin University, a position she held from January 2003 to July 2010.

In 2005, Sally received the Judges’ Award in the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Awards. In 2011 she was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in recognition of her contribution to education, to the law as an academic and to the advancement of women. She is a Professor Emeritus of Deakin University and of the University of Melbourne Law School.

Since leaving Deakin University, Sally has undertaken consultancy projects for State and Federal Governments and for a range of non-government organisations. From 2013 to 2017 she worked in the higher education consulting section of Deloitte in Melbourne. She now holds a number of non-executive Director roles. Sally chairs the SBS Board Codes Review Committee.

Dorothy (Dot) West Non-Executive Director

Appointed 15 November, 2012, Dot West nee Henry, is a Noongar woman from the south west of Western Australia, with ancestral ties to the north and has been living and working in the Kimberley region since 1977. Dothas worked in the media industry since 1987 in various capacities commencing as a radio volunteer to Station Manager, Trainer and later diversifying to the screen industry. Dot has served on numerous boards including the Inaugural Vice Chairperson of NITV, Screenwest, Australian International Documentary Conference, the National Indigenous Radio Service and Chairperson of the national peak body, First Nations Media Australia, along with her current tenure as a non-Executive Director of SBS, Director of Goolarri Media Enterprises and Ramu Productions in Broome. Dot works freelance as a scriptwriter, accredited trainer and story advisor and serves on Screenwest’s Industry Advisory Group and WA’s Screen Industry Diversity and Inclusion leadershipgroup.

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Since 2014, Dot has been the co-facilitator of the Goolarri Writers Program where she’s been able to support emerging Indigenous writers.

In 1998, Dot graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies and over the years, she has been recognised by the industry and her peers for her work as a writer and her broader role in the Indigenous media sector, by receiving the 2005 Tudawali Award, 2008 WASA for Outstanding Contribution to the WA Screen Industry, and in 2014, an Honorary Doctorate with Swinburne University along with an AWGIE in 2009 for her work in The Circuit 2, and a First Nations Media Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. Dot chairs the SBS Community Advisory Committee and is a member of the SBSCodes Review Committee.

Christine Zeitz Non-Executive Director

Christine Zeitz is a leader in Australia’s defence industry, with over 30 years’ experience delivering world-class solutions and services across the Asia Pacific region to Defence, security, ICT and intelligencecustomers.

Christine was appointed General Manager, Asia Pacific region, at Northrop Grumman in July 2020 with responsibility for all aspects of growth, program awards and financial performance in Australia, and oversight for Japan and Korea market development.

Prior to joining Northrop Grumman Australia, Christine served as Chief Executive Officer of Leidos Australia for five years, where she delivered a 100 percent growth in revenue through an ambitious restructure of the Australian business. Thisfollowed roles at Lockheed Martin, where she served as Vice President and Managing Director for Australia and Asia Pacific, and 25 years at BAE Systems Australia in various roles, culminating in her leading the maturation of globally strategic partnerships as President North East Asia.

As well as SBS, Christine is an active board member of the Centre for Defence Industry Capability and Port Adelaide Football Club, and is a champion of workplace diversity and a passionate advocate for women in national security.

With a diverse background in program management, operations, strategy, business development, contracts and finance, Christine has a proven track record of building high-performing teams and programs and achieving business growth in the Asia Pacific region.

Christine is a member of the SBS Board Remuneration Committee.

15 a world of difference

SBS Board Committees The SBS Board has three standing committees for considering a wide range of detailed issues and making recommendations for consideration by theBoard.

Audit and Risk Committee

The SBS Audit and Risk Committee met four times during the year and considered the findings and recommendations of audits conducted by both the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) and SBS’s internal auditor.

The Audit and Risk Committee also considered and gave direction on a wide range of issues, including approval of the annual internal audit program, investment and financing activities, risk management framework and strategy, and financial statements audit.

The charter setting out the functions of the Audit and RiskCommittee can be found on the SBS website at sbs.com.au/aboutus/sbs-audit-and-risk-committee-charter.

Name Position

Meetings Eligible to Attend Meetings

Attended

Peeyush Gupta AM Chair 4 4

Daryl Karp AM Member 3 3

William Lenehan Member 4 4

Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO Member 1 1

Board members do not receive an additional fee for membership of the Audit and Risk Committee, nor any other SBS Board standing committee.

Codes Review Committee

The Codes Review Committee considers proposed amendments and other issues relating to the SBS Code of Practice and the SBS Editorial Guidelines. The Committee met seven times to consider and finalise a review of the SBS Code of Practice which was presented to the SBS Board and approved in February 2021. The Committee also agreed on a forward plan for a review of the SBSEditorialGuidelines.

Name Position

Meetings Attended

Sally Walker AM Chair 7

Daryl Karp AM Member 7

Dorothy West Member 7

Remuneration Committee

The Remuneration Committee oversees the SBS policies for remuneration of the Managing Director and the SBS Executive. The Committee met three times during the year.

Name

Position

Meetings Attended

William Lenehan Committee Chairperson 3

Christine Zeitz Member 3

James Taylor Member 3

George Savvides AM Observer (SBS Chair) 3

SBS Community Advisory Committee In addition to the SBS Board’s three standing committees, the SBS Community Advisory Committee (CAC) assists the SBS Board in ensuring SBS’s content and services reflect the priorities and needs of the communities it was established to serve, including small or newly arrived migrant groups, to better enable SBS to contribute to a more inclusive Australian society.

This Committee primarily comprises representatives from an array of communities from across Australia. In 2020-21, the CAC was Chaired by SBS Board member Dorothy West and also attended by SBS Board Chair George Savvides. The Managing Director and senior SBS Executives regularly address the Committee.

The Committee met three times in 2020-21.

Refer to pages 69 for full details on the Committee, its function and members.

16 SBS Annual Report 2021

SBS Corporate Plan

How We Measure Success

What we do The operations of SBS can be broken down into four areas of significant activity, all of which contribute to SBS delivering on its Charter and achieving its Purpose, for the benefit of Australian audiences:

Content creation, acquisition and curation Content broadcast and distribution

Content

commercialisation

Content support activities

This Annual Report reviews SBS’s performance against the SBS Corporate Plan 2020-21 and the Communications and the Arts Portfolio Budget Statements and Portfolio Additional Estimates for 2020-21.

As part of the Federal Government’s Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act (PGPA Act 2013) legislative framework, the SBS Corporate Plan must be updated annually on a rolling four-year basis. The SBS Corporate Plan 2020-21 covers the period 2020-21 to 2023-24.

The Corporate Plan is influenced by the organisation’s Four-Year Strategic Journey and the SBS Values.

Ensuring SBS delivers on Charter and

Purpose

Maintaining relevance on traditional broadcasting

platforms

Growing consumption on SBS digital platforms

Managing the transition to a digital SBS audience

base

Improving the share of funding from commercial

revenue

Growing staff engagement and collaboration to maximise

business outcomes

Details of SBS’s performance against its key performance indicators in 2020-21 are found in the Annual Performance Statement section of this report (pages 85-88).

17 a world of difference

Our Four-Year Strategic Journey (2020-21 focus)

Under the five focus areas that form the framework of the four-year Strategic Journey, SBS identified the following significant activities for 2020-21 to deliver on the organisation’s strategic goals and objectives.

Delivering against our Charter and Purpose

SBS inspires all Australians to explore, respect and celebrate our diverse world and in doing so, contributes to a cohesive society

1 Great People; Great Culture

‘I’m hearing great things about working at SBS’

— Our strong focus on our people and our culture is ‘how’ we are going to succeed

— Creating new opportunities and ways of working whilst protecting our people, operations and organisation against the effects of COVID-19

2 Distinctive Network

‘Showcasing Australia’s Diversity’

— Exploring, respecting and celebrating diversity in all its forms is central to our content activities, especially via culturally and linguistically diverse content to TV, radio and online audiences

— Providing multicultural communities with factual and trustworthy information in their preferred language

— Increasing the hours of subtitled flagship content and growing in-language user experiences on our digital platforms

Inspired Communities

‘It’s all about our communities’

— Partnering with our many communities to understand key issues and perspectives, andtell their important stories

— Building on our NAIDOC partnership and further cornerstone activities that help to define SBS, and our services with the wider Australian community

— Continuing to protect and harness our trusted position with communities, stakeholders and foster social inclusion

Great Business

‘Best-in-class operations’

— Best-in-class operational cost base, processes and globally unique deals

— Continuing to create opportunities within the broader industry by differentiating where itmatters, and partnering with others in their areas of strength

Engaged Audiences

‘Deep audience engagement on all platforms’

— Continuing with our digital acceleration plan and providing an excellent audience experience across all platforms to drive engagement and consumption

— Improving our capabilities to serve our distinctive content to all audiences in any language and on any platform

These focus areas helped SBS to achieve its Purpose by:

— Reaching more Australians with SBS’s distinctive and compelling Charter content.

— Building audience awareness, scale and engagement on SBS’s digital platforms to ensure its relevance as people increasingly consume content on these platforms.

— Delivering “best in class” user experience for audiences on SBS digital platforms to improve audience engagement and loyalty.

— Growing the share of funding that is invested into Charter content by increasing returns from commercial activities, while continuing to innovate and find better ways of conducting SBS’s existing operations.

— Attracting and retaining the best people by making SBS a great place to work.

18 SBS Annual Report 2021

10.8 million Australians reached on TV each month across the SBS network7 1.8 millionAustralians reached by NITV each month 8.9% primetime metro share

(+0.2 share point increase year on year)

65% of content across SBS’s five TV channels is culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) - around 28,000 hours in 2020-21 254 hours of commissioned first-run hours across SBS Network More than 8 millionAustralian unique visitors have accessed SBS’s COVID-19 content across our in-language digital offering since the beginning of the pandemic87. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, July 2020 - June 2021, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200 + 1800-2400, Combined 5min Cons Reach + Metro Share, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.8. Source: Adobe Analytics, SBS Production, 01/03/2020-30/06/2021, Unique Visitors.9. Adobe Analytics, SBS Radio, monthly unique visitors, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.10. Adobe Analytics, Audio Plays; Feedpress, Uniques; Soundcloud, Streams; TuneIn Radio, Streams; Spotify, Streams; 01/07/2020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.11. Feedpress. Uniques. 01/072020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.12. Adobe Analytics (SBS Production); sbs.com.au and SBS On Demand; July 2020 - June 2021; Unique Browsers.13. Janrain SBS Registered Users as at June 2021.14. OzTAM VPM Database, SBS, Live + VOD, July 2020 - June 2021.15. Culture Amp, May 2021.16. SBS Brand Tracker - Q4 2021. Base: SBS Engaged Audiences.17. SBS Brand Tracker - May 2021. Base: SBS Engaged Audiences.18. SBS Brand Tracker - Q4 2021. Base: SBS Engaged Audiences.

More than

60 languagesserviced by SBS Radio 2.6 million average monthly unique visitors to SBS Radio and language websites9 6 + millionaverage monthly audio plays and downloads (28% increase year on year)10 3.8 millionaverage monthly radio podcast downloads (63% increase year on year)11 16 million monthly Australian unique visitors to SBS websites12 9.6+ million registered users across SBS digital platforms (16%increase year on year)13 11,000 hours of programming on SBS On Demand (70% of content is culturally and linguistically diverse; 50% of dramas in LOTE)

100 million hours of video content streamed on SBS On Demand 14

More than

500 hours of content subtitled in languages other than English for SBS On Demand 82% SBS employee engagement score, above Australian average of 74%1596%of audiences claim that it is good that SBS exists1689%of audiences say SBS helps Australia to be a more successful multicultural nation1793%of audiences say SBS helps them find content they couldn’t find anywhere else18 19

2020-21 Snapshot

A Diverse Team

20 SBS Annual Report 2021

11.5 % of SBS employees and 15.6 % of Senior Leaders have a diverse sexuality

Data based on voluntary information provided by employees, and how employees self-identify, via SBS’s anonymous annual diversity and inclusion survey, detailed on page 24.

53.2% of SBS employees and 51.7% of Senior Leaders are female

33.9% of SBS employees were born overseas

55.3% of SBS employees are culturally diverse 9.7% of SBS employees have a disability or chronic condition requiring workplace adjustments

3.9% of SBS employees and 6.9% of Senior Leaders are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 40.2% of SBS employees have a linguistically diverse background 21.4 % of SBS employees and 24.4% of Senior Leaders identify as a person of colour

20 SBS Annual Report 2021

SBS is focused on its people as a priority, with a commitment to providing a safe and inclusive workplace for all.

SBS’s people and culture are at the core of the organisation’s strategy, and are critical to its success, with a diverse, committed, high-performing team dedicated to SBS’s purpose. In 2020-21, with unprecedented challenges and risks associated with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, this focus on people was more important than ever, supporting teams to work together, and ensuring that the delivery of SBS’s essential services for Australian audiences continued in a safe way.

SBS’s COVID-19 response was strategic and effective, focused - in order of priority - on protecting SBS’s people, operations and the organisation from the immediate and long-term impacts of the pandemic, with a heightened attention to employee safety and wellbeing. There were no reported positive COVID-19 cases at SBS in 2020-21.

Broadcast-critical teams remained working on site throughout the year, adhering to strict safety protocols, while many teams were directed to work from home, given capacity limits in SBS offices due to physical distancing rules. In January 2021, SBS commenced the implementation of its SBS COVIDSafe at Work Roadmap, a four-step plan to a phased return of all employees to the workplace, which was paused at various points throughout the year based on health advice.

With more than half of SBS’s employees working from home for the majority of 2020-21, and up to 85 per cent at home during lockdown periods, SBS still maintained a high engagement score of 82 per cent, offering a raft of wellbeing resources and supporting teams to find innovative ways to connect and collaborate in a hybrid work environment. SBS plans to establish a new Ways of Working policy in 2021-22, drawing on insights from this experience as part of its flexible work approach.

While SBS’s people-related activities this year were largely determined by the pandemic and its impacts on employees, SBS continued to deliver on its commitment to evolving its culture, with a focus on being a values-driven organisation and a leading inclusive workplace.

Building on SBS’s existing Inclusion Strategy, a range of new diversity and inclusion programs and initiatives were introduced in 2020-21, to accelerate action with demonstrable steps across areas including representation, organisational capability, transparency, measurement, and processes and systems.

This ongoing work will inform the organisation’s new three-year Inclusion Strategy in 2021-22, as SBS continues to learn, improve and grow even further as the exemplar of diversity and inclusion, representative of the communities itserves.

Great People; Great Culture

Prioritising Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) and managing the impacts of COVID-19

SBS is committed to fostering a positive safety culture and to ensuring the health and safety of all employees, contractors, and members of the public who may be affected by its work. Thefocus of SBS’s safety program in 2020-21 pivoted to support the physical and psychological safety of its employees within the context of the ongoing and evolving COVID-19 pandemic.

Throughout 2020-21, a steering committee comprising senior representatives from all SBS divisions met regularly to assess the prevailing external COVID-19 environment and to provide guidance to the organisation on the latest impacts, response and business implications. As State and Federal guidance, travel restrictions and protocols shifted, SBS ensured it communicated relevant information toemployees.

SBS implemented COVIDSafe Plans for its controlled workplaces in Sydney and Melbourne, delivered tools for the management of potential COVID-19 hazards at work, created and updated COVID safety guidance, and undertook monitoring of potential suspected cases and verification of negative test results for all employees attending the workplace.

To allow content production and broadcast activity to continue, SBS introduced revised studio capacity limits and audience management guidance, to ensure the safety of its employees, talent and guests, in adherence to State and Federal health advice and COVID-safe protocols.

SBS consulted with employees on the development and implementation of the SBS COVIDSafe at Work Roadmap, a blueprint to ensure a safe workplace environment and clear operational plan in response to COVID-19. The Roadmap outlined a gradual return to SBS workplaces for those employees working from home, given physical distancing requirements and capacity limits in the workplace, with in-built flexibility to pause or progress based on relevant health advice.

SBS developed a comprehensive educational safety campaign featuring videos, posters and wayfinding signage to support employees working in the SBS offices, and for those returning to the workplace under the SBS COVIDSafe at Work Roadmap. This campaign focused on SBS protocols and safety measures to ensure all staff were aware of their obligations to one another and the protocols in place to keep teams safe and prevent workplace transmission.

Due to the reduced number of employees on SBS premises, injury and illness reporting numbers decreased significantly in 2020-21, with 40 incidents reported, compared to 106 in the previous financial year. TheSBS early intervention program

continued to deliver outstanding results with a substantial reduction in work-related claimscosts.

SBS conducted its annual WHS Audit Program across key divisions in August 2020 in an abridged format to focus on closing corrective actions, understanding that workplace attendance was reduced, and the nature of risks had primarily shifted to management of COVID-19 related hazards. SBS divisions engaged in the audit activity improved their performance with a minimum adjusted audit score of 98.6percent, an increase of almost 10points from the 2019 score of 89 per cent.

From September 2020, the Safety and Wellbeing Team commenced the referral of all identified “high-risk roles”, where employees may experience vicarious or cumulative exposure to trauma over the course of their duties, for mandatory annual wellbeing checks. A total of 214 identified high risk roles were referred, with the service provider contacting all individuals in the reporting period.

Supporting employee wellbeing during the pandemic To support staff in managing through the COVID-19 pandemic, and in anticipation of potential psychological and wellbeing impacts, SBS offered innovative wellbeing webinars and tools to support managers and employees. Theextensive program included employee wellbeing plans and communications, working from

22 SBS Annual Report 2021

home safety checklists and guidance, skin and health checks, and support webinars.

SBS developed a series of ten learning modules, designed to be delivered virtually and regularly to staff and managers. These included topics for people leaders such as ‘Leading in a time of crisis’ and ‘Leading and motivating in a virtual world,’ as well as offerings for all employees such as ‘Balancing childcare and remote working’.

On top of SBS’s internal support services, the third-party Employee Assistance Program service provided by Converge International offered a suite of support options for employees, and received a satisfaction rating of 100 per cent (“satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their EAP experience) this year.

19. Culture Amp, May 2021.

A highly engaged workforce

Employee Engagement Survey SBS’s annual Employee Engagement Survey showed a strong engagement result of 82 per cent, positioning the broadcaster well ahead of both the overall national average of 74per cent and the Australian media and creative industry average of 77 per cent. Theseresults place SBS within the top 25 per cent of companies in Australia.19

Of SBS’s employees, 88 percent believe that SBS provides a supportive culture for employees from diverse backgrounds, and 93per cent of SBS employees said they are proud to work forSBS.

SBS is committed to pursuing opportunities to further improve SBS as a great place to work, and use the insights and feedback from these confidential and anonymous surveys to respond and make positive changes.

Values-led Leadership The award-winning SBS leadership model, It’s How We Lead, has supported the continuous growth of SBS people leaders for over four years. Themodel is underpinned by defined behaviours, which leaders are measured against as part of the annual Employee Engagement Survey, and supported by several flagship development offerings each year.

We have a strategy and you are empowered to make decisions and execute against that strategy. We trust your capability and expertise. That’s why you’re here. Don’t give those decision rights away.

Perfectionism is not the same as striving to do our best. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Courage is making the choice to try even when we feel like we might fail.

Focus on what is best for SBS and not only on what is best for your team or division.

Encourage new and different perspectives. Diversity of thought means opening our minds to brand new ways of looking at problems and solutions.

Systems, procedures and processes are vital, but how we behave and treat one another is the most important thing of all.

It’s how we lead

We engage and participate fully

We are bold and brave We look

out for one another

We are audience obsessed

We embrace difference

23 Great People; Great Culture

Having launched It’s How We Lead 2.0 in 2019-20, an evolution of the leadership model which more explicitly aligned leadership behaviours and learning objectives with SBS’s organisational values, these leadership behaviours were baselined in October 2020 and a target of 85 per cent was set for each leadership behaviour. In May 2021, SBS measured against these behaviours again, and leaders scored an average of 85per cent, meeting the target.

Performance Process All SBS employees have a personal Focus work plan, which establishes clear goals aligned to team, divisional and organisational objectives under SBS’s strategy, as well as personal career goals. Managers are required to conduct regular conversations with individual team members which, combined with more formal check-ins, form the basis for SBS’s annual performance cycle. This process ensures an open dialogue and ongoing feedback to strengthen performance, employee engagement and careerdevelopment.

Diversity and Inclusion

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) SBS believes in developing a diverse workforce and this is reflected in its recruitment processes, leadership development, culture programs and Employee EngagementSurveys.

These processes ensure that appropriate action is taken to eliminate discrimination against and promote equal opportunity for women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, individuals from non-English speaking backgrounds and people who have a permanent disability, inrelation to employment matters in accordance with the Equal Employment Opportunity (Commonwealth Authorities) Act1987.

Workforce Overview SBS actively recruits and employs people from diverse backgrounds. Employees are invited to share diversity-related statistical information upon commencement of employment.

SBS recognises that there are a variety of reasons why employees may choose not to share personal, non-compulsory data with their employer. Forthis reason, SBS also collects diversity data through the annual Diversity & Inclusion Survey. This data is collected anonymously and is not attached to individual employeerecords.

This survey was last conducted in February 2021 and attracted 908responses (see page 25). The data collected by this survey informs the work of the SBS Inclusion Council in continuing to make SBS an inclusive and accessible workplace for all.

SBS Inclusion Strategy SBS launched its Inclusion Strategy in July 2018, with a focus on providing employment programs, policies and practices that establish SBS as one of the most inclusive employers in the media industry.

In 2020-21, the strategy was underpinned by several new programs and initiatives.

Accelerated development program

This program aims to help increase diverse representation at all levels across the organisation by targeting development for high potential individuals identified by SBS’s annual talent review process and representation data from the People and Culture division. This targeted development planning, which is specific to an individual and their next potential role, will help realise talent and successionplans.

The program involves a combination of local divisional commitments and a centralised program offered through People and Culture. A key component of this program is investing in the coaching and development skills of SBS managers. Themanager of each participant receives training on how best to support the development of their team member. These skills are then transferable to other teammembers.

24 SBS Annual Report 2021

Percentage of SBS employees1

Percentage of SBS Board 2

Percentage of Senior Leaders3

Percentage of People Managers4

First Nations People5

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander staff 3.9% 25% 6.9% 4.2%

Non-Indigenous staff 80.3% 75% 69% 75.8%

Not stated 15.8% 0% 24.1% 20%

Cultural Diversity

Identifies as culturally diverse 55.3% 75% 51.1% 49.4%

Does not identify as culturally diverse 31.7% 25% 43.3% 40.6%

Not stated 13% 0% 5.6% 10%

People of colour

Identifies as a person of colour 21.4% 25% 24.4% 16.3%

Does not identify as a person of colour 66% 75% 71.1% 73.6%

Not stated 12.7% 0% 4.5% 10.1%

Language Background

Mainly English speaking 52.1% 50% 70% 61.5%

Mainly non-English speaking 27.1% 12.5% 12.2% 21.2%

Combination 13.1% 37.5% 16.7% 11.5%

Not stated 7.7% 0% 1.1% 5.8%

Place of Birth

Australia 53.8% 87.5% 67.8% 54.9%

Overseas 33.9% 12.5% 27.8% 31.9%

Not stated 12.3% 0% 4.4% 13.2%

Gender5

Female 53.2% 37.5% 51.7% 50%

Male 45.9% 62.5% 47.1% 49.4%

Non-Binary 0.9% 0% 1.2% 0.6%

Disability

People with a Disability 3.9% 12.5% 4.4% 3.5%

People with a chronic condition requiring workplace adjustments 5.8% 37.5% 4.4% 4.2%

People with no Disability 81.9% 50% 85.6% 86.1%

Not stated 8.4% 0% 5.6% 6.2%

Diverse Sexuality

Diverse Sexuality 11.5% 0% 15.6% 8.3%

Non-Diverse sexuality 75.4% 100% 80% 80.6%

Not stated 13.1% 0% 4.4% 11.1%

1. Represents full-time and part-time employees who voluntarily disclosed information.

2. Board data as at August 2021. Managing Director included in both SBS Board and Senior Leader columns.

3. Senior Leaders are defined as the SBS Executive Team and their Direct Reports.

4. People Managers are those employees who have at least one direct report.

5. SBS payroll data. All other employee data is from SBS’s annual Diversity & Inclusion Survey, last conducted February 2021.

Workforce Overview

25 Great People; Great Culture

Not only will this program positively impact representation by preparing individuals for their next role, but it will also foster higher engagement and workplace productivity. Building the capability of both the program participant and their manager accelerates development at SBS with a positive knock-on effect for other team members.

Participants take part over a 12-month period, commencing at the start of the calendar year. In 2021, 44 employees from under-represented backgrounds joined the inaugural program.

Diverse recruitment panels

SBS created a centralised database of employees from diverse backgrounds who volunteer to participate in SBS recruitment panels. This is an additional measure to ensure that every recruitment process has a diversity of perspectives and lived experiences represented on the selection panel. Thesevolunteer panellists are also provided training on best practice interviewing and how to spot and eliminate bias from the recruitment process.

Revised exit interviews

To encourage former employees to share any matters that may have contributed to their decision to leave SBS, a new exit interview process was created, administered by a third party; this enables actions to be taken where appropriate.

Identified Indigenous positions

In 2020-21, SBS created 12additional pathway positions in early career roles across the organisation to establish more opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who are starting their careers.

Universal design reviews

SBS undertook an inclusive design review process across a number of core business processes, with employees from a range of different backgrounds and lived experiences to informing the design. Theprocesses which were revised included the recruitment process and the grievance and complaints handling process.

Career Trackers Indigenous Internship Program

In 2020-21, SBS welcomed six Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander interns for a 12-week paid summer placement as part of the Career Trackers program, including one intern who returned for a third year. SBS will continue building relationships with these students throughout their studies with a view to creating a career pathway for them into the organisation upon graduation.

The BlackCard

SBS has continued to roll out a Cultural Capability program to staff and board members in partnership with the Aboriginal-owned and operated organisation, The BlackCard. The program delivers cultural capability immersions to SBS employees. These immersive workshops take place over the course of a full day and

cover a variety of topics including Aboriginal Terms of Reference, rationality and logic within Aboriginal cultures, understanding acknowledgement and Welcome to Country, deepdive into Country, identity, governance and Elders, family and community.

The intention of the immersive sessions is to generate a greater appreciation for Aboriginal cultures and to use those learnings to strengthen relationships with Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander suppliers, partners, team members andcolleagues.

Candidate Development Fund

This program is designed to support the career mobility of internal job candidates, assisting leaders to promote internal talent by providing a centralised support fund to address any identified and specific development or experience gaps for internal talent on promotion to a new role.

Employee Advisory Groups

Alongside these specific initiatives, SBS continues its work with its Employee Advisory Groups (EAG), which are core to SBS’s Inclusion Strategy, empowering SBS’s people to take an active role in fostering an inclusive culture for all.

The EAGs include SBS Pride and Allies, focused on LGBTQI+ inclusion, The Network, which addresses gender equity, SBSAccess, which considers the experiences of employees living with disabilities, and SBS Multi, which brings together culturally,

26 SBS Annual Report 2021

religiously and linguistically diverse SBS team members, and the First Nations Staff Advisory Group comprising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff members and representing the broader First Nations staff cohort across SBS.

The groups work with external experts to inform their strategies and approach, and come together regularly at the SBS Inclusion Council meetings. Each EAG, along with the Reconciliation Action Plan committee, shares updates on activities, contributes proposals for the development and delivery of the Inclusion Strategy, and the outcomes from these meetings are shared with all SBS employees.

Fundamental to the EAG model, and SBS’s commitment to inclusion, are principles which ensure that intersectional perspectives are included in internal events, initiatives and activities, that the groups themselves are diverse, and that any employee, regardless of background or identity, may participate fully.

Australian Workplace EqualityIndex

SBS is a proud member of Pride in Diversity and participates in the annual Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI) which is the definitive national benchmark on LGBTQI+ inclusion in the workplace. In SBS’s first year of participation in 2019, SBS scored the second highest ranking for a first-year organisation in the history of the AWEI, and in 2020, SBS achieved recognition as a Gold tier employer.

20. The 2020 Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) gender equality scorecard released on 26 November, 2020.

In 2021, SBS again secured a Gold tier recognition with a 14 percent increase on the 2020 score, demonstrating the outstanding and ongoing commitment to LGBTQI+ inclusion in theworkplace.

Gender Equity Pay Review

Each year, SBS conducts a comprehensive gender pay equity analysis which looks at pay equity in terms of both like-for-like work and organisationalaverages.

The organisational average is calculated as the difference between the average male and the average female earnings, expressed as a percentage of the average male earnings. Thisis the methodology used and recommended by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). For the purposes of the review, SBS considers ‘earnings’ to be inclusive of both superannuation and performance-related pay and is therefore an expression of ‘totalremuneration’, not just basesalary.

The results of the organisational average analysis in June 2021 demonstrates a pay gap of 11.5per cent compared with an industry average of 20.8percent and a national average of 20.1percent.20

There has been a slight increase in the average pay gap at SBS in the 2020-21 financial year. This increase has been primarily driven by new hires into early and middle career level roles, with two thirds of such hires being women, impacting the

organisational average. Hiring into more senior positions by contrast has been relatively equitable.

Underpinning the gap more broadly are two representation challenges. Firstly, there is a lack of representation of senior women in technology-based roles. Secondly, there is an over-representation of women within entry-level roles. Thesetwo challenges impact the average salaries for both men and women at SBS and are the primary drivers behind the paygap.

SBS is committed to closing that gap and ensuring balance across all teams, it has identified a number of initiatives designed to bring balance at all levels. Theseinclude:

— Representation targets for women in technology basedroles

— Gender balanced interviewpanels

— Gender balanced candidateshortlists

— Detailed succession plans with gender balanced talentpipelines

— Enhanced flexibility options for employees

— Paid superannuation on unpaid parental leave

— Clause within the SBS Enterprise Agreement 2019 enabling employees to request a salary review on return from parental leave.

27 Great People; Great Culture

SBS reviews role-based data each year as part of the annual salary review process to ensure there are no like-for-like gender pay gaps. As at September 2020, there were no like-for-like pay gaps at SBS, and this review process will be repeated again in the second half of 2021.

National and Industry Averages: The 2020 Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) gender equality scorecard released on 26 November 2020.

Average Gender Pay Gap

Total Annual Remuneration Gender Pay Gap

25%

20%

15%

10%

2021 National average

2021 Industry average

SBS 2019 SBS 2021 SBS 2020

20.1% 20.8%

11.2%

9.9%

11.5%

<$100K

$100k-$150K

$150k-$200K

$200K +

Men Women

57.4%

53.6%

46.4%

52.5%

47.5%

72.8%

27.2%

42.6%

Gender representation by total salary level

28 SBS Annual Report 2021

Distinctive Network

In 2020-21, SBS delivered on its commitment to showcasing and reflecting Australia in all its diversity, celebrating multicultural and First Nations stories otherwise untold in the Australian media, and giving a voice to communities often unheard - all with the aim of connecting communities, increasing understanding and shifting perceptions to build social cohesion.

In an unforgettable year for national and international news events, dominated by the unfolding and unpredictable developments of the COVID-19 pandemic, SBS demonstrated the value of the unique role it plays in reaching and engaging diverse communities.

Amid uncertainty, SBS’s news and current affairs provided critical information, dispelling misinformation, and giving audiences the context and insight to make sense of it all, maintaining an unrelenting focus on providing the facts, instead of opinion, and providing nuance to cut through the noise.

Across television, SBS’s news and current affairs reached an average of 3.8 million Australians every month, with audiences for SBS World News’ weeknight bulletins experiencing an increase of close to 25 per cent at their peak, compared to the year prior.21 Meanwhile, SBSRadio services experienced a significant increase in digital consumption, including 65 per cent growth in monthly podcast downloads.22

As Australia’s multilingual broadcaster, SBS continues to evolve and adapt to meet the needs of contemporary Australia. In recognition of the growth and diversity of Chinese-language speaking communities, SBS launched SBSä¸æ (SBS Chinese) in February 2021. An extension of SBS’s unique multilingual offering for Australia’s

21. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021 v 01/07/2019-30/06/2020, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Monthly Reach + Combined Average Audiences, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

22. Source: Feedpress. Monthly Unique Downloads. 01/07/2019-30/06/2020 vs 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.

23. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021 v 01/07/2019-30/06/2020, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Monthly Reach + Combined Average Audiences, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

multicultural communities, it built on SBSRadio’s Chinese-language radio and podcast services, and a growing collection of content with Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese subtitles on SBS OnDemand.

SBSä¸æ is an investment not only in the services SBS provides as a trusted voice for these communities, but also in its capacity to contribute to greater understanding of issues impacting all Australians by sharing stories from the diverse Australian Chinese-language speaking communities across the wider network.

The power of SBS as a distinctive network was demonstrated through its commissioned content slate which reached 7.6 million Australians across the year.23 This was highlighted when SBS shone a light on Australia’s domestic abuse crisis through the landmark documentary series, See What You Made Me Do. The series was simulcast on SBS, NITV and SBS On Demand, available with subtitles in six languages, and audio described for vision- impaired audiences. The cross network event included special episodes of Dateline, Insight, Living Black and TheFeed, a powerful First Nations voices response program on NITV, We Say No More, and in-language explainer videos and discussion across SBS Radio, to delve more deeply into the topic. SBS Learn also partnered with the e-Safety Commissioner to create classroom resources around respectful relationships, extending the impact of the series.

The series, which broke records as the most viewed documentary on SBS On Demand to date, demonstrated SBS’s ability to engage diverse audiences in issues confronting society, create a national conversation, and deliver meaningful impact.

This year, SBS continued to push boundaries, encouraging audiences to consider new perspectives with content that captures and engages the real Australia - diverse, multilingual, and culturally rich.

The SBS Charter drives a commitment to services and storytelling with a point of difference

29 Distinctive Network

Trusted news and current affairs

With high demand for information across the news landscape, Australians turned to SBS for trusted and impartial journalism about complex national and global events. The latest news and developments, and much-needed explainers to help Australians navigate an increasingly complex world, were balanced with moments of inspiration. SBS’s current affairs programs delivered depth, exploring global and local issues through experts and first-person stories, finding new ways of storytelling in response to a global pandemic, and providing a welcome dose of comedy and satire from The Feed.

24. Source: OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021 v 01/07/2019-30/06/2020, SBS, Mon-Fri, 1830-1929, Combined Average Audiences, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

25. YouTube Analytics July 2020 - June 2021.

26. Feedpress. Unique Downloads. 01/07/2019-30/06/2020 vs 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.

SBS World News In 2020, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, viewers of SBS World News significantly increased, and strong television audience numbers have been maintained during the past 12months. Evening weeknight audiences were up almost 25 percent year on year at their peak, and that increased audience was held to remain up by more than 10 per cent over theperiod.24

SBS’s distinctive role in bringing the biggest global stories to a local audience continued, but with the limitations on international travel, the SBS World News team has continued to adapt its news gathering approach, including using digital technology to investigate stories, verify social media content and connect with sources on the other side of the world. This was especially crucial in the aftermath of the explosion in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, and the military coup in Myanmar.

In a rare deployment for one of the other major international stories of the year, UK-based Chief International Correspondent, Ben Lewis, covered the US election, reporting across the country on a nation deeply divided, politically and socially. SBS had correspondents in Washington and New York on Election Day and in the days that followed, providing news updates and analysis as the vote counting and political posturing continued.

A newly launched SBS News digital live blog kept audiences up to date with the latest news as it unfolded, from global events to ongoing COVID-19 developments.

While coverage of the pandemic continued to evolve as events unfolded and as the story shifted from an acute health disaster to an ongoing social and economic challenge, SBS was focused on keeping communities informed and promoting available support, and also providing Australians with the latest internationaldevelopments.

A special cross-platform series, Vaccine in Focus, provided fact-checked information about the national vaccine roll-out, breaking down complex information as a counterpoint to growingmisinformation.

SBS News continued to reach and engage audiences across social media platforms, seeing a significant increase including growth in Australian YouTube subscribers of 52 per cent over the year, and the number of video views of SBS News’ Instagram almost doubling over the period.25 SBS News also reached new audiences with the launch of its TikTok account.

SBS World News Radio, which creates content including podcasts, short English news bulletins, and English news features, also experienced increased consumption in response to significant events and moments during the pandemic, including a 20 per cent increase in consumption of its News Updates podcast.26

30 SBS Annual Report 2021

Two new collections were also made available on the SBS radio app and across podcast platforms: SBS News in Easy English, a daily five-minute news bulletin for new English speakers, and SBS On the Money, a daily ten-minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo GonÃ§alves.

Small Business Secrets Small Business Secrets reported on stories of migrant, refugee and Indigenous business owners forced to adjust during the pandemic and tough economic times, with four programs and regular features on SBS World News weekend news bulletins.

Other special programs told the stories of people impacted by disasters across Australia. Fromthe Ashes - a Fresh Start, featured owner-operators rebuilding after the Black Summer bushfires, and was accompanied by social media content translated into and subtitled in various languages; Hard Rain focused on businesses in NSW and WA that had been impacted by floods and CycloneSeroja.

Insight Insight brought more storytellers, and some audience members back into the studio, to recreate the strength of the show - strong and deep personal stories of everyday Australians. KumiTaguchi took over as the new host at the start of 2021, following the departure of JennyBrockie, after nearly 20years.

There has been a diverse range of topics covered by the program, from Cheating Death, which focused on near brushes with death, and Class Actions, the David vs Goliath struggles to bring corporations to account.

Insight also aligned with SBS flagship programming events including First Nations Mentors, broadcast during NAIDOC week 2020 and Intimate Terrorism, which explored the challenges of coercive control legislation in response to the documentary series, See What You Made Me Do.

As part of SBS’s commitment to making its locally made programming accessible to diverse communities, episodes of Insight, including an extensive back catalogue of the program, were also made available with subtitles on SBS On Demand.

The Feed As the world went into lockdown, The Feed launched the 1800-THE-FEED phone line, asking Australians to leave a voicemail about how they were coping with the pandemic. Messages from more than 2,400 calls were shared on an interactive website, sbs.com.au/storyline, and as video snapshots on The Feed, SBS News, and during station breaks across the SBS network, ultimately being viewed by more than six million Australians.

The Feed produced several short content series and investigations, including the Endof Ageing, presented by Dateline’s DarrenMara, and Faking Influence which was a six-month collaboration between ElisePotaka and Dateline’s Calliste Weitenberg. Thereporters set up a fake social media influencer account to investigate the lax regulation in the social media advertising industry. Since that investigation, Ad Standards has issued the first rulings regarding incorrectly or insufficiently labelled advertisements by influencers on social media.

On digital, original articles from The Feed continued to resonate with audiences, with politics, media analysis and original stories among the most consumed, and in a year of heavy news, comedy has shone brightly with digital-only sketches frequently gaining hundreds of thousands of views on social media.

The Feed continued to be recognised for its leading journalism, winning three Walkley Awards in 2020-21, including BestCurrent Affairs Under 20 Minutes for Stuffed, aninvestigation by MarcFennell, Ninah Kopel and Joel Stillone, into what might have been the biggest museum theft in Australian history. Others included ChristianYouth in Revolt by Marty Smiley, JackTulleners and Pat Forrest, and Australia’s Stolen Wages byEllaArchibald-Binge.

31 Distinctive Network

Dateline With borders closed during 2020-21, Dateline continued to produce compelling international current affairs stories through innovative production processes, with a shift toward more stories with Australian connections.

Dateline’s highest rating episode for the year was the two-part special, Deadly Trip of a Lifetime, which took an in-depth look at the COVID-19 outbreak aboard the Greg Mortimer Antarctic cruise ship. Dateline interviewed Australian passengers in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth to hear first-hand accounts of the outbreak and it was the first Australian media program to tell the stories of the international crew members who were stuck on board the ship, months after the Australian passengers wereevacuated.

Other highlights included Welcome to Lesbos, a story about tensions on the Greek island over the influx of asylum seekers and how these arrivals impact tourism, Finland’s Climate Warriors which explored Finland’s goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2030, and Thailand on the Brink, featuring access to a young female activist as she organises and leads the biggest protest to date in Bangkok calling for reform of the Thai monarchy.

27. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200, Combined 5min Consec Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

28. Digital - Adobe Analytics (SBS Production); 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.

Dateline also created a digital-only mini documentary, Beirut:After the Blast, that chronicled a grassroots effort to help Beirut’s older residents rebuild their homes after the catastrophic explosion, and the US Election Diaries, which showcased voices of ordinary Americans during the US election.

In October 2020, Dateline producer/editor Josh McAtamney won the ELLIE Screen Editors Guild Award for best Current Affairs editing for the story Human Cargo, and in March 2021, Evan Williams and Will Reid were nominated in the longlist for a One-World Media Television Documentary award for the episode Fiji’s High Tide.

World Watch World Watch provides a vital link for the many Australians born overseas, and for all Australians, seeking different perspectives on news from around the world.

World Watch includes 50 news and current affairs programs, 40 of which are broadcast in languages other than English. On average, about 200,000 Australians view World Watch services every day on SBS and SBS VICELAND TV broadcasts.27 Most services are available via SBS On Demand and each bulletin remains available for seven days. The average monthly chapter views for WorldWatch on SBS On Demand in 2020-21 was more than 313,000per month, up158 per cent on2019.28

32 SBS Annual Report 2021

In 2020-21, SBS Radio continued to build on its position as the world’s most linguistically diverse public broadcaster, delivering cross-platform services in more than 60 languages, and creating over 262 hours of original audio content for audiences each week (excluding music), across analogue and digital platforms.

29. Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016 Census.

30. Source: Adobe Analytics, SBS Production, 01/03/2020-30/06/2021, Unique Visitors.

31. Adobe Analytics, Facebook, YouTube and SBS On Demand.

32. SBS Community Brand Tracker, Waves 6.

SBS Radio continues to reflect the evolving needs of communities in Australia; it is committed to reviewing and updating the schedule of services every five years. Planning commenced for the next review following the August 2021 Census, which will consider changes to the schedule and the way it delivers its services, ensuring SBS is effectively serving established and larger communities in Australia and offering essential services to emergingcommunities.

Supporting communities through COVID-19 The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic amplified how essential SBS Radio’s multilingual news and information services are to the nearly five million Australians who speak a language other than English at home.29

Through 2020-21, SBS continued to support communities by providing the latest news and information relating to COVID-19. SBS Radio’s coverage, and the SBS Multilingual Coronavirus portal (sbs.com.au/coronavirus) -a single destination for translated information and accurate news coverage in more than 60 languages

- hascontinued to be well received. More than eight million Australian unique visitors have accessed SBS’s COVID-19 in-language digital content since the beginning of the pandemic.30

In April 2021, SBS produced videos in more than 60 languages including Auslan, informing communities about Australia’s COVID-19 vaccination roll-out plan, how vaccines work and how they are approved in Australia. The videos have been viewed more than a million times across SBS On Demand, SBS Radio’s Facebook and the SBS Australia YouTube channel.31

Research conducted in 2020 found that 83 per cent of SBSRadio’s community stakeholders were aware of the SBS Multilingual Coronavirus portal, and 96 per cent of those who were aware, found it of value. More than 80 per cent surveyed stated that SBS had been serving the community during the pandemic “well” or “very well”.32

SBS’s work was acknowledged by receiving a Highly Commended Medal from the 2020 Victoria Multicultural Commission’s Awards for Excellence, and as a 2020 NSW Premier’s Multicultural Communications Award Finalist.

Starting a national dialogue in more than 60 languages To celebrate and support NAIDOC Week 2020, SBS Radio - in collaboration with the Uluru Dialogue, Indigenous Law Centre, UNSW - undertook a special project to translate TheUluru Statement from the Heart into more than 60 languages, in digital and audio formats, as a community education initiative and to continue the national dialogue with culturally and linguistically diverse communities in their language.

This marked the first time the Statement had been translated, providing a unique opportunity for multicultural communities to connect with First Nations perspectives and understand the historic statement.

A dedicated page on the SBSRadio website supported the initiative and directed users to select their language. Videoswere shared across social media by all SBS language services, with a call to action to listen as a podcast available on the SBSRadio App.

SBS Radio and Language Services

Distinctive Network

In November 2020, 2.3 million of SBS’s monthly viewers33 were aware of the initiative, with 91percent claiming it had a positive impact on the SBSbrand.34

SBSä¸â½ - A new digital service SBS expanded its Chinese-language offering with the launch of SBSä¸ æ (SBS Chinese) in February 2021. Thisnew digital service, for Mandarin and Cantonese-speaking Australians, reflected the growing number and diverse needs of Chinese-language speakers in Australia.

A mobile-first digital offering, SBSä¸æ (SBS.com.au/ Chinese) provides independent, trusted Australian news, information, and entertainment. Articles,short-form videos, and audio content are published in Traditional and Simplified Chinese text with audio available in Mandarin andCantonese.

The new service was enabled by additional funding provided to SBS as part of the 2020 Federal Budget to support the delivery of enhanced language content. Additional content makers were engaged and new ways of working were established to enable increased output of stories and content from the Mandarin and Cantonese services, and for those stories to be shared beyond their communities to a wider audience across SBS.

33. Projected figure based on OzTAM & RegTAM; 5min consecutive reach; NAIDOC Week 2020; & The Exchange; NAIDOC Week 2020 Research; Nov-20.

34. The SBS Exchange Panel; NAIDOC Week 2020 Research; Nov-20.

SBS Radiothon - “India, we are with you” As the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted India in 2021, and with many audience members and staff directly or indirectly affected, SBS Radio’s South Asian teams came together to host a six-hour radiothon on the May 21, 2021. Broadcast in English and other languages, donations supported UNICEF Australia’s India COVID-19 relief fund, and shared the message: “India, we are with you”.

The Radiothon ran across SBS Radio and was live streamed on the SBS Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, Punjabi and Malayalam Facebookpages.

The fundraising goal of AUD$20,000 was exceeded with all money raised going towards vaccines, PPE and oxygen through UNICEF, whilst also keeping the local communities connected during this time of need and reminded of the dangers of COVID-19 and the importance of vaccination.

The SBS Settlement Guide SBS has made greater investment in the multilingual reach of the SBS Settlement Guide - a service that assists new migrants settling in Australia with trusted information. The service now includes 51 centralised content packages for everything from visa information to explaining superannuation. These are available in 55 languages, and in the form of over 1,500 articles, radio segments and podcasts.

The Summer Safety portal is an example of crucially important information about staying safe amid typical Australian hazards and crises for newly arrived migrants, covering everything from bushfires to surf safety.

In addition, there were ten centralised evergreen settlement topic videos commissioned to run in more than 20 languages. The first video went live with the broadcast of See What You Made Me Do, explaining the issues of domestic abuse and coercive control in 21 languages, includingAuslan.

SBS Radio community engagement The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic impacted community gatherings and events, with most community festivals cancelled and many of the usual audience activation activities put on hold. SBS undertook 11community consultations in the period, to provide insights into SBS’s services and greater understanding of the needs of these communities. Technologyplayed a pivotal role in SBS Radio’s stakeholder engagement plans enabling more community consultations to be held and providing the opportunity for SBS Radio to invite communities from all over Australia to participate virtually for the first time.

Common feedback included gratitude for the high quality of journalism, and a need for more in-language services.

34 SBS Annual Report 2021

A world of music from SBS The SBS music channels provided audiences with opportunities for relaxation and entertainment during thepandemic.

SBS Chill launched SBS Audience Takeover, which provided four audience members with the opportunity to program an hour of music a week with a playlist they curated. Collaboration with SBS On Demand saw alignment and cross-promotion of Soundtrack Sessions played out every Friday at 8pm. This concept evolved into Soundtrack Sessions specials for the launch of Season4 of TheHandmaid’s Tale, with a playlist comprising music from the award-winning show.

Audiences embraced the successful return of the Chillest100 with many listening in on NewYear’s Day.

In late 2020, SBS PopAsia underwent a full station refresh, in the lead up to celebrating ten years on air. This refresh saw the station’s music strategy adjusted and the audio production renewed. Audience feedback to these changes has been highlypositive.

35. Feb 2020 vs Mar 2020. Streamguys. Stream Starts.

36. Streamguys, Stream Starts.

SBS PopDesi saw a big jump in listeners in 2020, with an audience increase of 58 per cent at the start of COVID.35 It has been able to retain that audience for the entire financial year, delivering a monthly average of 66,000streams.36 The station has also been encouraging Australians of South Asian heritage to submit their own Desipop for airplayconsideration.

35 Distinctive Network

Beyond an inherent focus on diversity through the stories it explores, SBS programs continue to reflect and involve creative voices from under-represented backgrounds on screen and behind the camera, investing in the development of talent and driving greater inclusion in the sector.

In 2020-21, SBS focused on creating more career pathways and growing the talent pool of people from under-represented groups in the sector, delivering an extensive suite of initiatives across SBS and NITV, and bolstering its commitment through a range ofactivities.

This year, SBS has reviewed its range of content diversity and inclusion initiatives as part of its commitment to leading the sector in undertaking activities which build sustainable career pathways for creatives. Highlights of key initiatives from the 2020-21 year are listed below, and SBS publishes information about these activities on its website.

In January 2021, SBS also appointed a dedicated Content Industry Diversity Manager to support its long-term strategy. The unique role was established to support the effective design and delivery of content initiatives, help SBS create more long-term career pathways, establish targets, research best practice, build relationships with diverse media organisations, and advise on issues relating to diversity and inclusion for SBS content.

Diversity Talent Escalator SBS launched the Diversity Talent Escalator in 2016, in partnership with seven State-based screen agencies, to fund paid placements for emerging and mid-level screen practitioners from backgrounds under-represented within the Australian screen industry, on SBS commissioned programs.

Diversity Talent Escalator alumni in 2020-21 worked in production roles on SBS shows including Mastermind Season 3, The Tailings and The Unusual Suspects, with roles as varied as director and script consultant.

In 2021, SBS reviewed the career impact of the Diversity Talent Escalator by interviewing 18 alumni and production companies about their experience with the program.

Curious Australia In May 2021, SBS and NITV announced the launch of Curious Australia, a new, nationwide initiative seeking submissions for standalone, half-hour documentaries reflecting the diversity of people and experiences of contemporaryAustralia.

In partnership with Screen Australia, and State and Territory agencies, Curious Australia will support screen practitioners from under-represented backgrounds

in the sector to bring their stories to Australian screens. Successful documentaries will be commissioned for SBS platforms, including SBS VICELAND, NITV, and SBS On Demand.

Emerging Writers’ Incubator SBS, in partnership with Screen Australia, State and Territory agencies, and with the assistance of the Australian Writers’ Guild, launched the Emerging Writers’ Incubator in February2021. Thisnationwide initiative was created to support the development of diverse fiction writing talent in the Australian screen sector.

Working with some of Australia’s leading production companies, the Emerging Writers’ Incubator brings the industry together to contribute to greater diversity among Australian screenwriting talent, by providing significant work experience in drama production for 18 emerging writers from backgrounds and with lived experiences currently under-represented in the sector. Each year for three years, six successful candidates will be employed for 12 months in production companies around the country acclaimed for their delivery of Australian drama. The content produced will air on various channels across Australia, including SBS.

Exploring diversity, on and off screen

36 SBS Annual Report 2021

Digital Originals Initiative The Digital Originals short-form initiative aims to support practitioners and projects that reflect gender equity and/or the diversity of people and experiences from around Australia. This includes FirstNations Australians; those who are from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds; are living with a disability; are female or trans/gender diverse; identify as LGBTQI+; and those who are located in regional and remoteareas.

In May 2021, Screen Australia, SBS and NITV selected 12projects to participate in this year’s Digital Originals initiative. The teams, which are based around Australia, took part in development workshops, with a selection of projects to be taken through to further development.

SBS’s Digital Originals to date include Homecoming Queens, theAACTA award-winning RobbieHood, 2021 success TheTailings, and upcoming program, IggyandAce.

Originate Feature Film Fund In search of Victoria’s most diverse and inspired writers and directors, Film Victoria, SBS and Arenamedia’s Originate initiative launched in April 2021 with the goal of fast-tracking the skills and stories of under-represented voices to finance low-budget feature films.

Originate is designed to accelerate the development of a slate of creative-led fiction features, turning early draft scripts into production-ready screenplays through a three-part process delivered by internationally renowned UK-based story developer, AngeliMacfarlane.

At the end of the development phase, three projects will be considered for production finance and one will go into production in 2022 with an approximate budget of $1.5 million of which the majority will be financed by Film Victoria, SBS, Arenamedia and local distributor, North South East West.

RIDE (Respect, Inclusion, Diversity, Equality) FeatureFilm Fund SBS, Screen Queensland, and Madman Entertainment, together with The Post Lounge and Media Super, have partnered on an opportunity for under-represented Queensland talent to develop and produce a $1.5million feature film to be released theatrically and on SBS On Demand and SBS World Movies. Five projects are currently in active development.

As part of the RIDE initiative, RIDE also launched RIDE Shorts. Up to six early-to-mid career Queensland creative teams will be selected to work with Queensland Executive Producers Meg O’Connell and Jackson Lapsley Scott from Unless Pictures to create six short films. The shorts premiere

at the Brisbane International Film Festival in late 2021, with potential to stream on SBS OnDemand and to be packaged together as a feature film for theatrical distribution by Madman.

No Ordinary Black No Ordinary Black is a short film initiative from NITV, inviting emerging First Nations filmmakers to submit short story ideas for projects, with a maximum of two characters and up to two locations.

A partnership with ScreenAustralia’s Indigenous Department, Screen NSW, FilmVictoria, Screen Territory, South Australian Film Corporation and Screenwest, No Ordinary Black is designed to bring to the screen thought-provoking FirstNation stories, authored and crafted by First Nations people.

Stories in First Nations languages are encouraged, and projects need to have FirstNations people in key creative roles of writer, director and producer. Up to ten projects are selected for development funding and attendance at a four-day workshop. Following the workshop, up to six projects will be selected for production funding. The selected teams will be provided with opportunities to develop and produce a short film.

37 Distinctive Network

Centralised Documentary Australia Foundation Indigenous Fellowship In 2021, NITV rolled out the second year of the Centralised Documentary Australia Foundation’s Indigenous Fellowship in partnership with the Documentary Australia Foundation (DAF), Screen Territory, the South Australian Film Commission (SAFC), and the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS).

As part of the broader Centralised initiative, of which NITV is a partner, this Fellowship will run over three years, supporting the professional development of Indigenous documentary filmmakers who are resident in the Northern Territory or South Australia, providing up to $30,000 to a selected fellow each year with a bespoke program designed to meet their specific needs.

South Australian First Nations filmmaker Ngarrindjeri man, Josh Trevorrow, was awarded the Fellowship for 2021. Joshreceived a grant for professional development and mentoring, and development of his documentary project Kondoli-Ngarrindjeri whale project (working title), as well as support to attend training opportunities atAFTRS.

SBS Voices Emerging Writers’ Competition SBS Voices is an online platform which provides a voice for, and champions, emerging writers from diverse backgrounds in Australia, particularly women. Ithas a mission of raising the voices of marginalised Australians with a focus on first person, memoir-style content and video, and has published more than 100new writers, sharing their unique stories and perspectives with allAustralians.

SBS Voices runs their flagship diversity initiative, the SBS Emerging Writers’ Competition which supports the discovery and development of emerging talent. It invites aspiring writers from diverse backgrounds to share stories that reflect the diversity of contemporary Australia, in the form of a first-person memoir. Writers from all over the country responded. SBS received more than 2,000 entries in the inaugural competition in 2020, with Alana Hicks announced as the winner, and runners up also receiving prizes.

Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS) Graduate Program SBS partnered with AFTRS to participate in their annual graduate program, which supports employment pathways for AFTRS graduates from the Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production, and which provides important opportunities for the next generation of talent in the sector. AFTRS graduate, DanielleAbou Karam, joined the SBS commissioning team to work across new content in 2021.

NITV internships, placements and mentoring opportunities NITV’s supports the development of First Nations practitioners through a number of opportunities including the MediaRing and NITV Fellowship, the NITV Spirit Award, and the AusSMC Indigenous Media Mentoring Program (page 67), inaddition to the NITV Indigenous Journalist Cadetship.

The Everyone Project In 2021, SBS began implementing The Everyone Project, an industry wide commitment to measure cast and crew diversity, led by the Screen Diversity and Inclusion Network (SDIN), of which SBS is a founding member.

The Everyone Project is being rolled out across all SBS-commissioned programs including Scripted, Unscripted, SBS Voices, SBS On Demand content, NITV programs and online documentaries.

Reflecting its commitment to inclusion in the Australian screen industry, the SBS Content Industry Diversity Manager, commenced as Co-Chair of the SDIN commencing on 1 June, 2021.

38 SBS Annual Report 2021

Through compelling documentaries and factual programming, SBS explored social issues and challenges affecting all Australians, delved into surprising stories, and reflected on Australia’s past and future, all with a purpose of better understanding contemporary Australia.

37. (TV) OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 01/05/2021-31/05/2021, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200, Combined 5minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28. (Online): Adobe Analytics, SBS Production, 01/05/2021-31/05/2021, Video Chapter Views.

Tackling social issues Broadcast during Domestic and Family Violence Prevention month in May 2021, See WhatYou Made Me Do was a powerful exploration of the complexities of domestic abuse and coercive control. Hosted by investigative journalist Jess Hill, the series ignited an important national conversation, received positive reviews, and generated a wave of online discussion and audience reaction. The television broadcast of the series reached 1.4 million Australians, and also contributed towards SBS On Demand’s best performing month to date.37

In a television first, Addicted Australia provided unprecedented access to 10Australians and their families as they battled different forms of addiction. Participating in a unique six-month treatment program, Australians followed their heart-wrenching journey from despair to hope and,

forsome, recovery. SBSresearch found that nearly one in five people who viewed the series took action to help themselves or others overcome addiction after watching. The series was also made available on SBS On Demand with subtitles in Simplified Chinese andVietnamese.

Who Gets to Stay in Australia? explored the human faces and stories of immigration in Australia today. With access to courts, lawyers, families and experts, it asked how decisions are made for those seeking permanent residency in Australia. Thefour-part series provided an emotional insight into a deeply complex issue by capturing the life-changing moments of 13applicants and their families as they navigated the system. It was also made available on SBS On Demand with subtitles in Simplified Chinese and Arabic.

Enlightening factual content

“The series is by turns sobering, heartbreaking and infuriating. At the risk of hyperbole and clichÃ©, it should also be must-watch viewing, despite how much of it makes for difficultwatching.” Sydney Morning Herald/The Age

“A timely and ultimately important inquiry into the scourge of domestic abuse in Australia. See What You Made Me Do is essential viewing.” The Australian

“[Addicted Australia is] Distressing, surprising and ultimately deeply affecting, this series demands a greater understanding of and compassion for those in the grip of addiction” The Sun-Herald/Sunday Age

39 Distinctive Network

Extraordinary Australianstories In the second season of Every Family Has a Secret, host NoniHazlehurst met six everyday Australians grappling with intriguing family secrets. Darkpasts, lies and half-truths were revealed in three compelling episodes, with extraordinary stories of Australians travelling around the world to uncover powerful truths about themselves, their families and the country. It was also made available on SBS On Demand with subtitles in Simplified Chinese and Arabic.

June 2021 saw the launch of the 12th season of Australia’s most loved genealogy series, WhoDo You Think You Are?, on SBS, celebrating Australia’s continued evolution as one of the world’s most diverse nations. Season12 uncovered surprising and emotionally compelling stories about some of Australia’s most iconic personalities who travelled across Australia in search of unknown ancestries. The series, which fostered a strong sense of Australia’s multicultural identity, featured Celia Pacquola, MalcolmTurnbull and Jeff Fatt. Theseries is available with subtitles in Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese and Korean.

Exploring Australia’s past Australia Come Fly With Me revealed the many surprising ways that flight has influenced life in Australia. Presented by Justine Clarke, the series covered 100years of aviation history, and the social change that came with it - from immigration to women’s rights, Indigenous recognition to the discrimination and hurdles the LGBTQI+ community faced and overcame. It was also made available on SBS On Demand with subtitles in Simplified Chinese and Arabic.

One of SBS audiences’ favourite programs of 2019, Australia in Colour, returned for a second season in March 2021, revealing new chapters from Australia’s history shown in colour for the very first time. Including material from National Archives, Australia in Colour explored Australia’s rich Indigenous and multicultural history, showing how each wave of migration impacted upon the previous one to make Australia what it is today. The series was also made available on SBS On Demand with subtitles in Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean and Hindi.

“Good documentaries help you see more than what’s on the screen, they give you the bigger picture… For while the planes are engineering marvels, it’s the personal stories that make thisfly.” The Sun Herald/Sunday Age

“Australia in Colour pledges a dimension of colour that is symbolic as well as literal, matching its newfangled images with the promise of a more culturally diverse and detailed portrait of the past.” The Guardian

40 SBS Annual Report 2021

Celebrating contemporary Australia In the fifth and final instalment of SBS’s strand of single documentaries, Untold Australia, three programs shared surprising and untold stories from around the country. Stutter School explored a life changing course for people who live with a stutter, whilst Bowled Over celebrated the collaboration of a struggling bowls club and a troupe of drag queens, Birdsville or Bust, followed the story of the isolated and iconic Australian outback town of Birdsville, becoming one of the highest rating SBS shows of the year with a combined average audience of 494,000 total individuals.38 The documentaries were also subtitled on SBS OnDemand in Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean andHindi.

38. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021, SBS, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200, Combined Average Audiences, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

A world-first interactive documentary Hosted by child psychiatrist, Dr Kim Le, Are You Addicted To Technology? investigated the alarming impact of Australia’s technology addiction. In this world-first interactive documentary on SBS On Demand, Kim offered a personalised assessment for audiences through a series of one-on-one interactive consultations, and pulled back the curtain to reveal how and why technology companies want users to be addicted to their products, as well as arming audiences with the knowledge and techniques to take backcontrol.

“The Untold Australia series is a real gem in the schedule: a program dedicated to digging out the strange and wonderful stories that abound around the country, but which nobody has ever heardbefore.” The Sun-Herald/Sunday Age

41 Distinctive Network

SBS is known for original dramas exploring contemporary issues, celebrating an inclusive vision of Australia on screen. In 2020-21, SBS continued to elevate emerging voices and talent - in front of and behind the camera - supporting the next generation of under-represented storytellers.

39. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS, 24/08/2020, 2130-2230, Combined Average Audience, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

40. Adobe Analytics (SBS Production); 01/07/2020-30/06/2021; entities as listed; Video Total Chapter Views.

Hungry Ghosts Chilling, captivating and utterly compelling, Hungry Ghosts followed four families that find themselves haunted by ghosts from the past. Filmed and set in Melbourne during the month of the Hungry Ghost Festival, when the Vietnamese community venerate their dead, Hungry Ghosts reflected the extraordinary lived and spiritual stories of the Vietnamese community; it explored the inherent trauma passed down from one generation to the next - and how notions of displacement impact human identity - long after the events themselves.

With one of the most diverse casts featured in an Australian drama series, Hungry Ghosts comprised more than 30Asian-Australian actors and 325 Asian-Australian extras. The ensemble cast was led by Catherine VÄn-Davies (GoingDown), Clare Bowen (Nashville) and Bryan Brown

(Bloom, SweetCountry), FerdinandHoang (Rake, TheQuiet American). GarethYuen (LAConfidential, Party Tricks), Jillian Nguyen (TheTrue History of the KellyGang), Hoa Xuande (RonnyChieng: International Student), GabrielleChan, SuzyWrong (Crownies), GarySweet (HouseHusbands, Janet King), Hazem Shammas (Safe Harbour) and Susie Porter (Wentworth, Seven Types ofAmbiguity).

The series premiered to an average audience of 351,000,39 and more than 950,000 chapter views on SBS On Demand to date.40 It was also made available with subtitles on SBS On Demand in Vietnamese, Simplified Chinese and Arabic.

Hungry Ghosts was the winner of the 11th annual Equity Ensemble Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Miniseries, and nominated for a 2020 AACTA Award for Best Telefeature or Miniseries.

The Unusual Suspects From chilling to warm, funny and gripping, The Unusual Suspects was a compelling heist caper about female friendship and empowerment. When a $16million necklace is taken in an elaborate heist, the ensuing police investigation exposes cracks in Eastern Sydney’s sparkling faÃ§ade.

The series marked the first major representation of Filipino-Australians on screen, and continued SBS’s legacy of delivering exceptional drama exploring the rich diversity of Australia in an authentic and nuanced way.

Aina Dumlao (Sanzaru, Ballers, MacGyver), AACTA award-winner Miranda Otto (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Homeland, TheLord of the Rings Trilogy) and Michelle Vergara Moore (Condor, TheTime of Our Lives) headlined the outstanding ensemble cast.

Original drama

“5 stars. [Hungry Ghosts is a] Triumph of a series… an intoxicating whirl of ancient superstition and urbane beauty. Psychologically, it’s dangerouslyaddictive.” Sydney Morning Herald/The Age

42 SBS Annual Report 2021

Thefour-part series led a collection of content across the SBS network exploring and celebrating Filipino culture. A special half-hour program, Unwrapped, was presented by The Feed’s Alice Matthews interviewing the cast and creatives behind The Unusual Suspects, discussing gender, race and representation. This was available on SBS On Demand, where the series was also made available with subtitles in Filipino, Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Hindi and Korean.

The series achieved widespread acclaim, and achieved an average audience of 483,00041 with chapter views of all four episodes reaching close to two million within their first 30days ofrelease.42

The Tailings From Sydney’s Eastern suburbs to Tasmania’s West Coast, Australian mystery The Tailings is a six-part, 10-minute short-form series which explores the experience of two young women confronting the paradoxical layers of grief. The series premiered on SBS On Demand as part of Digital Originals - a joint initiative of Screen Australia and SBS aimed at developing exciting and innovative drama projects to premiere on SBS On Demand and NITV, from screen creatives who are currently under-represented in the sector.

41. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS, 03/06/2020, 2030-2130, Combined Average Audience, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

42. Adobe Analytics (SBS Production); 01/07/2020-30/06/2021; entities as listed; Video Total Chapter Views.

The series follows a troubled teen who starts an investigation into her father’s death, which had been deemed accidental. Her outspoken accusations put her in direct conflict with a new teacher who is trying to make an impression on her first posting. Unexpectedly, the two slowly develop a mutual trust as the true story around the death becomes impossible to ignore.

The series delivered views on SBS On Demand that were more than double the previously best-performing Digital Originals short-form series. It was also subtitled in Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean andHindi.

“As much as The Unusual Suspects is an entertaining caper, it has another layer, and that’s centring the experiences of Filipino women in Australia through four characters in its ensemble…” News.com.au

“[The Tailings is] Well written and well directed with a narrative that gives nervy realism to the ‘small town with a dark secret’ trope… conceived as a short-form drama broken up in six 10-minute episodes, I watched them all in a row and recommend you do thesame.” The Guardian

43 Distinctive Network

SBS continued to bring Australians together with coverage of diverse and inclusive events. Entertainment programming was affected by COVID-19 across the sector, and SBS deferred some programs, evolved other productions, anddelivered new formats.

43. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 19/05/2021-23/05/2021, Combined 5 minute consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

Iconic events Due to COVID-19, the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras found a temporary new home in February 2021 - the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground. SBS and NITV’s exclusive broadcast continued to be a celebration of diversity, inclusion and acceptance for the LGBTQI+ community and its allies.

Hosted by Narelda Jacobs, Joel Creasey, Courtney Act and ZoÃ«Coombs Marr, the coverage explored important social justice themes while bringing Australians all the entertainment from the parade. A global audience from more than 60countries also tuned in via SBS On Demand for an unforgettable four-hourbroadcast.

Eurovision Song Contest 2021 After the unprecedented cancellation of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2020 due to the pandemic, the return of Eurovision from Rotterdam, The Netherlands, was an event welcomed around the globe.

SBS has been the home of the Eurovision Song Contest for 37years and, in May 2021, Australia once again competed with artist, Montaigne, performing her song ‘Technicolour’. Hosting duo Joel Creasey and MyfWarhurst returned to lead SBS’s coverage. Because of COVID-19, the decision was made to not travel to Europe to compete and present SBS’s coverage in person in 2021. Instead, Montaigne competed via a ‘Live On Tape’ performance, and Myf and Joel hosted from SBS’s studios inSydney.

Despite that, the Eurovision Song Contest coverage reached 1.7million people, #SBSEurovision trended number one on Twitter during the Final, and Eurovision-loving fans across Australia got involved sharing their celebrations on socialmedia.43

Entertainment with purpose

[Courtney Act] sees SBS as an island of hope in a still white bread landscape. The broadcaster “feels to me like Australia. It looks to me like the Australia I see walking around outside.” The Guardian

44 SBS Annual Report 2021

Bringing people together At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in July 2020, SBS brought the nation together for a live life drawing art class. Hostedby Rove McManus, a selection of amateur artists, including some well-known Australians, drew live in the studio with audiences at home encouraged to join in. The show celebrated art and diversity in an accessible and surprising way, with participants from diverse backgrounds and lived experiences. The live broadcast on SBS reached more than 600,000people.44

Live, loud and never been done before, Australia’s Biggest Singalong! was a celebration of the power of music, hosted by Miranda Tapsell and JuliaZemiro and broadcast live on SBS and SBS On Demand. InJune 2021, infront of a crowd at Sydney’s Town Hall, the Pub Choir team, led by choirmaster Astrid Jorgensen, taught the live audience, and Australians sitting at home in their living rooms, how to sing the Hunters and Collectors iconic anthem, Throw Your Arms AroundMe.

44. Source: OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS, 04/07/2020, Combined 5 Minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

Australia’s Biggest Singalong! also featured a raft of celebrated Australian performers including Dami Im, MitchTambo, Adam Eckersley and BrookeMcClymont, who, along with Mark Seymour, joined community choirs from around the country. Together they reflected on what singing means to them - be it connection to Country, tackling mental health issues and homelessness - or for the sheer joy of it.

Braving the black chair Famous for its challenging questions and intimidating setting, legendary quiz show Mastermind returned for a third series in 2021, screening 6pm weeknights on SBS. AfterCOVID-19 impacted production in 2020, Mastermind returned in January 2021 to crown its season two winner and bid farewell to Jennifer Byrne who had expertly quizzed contenders since SBS re-launched Mastermind in 2019.

In February, SBS’s Walkley-winning journalist, author and interviewer, Marc Fennell, stepped into the quizmaster chair, with a new set and all new contenders from across the country. The series continues to be an important SBS-produced commission that kicks off SBS’s primetime programming on SBS every weeknight.

“As quizzes go, Mastermind has always brought a touch of class to the genre, its minimalist set and intense lighting making everything feel quite serious and weighty. Yet in the end it still provides the same basic delights as most trivia shows.” Sydney Morning Herald/The Age

45 Distinctive Network

Despite a year in which many international and domestic sports events were postponed or cancelled, SBS Sport continued to engage Australian audiences with sport from all over the world.

45. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, 29/08/2020-21/09/2020, Combined 5 Minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

46. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS, 08/05/2021-30/05/2021, Combined 5 Minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

Cycling Australian cycling fans were devastated when the 107thedition of the Tour de France was postponed - the iconic and prestigious event has been a part of the SBS schedule for threedecades.

In place of its annual live coverage, audiences were entertained with a series of 21‘classic’ stages, featuring past events dating back to 2008. To complement the ‘Etape Classique’ edition of the Tour de France, SBS Sport produced a four-part series documenting Cadel Evans’ history-making 2011 Tour de France victory, featuring interviews with SBS Cycling personalities and highlights from the 2011 Tour de France.

The postponed 2020 Tour de France took place in September, with the SBS commentary team covering the event live from the SBS studios in Sydney and Melbourne. World record-breaking cyclist Dr. Bridie O’Donnell was added to the commentary team, and SBS also introduced a new food series as part of its coverage, Plat du Tour, hosted by renowned French chef Guillaume Brahimi (page 52).

A celebration of sport and culture, this year almost four million Australians who enjoyed the much-needed virtual escape to the French countryside.45

SBS also announced that it will continue to be the home of the Tour de France for another ten years, securing an exclusive rights agreement through to 2030.

SBS will also broadcast the long-awaited women’s TourdeFrance event, securing the exclusive free-to-air rights for the Tour de France Femmes avecZwift, in a historic four-yeardeal.

SBS also secured the exclusive free-to-air broadcast rights to the Giro d’Italia until 2025, cementing the network’s place as the home of cycling in Australia. Under the new agreement, SBS has exclusive Australian free-to-air rights to deliver live, multi-platform coverage of the Giro d’Italia, including television anddigital.

Known for its steep and difficult climbs, the race showcases culture, passion and breathtaking scenery throughout the tough three-week competition. Thegruelling event reached 1.7million Australians,46 with Girod’Italia stage winners RobbieMcEwen and DavidMcKenzie joining

MatthewKeenan and Bridie O’Donnell to host SBS’s coverage and provide expert commentary and insights.

Basketball SBS’s coverage of the NBA and WNBA was impacted when the competitions were delayed due to COVID-19.

Both were played with a compressed game schedule from the Orlando hub, with coverage of the NBA tipping off just after Christmas 2020, and the WNBA delayed on several occasions.

Locally, the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) faced several challenges due to State border closures and COVID-19 safe preventative measures affecting the entire season.

SBS Sport launched a new digital series, Playing from the Heart, which shone a spotlight on players from diverse cultural communities and highlighted the value of inclusivity in sport. Award-winning journalist, MeganHustwaite, also hosted a new feature series, The NBL Hub Heartbeat, which took audiences inside the NBL Melbourne Cup and shared players’ stories both on and off the court.

Sport

46 SBS Annual Report 2021

Sportswoman SBS Sport expanded its catalogue with a new weekly women’s sport series, Sportswoman, which proved to be a popular addition to the Sunday afternoon sport line-up on SBS. The series takes an in-depth look at the best female athletes around the world and provides audiences with an insight into their respective journeys.

Australian Motocross After an absence of 20 years, live coverage of the ProMX Australian Motocross Championship launched on SBS as part of the Sunday afternoon Speedweek series. Leading the commentary team was host, Riana Crehan, with former champions DannyHam and Lee Hogan calling the action. The 2021 championship visited tracks around Australia including Maitland, Wodonga, Gillman, andCoolum.

47 Distinctive Network

In 2020-21, NITV continued to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and achievements as the home of First Nations storytelling. With content produced by, for and about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, NITV promotes a greater understanding of First Nations cultures among all Australians.

47. Source: OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, NITV, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021, Combined 5 Minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

With the burgeoning energy behind the Black Lives Matter movement, audiences turned to NITV for Indigenous perspectives, and the opportunity to connect with First Nations stories not toldelsewhere.

2020-21 saw continued investment in Indigenous content production, and the creation of new audience pathways to FirstNations content through greater network amplification across SBS platforms. This helped to deliver increased audience reach among SBS viewers and increased consumption of Indigenous content on SBS platforms, including SBS OnDemand.

Over the last 12 months, NITV’s offering has reached an average of 1.8 million Australians on television every month.47

Indigenous News andCurrent Affairs In 2021, NITV’s current affairs show, The Point, hosted weekly by John Paul Janke and ShahniWellington, covered the biggest news stories from an Indigenous perspective. Aswell as its broadcast on NITV at 7.30pm on Tuesday nights, the program joined SBS’s Tuesday night current affairs line-up, broadcasting on SBS following Insight, Dateline, and The Feed.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, NITV increased its news coverage to seven days a week, with regular live updates and was also broadcast on SBS VICELAND. NITV also supported First Nations Media Australia to provide Indigenous media organisations across the country with content, delivering in-language health advice and activating social media events to connect communities.

Now in its 18th year, the award-winning Living Black - hosted and produced by KarlaGrant - continued to unearth the most important issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. Thisseason, theprogram featured interviews with country music legend Troy Cassar-Daley, actor AaronFa’Aoso, South Australian of the Year TanyaHosch, youth advocate KeenanMundine, Labor MP LindaBurney, medical guru Michael Mosley and justice reformer Debbie Kilroy, as well as vital investigations including the critical situation of children living in out-of-homecare.

Always Was, Always Will Be In the lead up to and around 26January, 2021, NITV once again presented its Always Was, Always Will Be season, which included First Nations programming across the SBS network, promoting and connecting a cross-network content offering designed to engage, educate and entertain all audiences with a reflection and celebration of the oldest continuing culture on the planet.

Along with news coverage and live broadcast of community events and rallies taking place in cities across Australia on 26January, there was a range of programming exploring and celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and cultures on NITV.

At the heart of the programming was the Sunrise Ceremony, a special two-hour morning show that was broadcast live from Coolangatta, Queensland, and simulcast on NITV, SBS and Channel 10. Hosted by ThePoint’s John Paul Janke, and Channel 10’s Narelda Jacobs, the program featured a series of special Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander guests, along with representatives from Australia’s diverse multiculturalcommunities.

National Indigenous Television (NITV)

48 SBS Annual Report 2021

In partnership with the Sydney Theatre Company, NITV premiered a new all-Indigenous panel show, The Whole Table, hosted by Sydney Theatre Company resident director, SharriSebbens. Joined by panelists Wesley Enoch, NakkiahLui and Rhoda Roberts, each episode invited different guests to the table to debate and better understand Indigenous affairs in the arts.

Celebrating Indigenous achievement NITV helped to deliver important moments in the Indigenous calendar such as NAIDOC Week, National Indigenous Music Awards from Darwin and the Sydney Opera House national dance competition, Dance Rites.

With NAIDOC Week moved from July to November, and the National NAIDOC Awards postponed for 2020, NITV and SBS co-produced Stand Up and Be Counted: A NAIDOC Concert Special from the Brisbane Powerhouse. The live entertainment program was simulcast on SBS and NITV and achieved a combined reach of191,000.48

NITV also used NAIDOC Week to test a new format, producing the first ever Indigenous breakfast national television show, BigMob Brekky. Produced with FirstNations Media Australia partners around Australia, the program was well received and widely acknowledged as breaking new ground on Australian TV.

48. OzTAM RegTAM FTA Database, SBS + NITV, 14/11/2020-16/11/2020, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

See What You Made Me Do As part of SBS’s cross-network coverage and support for the SBS documentary series, See What You Made Me Do. NITV explored the issue of domestic abuse with an Indigenous lens in May 2021.

Living Black featured interviews with domestic violence survivors, including Linda Burney MP, and NITV also broadcast a special community forum response program, elevating Indigenous voices to the national discussions surrounding family and domestic violence. The program, We Say No More was broadcast on NITV immediately after the second episode of See What You Made Me Do and featured a panel discussion with experts in their field, sharing how family violence affects First Nations communities and exploring potential solutions. The program was hosted by Bundjalung woman, RhodaRoberts AO.

First Nations stories through factual commissions Written and directed by Northern Territorian filmmaker, StevenMcGregor, alongside co-writers Steven Oliver and Danielle MacLean, Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky, featured six diverse and distinctive new commissions in Indigenous languages and English, which came together to create a new songline passed from place to place across the country. Thedocumentary was produced in partnership with the Australian Maritime Museum and included SBS Learn teacher resources supporting the program (page64).

Going Places with Ernie Dingo, now in its fifth season, continued to be a strong performer, reaching a wider audience on SBS as well as NITV, in addition to being available with subtitles in Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean and Hindi on SBS On Demand.

In April 2021, NITV and SBS Food premiered a new travel and food series produced and hosted by Aaron Fa’Aoso, Strait to the Plate, exploring the people, food, language and life in the TorresStrait Islands (page 52).

This year, the much-loved Family Rules returned for a third season, with another up-close and personal insight into modern Indigenous family life through the eyes of a remarkable mother and her daughters.

49 Distinctive Network

Diversity of sport While sporting competitions were delayed or impacted due to COVID-19, rugby league and AFL fans continued to be served weekly entertainment on NITV with rugby league panel show, Over The Black Dot, and AFL footy show, Yokayi Footy.

With an almost 30 per cent decrease in sporting hours in 2020 due to COVID-19 impacting competitions and events, NITV covered alternative competitions, including events in regional and remote areas such as the community rugby league competition, Tribal League.

A focus on youth, community, and language NITV’s children’s content provides a vital connection to Country and culture. In 2020-21, NITV focused on investing in the development of its distinctive commissioned children’s content, including Logie Award-winning animated series, Little J & Big Cuz. The third season is set to premiere on NITV in 2022, and will once again be made available in a number of First Nations languages.

NITV also invested in the acquisition of Indigenous children’s content, both for its Jarjums children’s programming offering on-air, as well as SBS OnDemand. A particular success in 2020-21 was Bedtime Stories - an evening program presenting 20 stories for children in eight Indigenous languages from remote Australia, using traditional storytelling techniques together with animation, music and film. The series was produced by ICTV in partnership with Batchelor Institute, BÃ¡bbarra Women’s Centre, Maningrida Arts & Culture, NG Media, and PAKAM.

Indigenous production sectordevelopment NITV remains committed to creating more production opportunities for Indigenous media practitioners, continuing a number of initiatives with State and Federal screen funding agencies, enabling it to increase content investment in more programming created by Indigenous Australians.

Initiatives this year included Digital Originals (with SBS and Screen Australia), No Ordinary Black (with Screen Australia, Screen NSW, Film Victoria, Screen Territory, South Australian Film Corporation and Screenwest) and the Centralised Documentary Australia Foundation’s Indigenous Fellowship (with the Documentary Australia Foundation, Screen Territory, the South Australian Film Commission, and the Australian Film Television and Radio School).

50 SBS Annual Report 2021

Evolving from SBS’s proud heritage of creating and acquiring inspiring and distinctive food programming, SBS Food continues to showcase the best in food content from all over the world. The channel plays an important role in taking audiences on a journey of discovery through world cuisine and providing insight into multicultural communities not only in Australia, but across the globe.

49. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021, SBS Food, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200, Combined 5 minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

50. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS + SBS Food, 19/04/2021-30/06/2021, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

51. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Food, 31/01/2021-30/06/2021, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

With more than three million Australians tuning in each month,49 SBS Food continues to reach a broad audience through a multi-platform offering available on television, online and SBS OnDemand.

The Cook Up with Adam Liaw Each weeknight at 7pm, popular cook and author, Adam Liaw, is joined by two food loving friends for good fun and conversation as they cook up a variety of dishes centred around a nightly theme -whether it’s an ingredient, a style of cuisine or culturalinspiration.

Regular segments include ‘Foodfor Thought’ featuring Adam’s cooking tips and techniques, busting food myths in ‘Food vs Truth’, and SBS Food’s Managing Editor, FarahCeljo, presenting two segments: ‘Following Food’ and ‘Top 5’s’, sharing what’s trending online in the world of food. Since premiering in April 2021, the series has reached over 2.4million SBS audiences.50

Asia Unplated with DianaChan In January 2021, celebrity chef Diana Chan dished up her second series of Asia Unplated cooking up simple but authentic, home-style Asian dishes. Fromthe sweet, sour and salty flavours of Cambodia to the fragrant spices of Sri Lanka to Diana’s personal favourite, Malaysian street food, the series is full of new recipes for audiences to explore. Diana also invites her friends into the kitchen to cook their favourite recipes and chat about the unique cooking styles and rich food histories of their favourite Asian cuisines. Sinceits premiere in January 2021, the series has reached over 737,000Australians on SBS Food to date.51

Cook Like an Italian with Silvia Colloca Silvia Colloca returned with her second season of Cook Like an Italian, bringing delicious recipes and Italian entertaining inspiration directly into the homes of food lovers around Australia, over 10episodes. Silvia shares the secret family recipes from her mamma and Nonna and her very own tips and tricks for mastering the art of regional Italian cuisine.

Glorious food

“SBS makes fantastic food programming and this ambitious commission - 200episodes, five nights a week - looks like it might be a winner. There’snothing fancy about it - a combination of cooking and chat, hosted by AdamLiaw - but it all just seems to work. Liaw has enormous natural wit and charm. His guests are well chosen. It’s all very cheerful, relaxed and low-fi and you’re guaranteed entertainment and some excellentrecipes.” Sun Herald/Sunday Age

51 Distinctive Network

Plat Du Tour Renowned French-Australian chef, Guillaume Brahimi, guided Australians to the heart of France serving up his ‘Plat du Tour’ each night of the Tour de France on SBS during July 2020.

Comprising 21 short interstitials to accompany each stage of the Tour, each episode featured different recipes, food and produce inspired by regions through which the famous race travels. The series was then compiled into a primetime format to encore on SBS Food.

Strait to the Plate Over five episodes, actor, producer and director AaronFa’aoso, took audiences on a delectable odyssey through the Torres Strait Islands. VisitingBadu, Poruma and Moa islands, as well as Indigenous and Torres Strait communities in the Northern Peninsula Area at the tip of Cape York, Aaron met locals who shared their signature dishes - each dish told a story about the Torres Strait and the many peoples who’ve contributed to the rich culture of these islands. Broadcast on SBS Food and NITV, the series showcased this beautiful and unique part Australia, rarely explored in thisway.

52. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Food, 29/11/2020-30/06/2021, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

Palisa Anderson’s Water Heart Food Whilst travelling to Thailand was out of reach, new SBS Food talent, Palisa Anderson, decided to travel across Australia to explore her early food memories of Thailand, meeting friends along the way to discuss and celebrate what connects them to different cultures. Palisa shows audiences how to stock your pantry like a Thai local and cook authentic Thai cuisine in your own home. The series was made available through SBS OnDemand with Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean and Hindi subtitles. Sinceits launch in November 2020, the series has reached over 438,000 SBS Food audiences.52

Adam Liaw’s Road Trip forGood TV favourite Adam Liaw visited bushfire-affected regions as they were springing back to life following the fires over the 2019-20 summer. Over four episodes, Adam unearthed some of the best food Australia has to offer and made mouth-watering Asian-inspired dishes with the produce he collected along the way. The program was also subtitled in Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean and Hindi on SBS On Demand.

Australia’s Food Bowl withStefano Di Pieri Celebrated Italian cook, Stefanode Pieri, made his welcome return to television with his brand-new series, premiering in May 2021. The popular restaurateur takes viewers on a unique and insightful field trip to explore one of Australia’s most productive regions, the Murray-Darling River Basin, which Stefano has called home for the last 30 years. Over10 episodes, he explores the connection between the food producer and the consumer and turns all their beautiful produce into simple, delicious recipes.

“In fact, watching the Tour de France is going to be more of an immersive experience this year with the accompanying show, Plat du Tour. During each live stage of the Tour, French chef Guillaume Brahimi will be presenting food and recipes authentic to each region that the athletesencounter.” Pagemasters

52 SBS Annual Report 2021

SBS World Movies continues to build on SBS’s legacy of showcasing the best in international and local cinema for Australians, for free. A carefully curated and dedicated 24-hour channel, SBS World Movies reaches all corners of the globe, reflecting and celebrating the diversity of cinema, with a large proportion of the titles being in a language other than English.

53. Source: OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS World Movies, 01/11/2020-30/11/2020, Combined 5 Minute Consecutive Reach, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

Each year, SBS World Movies acquires more than 800 foreign and English language titles, including recent award-winning and critically acclaimed films. The channel presents everything from European arthouse to romantic comedies, the classics and animated films for the wholefamily.

Driven by strategic themed programming, in 2020-21 the channel featured curated film collections on weeknights at 9.30pm, whilst weekend programming allowed for a broader audience appeal. In late 2020, as a result of COVID-19 and the change in community needs, SBS World Movies secured additional daytime and family-friendly programming for home-bound audiences.

Black Lives Matter In November 2020, SBS World Movies launched a two-week season devoted to global racial issues. Presented by Wongutha-Yamatji actor and artist, Meyne Wyatt, the films and documentaries featured in the

collection told important stories exploring and highlighting issues affecting Indigenous and Black communities across the world.

Films included I Am Not Your Negro, Rabbit-Proof Fence, 12Years a Slave, Selma, Detroit and Warwick Thornton’s outback Australian drama, Sweet Country. The season reached over 789,000 total individuals during its run on SBS World Movies.53

War Stories For four weeks across November and December 2020, SBS World Movies presented a collection of war films, supported by a supplementary collection on SBS On Demand, made up of international, classic and contemporary films showcasing diverse depictions of war, and encompassing stories of conflict, including the triumphs anddevastations.

Mardi Gras, Refugee Week and Music Week SBS World Movies supported major SBS network programming with curated collections across

the year, including Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, Refugee Week and Eurovision in 2021.

Mardi Gras provides SBS World Movies the opportunity to celebrate LGBTQI+ cinema from all over the world. In 2021, SBS World Movies showcased films such as Goodbye Mother, Tu me Manques, A Fantastic Woman, Carol and Call Me By Your Name.

Similarly, SBS World Movies also supported one of the biggest entertainment broadcasts on the SBS calendar, Eurovision, with a week of the best musical films from around the world.

SBS World Movies Homegrown Throughout June, SBS World Movies celebrated the Australian movie industry with a line-up of some of the best locally made films Australia has to offer. A celebration of Australian talent both in front and behind the camera as well as unique Australian stories, SBS World Movies presented a line-up of films with something for every Aussie movie lover’s taste, including Strangerland, Tracks, Animal Kingdom, Charlie’s Country, The Proposition and Jindabyne.

A world of film

“These stories are so important. I hope the questions you ask afterwards, and the questions you ask each other, offer the glimmer of hope and change that is so desperately needed.” Meyne Wyatt

53 Distinctive Network

SBS VICELAND continues to explore new genres and content opportunities, expand the reach of the SBS Charter to new audiences and experiment with release strategies and scheduling to deepen engagement with younger viewers, and accelerate the growth of SBS On Demand.

54. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS VICELAND, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021 + 01/07/2019-30/06/2020, Sun-Sat 0200-0200 + 1800-2400, Combined 5 Minute Minimum Consecutive Reach + Metro FTA Share, Total Individuals + People 25-54, Consolidated 28.

This year, 4.5 million Australians were reached each month on SBS VICELAND,54 where they accessed a curated, diverse and distinct slate of programming exploring topics and issues ranging from mental health, consent, pop culture history and social justice.

The channel brought more Australian originals to the forefront such as the neurodiverse drama, Sex and Death, and year-in-review comedy, The Last Year of Television 2020 Special.

The ongoing partnership with VICE continued to supply the channel with a range of investigative documentaries exploring contemporary global social issues. Programs such as Meghan Markle Escaping The Crown, Wet Markets Exposed and While The Rest Of Us Die saw increased audiences in theirtimeslots.

SBS VICELAND also continued to bring Australians popular series from around the world in languages other than English, including If You Are The One and VS Arashi, Forged In Fire Latin America, Asia’s Next Top Model, Taskmaster Norway and Takeshi’sCastle Indonesia.

As the home of free-to-air basketball in Australia, SBS VICELAND continued its broadcast of the NBA, WNBA and NBL. The channel also showcased women’s sport; along with the WNBA, it featured women’s cycling races for Tour of Flanders, Amstel Gold, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and LaFleche Wallonne.

SBS VICELAND

54 SBS Annual Report 2021

Engaged Audiences

SBS delivers a unique, accessible and personal audience experience to engage, inform and entertain Australians.

At a time of global disruption, SBS remained audience-focused and committed to connecting with Australians across its platforms in 2020-21, whether via television, SBS On Demand, radio, podcasts, online, on social media or digital applications (apps).

Across its network, SBS reached more Australians than ever before. As traditional habits across the industry continue to shift, SBS experienced significant growth in digital engagement, breaking new records on SBS OnDemand including increased consumption by more than 30 per cent for the year. There was also accelerated digital growth for its audio and language content in recognition of the audience appetite for consuming content at their convenience.

SBS continued to invest in making SBS OnDemand the most distinctive streaming service in Australia. As teams scoured the globe to bring Australians content they won’t find anywhere else, SBS also deepened engagement with audiences whose primary language is not English, further developing its multilingual experience and offerings, and enabling more Australians to discover, view and enjoy more SBS content on the platform.

In 2020, SBS launched in-language login and navigation for SBS On Demand - a first for a media operator in Australia - and over the last year, built on Arabic and Simplified Chinese options by adding Traditional Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean to the web service, withother applications to follow.

It also significantly increased its investment in subtitling content in key languages, with a focus on providing greater access to SBS’s commissioned content and Australian stories. There were more than 500 hours of content subtitled in languages other than English shared with audiences in 2020-21, more than tripling the hours from the year prior.

To improve its understanding of the needs and preferences of multilingual audiences, SBS undertook landmark industry research to provide deep insights into Australian language communities. More than 5,400 people across 10 languages were initially surveyed; the results support content investment decisions and the approach SBS takes in tailoring offerings for language groups.

In 2020-21, SBS also introduced a new customer service approach that improves the way audience feedback is captured and shared across SBS; this will help better utilise the insights from around 4,000 pieces of audience feedback every month.

Withincreased competition and growing audience expectations, SBS is focused on hyper-differentiating itself through its offerings, its ability to engage audiences, and ongoing improvements to its platforms to support the delivery of an excellent user experience.

55 Engaged Audiences

Engaged Audiences

As linear TV audiences continued to decline across the market in 2020-21, SBS largely retained its viewership, reaching 10.8 million Australians on TV each month,55 with an 8.9percent prime time metroshare.

SBS continued to reach and engage more Australians on its digital platforms. Digital registered users exceeded 9.6million, an increase of 16% from the year prior.56 Consumption grew by 31 per cent on SBS On Demand, and more than 100 million hours57 ofprogramming were streamed byAustralians.

In 2020-21, SBS also reached over 4.3 million Australians each month online,58 with 16 million monthly unique browsers59 onSBS websites.

An audience-centric approach SBS remains committed to improving the experience of its diverse audience across all platforms. SBS is focused on making content more easily accessible to Australians who speak a language other than English by introducing features such as in-language login and navigation on SBS On Demand, and providing in-languagesubtitling.

55. OzTAM + RegTAM FTA Database, SBS Network, July 2020 - June 2021, Sun-Sat, 0200-0200 + 1800-2400, Combined 5min Cons Reach + Metro Share, Total Individuals, Consolidated 28.

56. Janrain SBS Registered Users as at June 2021.

57. OzTAM VPM Database, SBS, Live + VOD, July 2020 - June 2021.

58. Nielsen Digital Content Ratings - Monthly; July 2020 - April 2021; All People 2+ unless otherwise stated; Content type = Text Only; Unique Audience.

59. Adobe Analytics (SBS Production); sbs.com.au and SBS On Demand; July 2020 - June 2021; Unique Browsers.

Understanding multilingualaudiences

In 2020-21, SBS conducted several research projects with Australians who speak a language other than English, to provide a nuanced understanding of these audiences, their content preferences and their engagement with SBS.

The ability of SBS to understand its multilingual audience enables it to deliver valuable content to audiences on the platforms of their choice. This research also helps guide SBS investment decisions in relation to content and service delivery for our diverse audiences. Research conducted in 2020-21, measured over 5,400 audiences across

8.9% 8.7% 7.8% 7.7% 7.1%

FY16/17 FY17/18 FY18/19 FY19/20 FY20/21

SBS Network Free to Air Metro Share Total Individuals, 1800-2400

10.0%

9.0%

8.0%

7.0%

6.0%

5.0%

4.0%

3.0%

2.0%

1.0%

Millions

2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Registered Users across SBS Digital Platforms

10.0

8.0

6.0

4.0

2.0

Registered Users

56 SBS Annual Report 2021

10languages, showed the pivotal role that digital platforms play in reaching multilingual audiences, and demonstrates that a tailored approach is required to engage these audiences with news, information and Australiancontent.

Each year, SBS also conducts deep dives into several language communities through McNair Research, tracking consumption and engagement with language platforms. Theresearch conducted in 2020-21 found that 92 per cent60 of the Arabic-speaking population are aware of the SBS Arabic offering (across radio, TV, online and social media), the highest awareness of the languages measured. Thenet SBS weekly reach across all media of the Arabic-speaking population was 55 per cent, up from 51 per cent in 2019.

SBS’s Exchange Panel

SBS engages with audiences through the Exchange Panel, an online panel with more than 16,000 members, helping SBS to connect with Australians. Of the total panel, over 3,000identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and one in three panellists identify as culturally and linguistically diverse.

The Exchange Panel facilitated a large and diverse range of studies in 2020-21, with more than 80research studies conducted, and 35,000 responses collected from online communities. Thestudies included reviews of SBS content highlights including Mardi Gras, Eurovision,

60. SBS Arabic McNair Research, August 2020.

61. SBS Product Satisfaction tracker, Q4 2021.

SBS original drama series HungryGhosts, documentary series WhoGets To Stay In Australia?, thenetwork’s NAIDOC Week offering, and NITV’s YokayiFooty.

SBS Audience Satisfaction

SBS takes an audience-led approach to developing and refining its digital products, incorporating qualitative audience research, looking deeply into audience analytics, and testing potential designs with audiences before launching. SBS regularly measures audience satisfaction across its platforms, investigating which features and content would satisfy audiences further in order to continue to ensure that all digital experiences are helping to engage, inform and entertain Australians. Over the course of 2020-21, the Digital Product Satisfaction Score for SBS OnDemand lifted four points to 83 per cent.61

Customer Service

In 2020-21, SBS introduced a new customer service approach that captures and reports on audience feedback from across the business. From December 2020 to June 2021, 81 per cent of weekly audience enquiries logged through the SBS Help

Centre, also referred to as tickets, were resolved with one touch (ticket was solved with one reply), and we recorded a customer satisfaction score of 88 per cent.

On average, SBS receives around 4,000 pieces of feedback per month, with audiences seeking assistance and sharing their diverse opinions on content, program scheduling, technical enquiries and shared lived experiences in response to SBS programming which explores complex issues.

This year, live event programs such as the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and Eurovision Song Contest generated some of the most significant levels offeedback.

The incredible true story of the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain, TheSalisbury Poisonings, along with the critically acclaimed TheHandmaids Tale also resonated with audiences and received high volumes of positivefeedback.

After a delay due to COVID-19 outbreaks in Europe, the 2020 Tour De France and Giro d’Italia returned to screens later than usual, with audiences staying

Audience feedback quote - Mardi Gras:

“That was sensational. The parade I have seen on TV for a very long time. Visually stunning, informative, sensitive and beautifully narrated. Congratulations to all involved.”

57 Engaged Audiences

up all hours to watch the most exciting cycling tours of the year and sharing their views on thebroadcast.

Documentary series See What You Made Me Do also had a significant audience impact, generating overwhelming positive audience feedback, with audiences praising SBS for shining a light on such a horrificissue.

SBS Brand Health

SBS monitors the brand health and impact of its content on audience engagement and perceptions through the SBS Brand Pulse and SBS Brand Tracker. The SBS Brand Pulse assesses, from a nationally representative sample of respondents, whether SBS is delivering against its core values and whether Australian audiences find its content and services relevant. The research gives SBS a current view of media consumption habits and explores perceptions of SBS and its different services.

62. SBS Brand Pulse - Q4 2021. Base: All Australians.

63. SBS Brand Tracker - Q4 2021. Base: SBS Engaged Audiences.

64. SBS Brand Tracker - Q4 2021. Base: SBS Engaged Audiences.

65. SBS Brand Tracker - May 2021. Base: SBS Engaged Audiences.

In 2020-21:

— SBS Network awareness remained very strong, with 77per cent of Australians aware of the brand62

— 89 per cent agree that “SBSistrusted” 63

— 96 per cent believe that “it’sgood that SBS exists”64

— 89 per cent believe that “SBS helps Australia to be a more successful multiculturalnation”.65

SBS On Demand SBS On Demand, Australia’s most diverse streaming service, offers audiences a truly global catalogue of more than 11,000hours of dramas, documentaries and movies.

Seventy per cent of all content on the platform is culturally and linguistically diverse, and more than 50 per cent of all dramas available are in a language other than English. 2020-21 saw more than 2,100 hours of premiere and exclusive content in languages other than English added to the platform - a 47 per cent increase on the previous year.

SBS On Demand’s distinctive and multilingual content has proven popular with Australian audiences. Thirty of the top 50 most watched titles on the platform were culturally and linguistically diverse, with 15 of these titles being in a language other than English.

Content and Curation

SBS continued to build on its commitment to better serve Australia’s diverse communities in 2020-21, increasing its offering of subtitled, commissioned, local Australian stories in Arabic, Simplified Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean and Hindi, and also providing popular acquired content, such as The Handmaid’s Tale and Shadowplay with subtitles on SBS On Demand.

SBS On Demand also sought to engage culturally diverse communities through the curation of themed collections to mark significant community celebrations and events throughout the year, including:

— Movie collections curated in partnership with the Korean Film Festival, Flickerfest ShortFilm Festival, Sydney Festival and the Latin American FilmFestival

— A collection of Bollywood films to celebrate Diwali

— A NAIDOC Week collection of Indigenous films and series

— A collection of local short films by filmmakers living with disability to coincide with International Day of People with a Disability

Audience feedback quote - Eurovision:

“Thank you SBS… it was so wonderful to see all the countries back performing, smiling laughing again. It’s the global healing we need!!! Pleasepass on my appreciation to allinvolved”

Audience feedback quote - See What You Made Me Do:

“A difficult topic, but handled wonderfully”

58 SBS Annual Report 2021

— An ‘Always Was, Always WillBe’ Indigenous collection to mark January 26

— A Rainbow Pride movie collection to celebrate the Sydney Gay and Lesbian MardiGras

— A Vietnamese movie collection to mark Lunar NewYear

— An International Women’s Day Content collection, featuring a spotlight on female directors

— A collection of films to mark Refugee Week 2020.

SBS continues to evolve its release strategies to engage cross-platform audiences. Boxset availability is becoming increasingly important in the streaming environment, allowing audiences to consume content at their own pace. Full box sets of Fargo, Riviera, Spiral, The Pier, Medici and The Lawyer returned to the platform to coincide with new seasons in 2020-21, while older crime box sets landing on platform surged in popularity, including Spooks, Gommorah, UnitOne and The Eagle.

SBS maintains its approach to fast-tracking high profile, broad appeal series immediately after international broadcast, rather than forcing audiences to wait. This year, Shrill, The Handmaid’s Tale and Bosch were all delivered to audiences this way.

In 2020-21, SBS On Demand also premiered high profile, broad appeal shows with an international focus, including a new season of Riviera and new shows The Head,

66. Adobe Analytics, 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.

We Are Who WeAre, Mirage, Departure and Vienna Blood, as well as the best of in-language dramas from around the world, including Romulus, The Investigation, The Minister, La Unidad, NoMan’s Land, Beforeigners andPossessions.

Technology and ProductEnhancements

SBS delivered improvements across multiple platforms to ensure it is providing a user experience that is seamless, robust, intuitive and meets audience expectations, helping to drive increased engagement, consumption and customersatisfaction.

To complement SBS OnDemand’s world-class video on demand catalogue, a new Live TV section was launched on Telstra TV, Connected TV and iOS Mobile devices, with more platforms to come. This new section prominently features the simulcast streams for the SBS linear channels, and resulted in a 17 per cent increase in users interacting with a livestream since the release of this feature on Telstra TV.

The SBS On Demand website was updated in August 2020 with a refreshed, cinematic user interface that aimed to increase user engagement. As a result of this, active watcher figures are up by 180 per cent, average time spent on site is up by 23 per cent, and the conversion of visitors to viewers is up 43 per cent ontarget.66

SBS On Demand is available on 16 platforms and, in October 2020, SBS launched a new app on Amazon Fire devices. This was an opportunity to be a launch partner on an affordable streaming device that users plug into their TVs using the existing Android TV application, ensuring audiences are still able to access SBS On Demand without the need to upgrade their TVs.

In 2021, SBS On Demand began the process of migrating onto an updated Application Programming Interface (API) to improve consistency across all platforms, provide greater context about the content that is available and a richer taxonomy that can be used to help drive more personalised recommendations in the future.

2020-21 also saw the completion of the rollout of Google’s Digital Ad Insertion (DAI) technology for SBS On Demand, making the transition in and out of ad breaks a more seamless experience for the viewer. Inthe month after its launch, the SBS OnDemand website saw a 91per cent reduction in customer service tickets that referred to ‘Adsbreaking video playback’.

There were also a range of incremental improvements across all platforms, including:

— Skip Intro and Skip Recap functions released across allplatforms

— Updating the Telstra TV platform with an Auto-Play Next Episode function

— Picture in Picture released on iOS devices.

59 Engaged Audiences

Digital communities SBS continues to evolve its services to meet the needs of audiences, reaching, engaging and adapting to changingtechnology.

Across a suite of distinctive websites, SBS championed emerging talent, shared stories of contemporary Australia, celebrated diversity through food, and kept audiences entertained and connected during thepandemic.

SBS Radio and LanguagesServices

Audio was the biggest driver of digital growth for audio and language content in 2020-21, with an average of over six million plays and downloads every month.67 The largest contributor to this accelerated audio consumption was podcast downloads, up 61per cent year-on-year and averaging 3.8million downloads permonth.68

In 2020-21, 11 SBS podcasts averaged over 100,000 downloads per month. Leadingpodcasts on the SBS network were SBS Arabic24, SBS Italian and SBS French -all attracting over 300,000 downloads everymonth.69

67. Adobe Analytics, Audio Plays; Feedpress, Uniques; Soundcloud, Streams; TuneIn Radio, Streams; Spotify, Streams; 01/07/2020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.

68. Feedpress. Uniques. 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.

69. Feedpress. Uniques. 01/07/2020-30/06/2021.

70. Adobe Analytics, Audio Plays; Feedpress, Uniques; Soundcloud, Streams; TuneIn Radio, Streams; Spotify, Streams; 01/072020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.

71. Adobe Analytics, Audio Plays; Feedpress, Uniques; Soundcloud, Streams; TuneIn Radio, Streams; Spotify, Streams; 01/072020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.

72. Adobe Analytics, Audio Plays; Feedpress, Uniques; Soundcloud, Streams; TuneIn Radio, Streams; Spotify, Streams; 01/072020-30/06/2021, 01/07/2019-30/06/2020.

Sport

In 2020-21, SBS embraced an evolution in the coverage of key sports properties. SBS streamed more than 1,400 hours of live sport and expanded its already extensive catalogue of catch-upcontent.

SBS delivered a 360-degree digital offering for the 2020 Tour de France, encompassing social, mobile app, live streams, video on demand, statistics and podcasts. The Tour Tracker app and SBS OnDemand served 1.6million live streams, up 39per cent year-on-year,70 anda dedicated Tour de France live Facebook show - hosted by SBS French Radio’s Christophe Mallet and chief cycling analyst DavidMcKenzie - provided audiences with another opportunity to connect and celebrate the event outside of the live coverage.

The SBS Cycling Central website experienced strong growth, including an increase of 1.5million unique visitors, up 13per cent year on year, and time spent viewing on the site was up 22 percent year-on-year.71 Itwas home to comprehensive coverage of events like the AusCycling Road National Championships in February, featuring Australia’s best cyclists.

Exclusive coverage of the DakarRally on SBS and SBS OnDemand highlighted an increased focus on digital-first offerings with more video content delivered than ever before, and with unique visitors up 104percent year-on-year.72

The World Game Facebook page featured live coverage and highlights from the women’s and men’s teams competing in the Indigenous Football Festival. Rising star of the W-League AlliraToby, a proud Gangulu/ Kanulu woman, hosted the event for SBSSport.

SBS Voices

SBS Voices featured emerging writers from diverse backgrounds exploring issues relevant to their lives in contemporary Australia, and supporting career pathways. The site attracted close to five million unique visitors for the year.

In addition to the Emerging Writers’ Competition (seepage38), SBS Voices launched a pilot short-form documentary on SBS On Demand called TheSwiping Game, exploring the lives of diverse young Australians through the lens of online dating. Seven more episodes exploring issues such as disability and mental health are inproduction.

60 SBS Annual Report 2021

SBS Food

SBS Food featured content supporting a range of programming across the network, with recipes and stories connected to programs including Mastermind, NAIDOC, MardiGras, Eurovision and The Unusual Suspects. The site also featured content and 600 recipes from TheCook Up with Adam Liaw.

SBS Food also continued to experiment and innovate with bespoke social content and partnerships sharing diversestories.

‘Feels like home’ was a content series that shed light on how the food industry continued to re-invent itself during the pandemic, telling the stories of the people and cultures within the restaurant kitchens and behind the counters.

A partnership with Diversity in Food Media Australia to support their food story anthology showcased 13 brand-new food writers from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds across the country. SBS also partnered with the Refugee Council of Australia (RCA) to film video interviews and recipes as part of their ‘share a meal, share a story’ campaign featuring RCAambassadors.

A trial of content produced for the SBS Australia YouTube channel received strong engagement from audiences, and as a result

73. Adobe Analytics (SBS Production); 01/07/2020 - 30/06/2021; Unique Visitors.

74. Sprout Social, all profiles, 1/7/20 - 30/5/21.

75. Sprout Social, all profiles, 1/7/20 - 30/5/21.

76. Sprout Social, all profiles, 1/7/20 - 30/5/21.

SBS Food are preparing to launch a dedicated YouTube channel in the year ahead.

SBS Food had 12 million unique visitors to its website, and also saw growth and increased engagement across socialmedia.73

The Guide

SBS’s TV Guide continued its focus on helping audiences discover the world of distinctive entertainment available across the network.

The Guide’s podcast team also curated conversations around programming, and the award-winning Eyes On Gilead podcast returned for the long-awaited fourth season of The Handmaid’s Tale in April. Thepodcast continues to chart globally, garners five-star reviews on iTunes internationally, and is proven to drive repeat viewings of TheHandmaid’s Tale.

Social Media

Across Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn, SBS provided unique coverage of events including NAIDOC Week, the Eurovision Song Contest, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, Tour De France, January 26 commemorations and more.

SBS’s social media output remained steady year-on-year with over 145,00074 posts across all platforms, resulting in over 3.2 billion impressions, over 640million video views, and over 250 million engagements.75

Totalsocial audience size and video views grew slightly, while overall impressions, engagements, and click throughs fell by 15-30 per cent.76

Social media is always shifting, but 2020-21 saw significant disruption with market shifts, increased competitor activity and environmental changes on major platforms. SBS responded by advancing the experience on our own digital products and platforms to reach and engage multilingual and national audiences, and will continue to experiment with different digital platforms to find the right mix of meeting the audience where they are while also delivering on business goals and celebrating aworld of difference.

Making SBS accessible for all SBS is committed to ensuring its content informs, educates and entertains all Australians through a growing commitment to subtitling in multiple languages, as well as delivering essential closed captioning and audio description services.

SBS’s Access Services and Program Preparation (ASPP) unit ensures SBS not only meets its regulatory requirements, but is consistently delivering more for audiences, and always looking for ways to increase access to programming, with a commitment to quality underpinning these important services.

61 Engaged Audiences

Subtitling

SBS brings Australians a world of distinctive content; it makes programs in languages other than English accessible to local audiences through English subtitles. Over the past year, SBS has subtitled programs from more than 65 languages.

In 2020-21, SBS also significantly increased its subtitling of English content into other languages, broadcasting more than 500hours and tripling the number of hours from the prior year. More so than ever, multicultural communities across the country are able to enjoy SBS programs in their first language through growing language collections available on SBS OnDemand.

Audio Description (AD)

SBS continues to tell stories that matter with audio description, increasing access to documentaries, dramas and movies for blind or vision-impaired Australians, by providing auditory narration of the non-verbal elements of a program. Launched on SBS and SBS VICELAND in June 2020, AD was extended to NITV and SBS World Movies in April 2021. SBS’s AD services are available terrestrially, and on the Viewer Access Satellite Television (VAST) platform for audiences in regional and remote locations where reliable terrestrial reception is not available. As a network, SBS provides, on average, 20 hours per week of audio described programming, up from 14 hours when the service launched.

Captioning

Closed captioning provides benefits for Deaf and Hard of Hearing (HoH) audience members, as well as all others who enjoy watching programs with captions. SBS is always looking for ways to caption additional programming beyond its obligations, and in 2020-2021, captioned approximately a further 500 hours of programming for broadcast across the network.

Access Services by Platform Hours

SBS:

Closed Captions 6553

Subtitles 760

Audio Description 657

Re-narration 13

NITV:

Closed Captions 938

Subtitles 392

Audio Description 62

SBS World Movies:

Closed Captions 2073

Subtitles 4452

Audio Description 146

SBS VICELAND:

Closed Captions 2175

Subtitles 494

Audio Description 456

Digital and Online:

Closed Captions 7

Subtitles (in-house only) 587

Subtitling & Multilingual Project 490

62 SBS Annual Report 2021

For more than 45 years, SBS’s commitment to the communities it serves - understanding key issues and perspectives, and telling their important stories - has been central to every aspect of its operations. This commitment is supported through direct engagement and connection with communities throughout theyear.

In 2020-21, SBS established partnerships and undertook engagement initiatives to enhance its connection with multicultural and Indigenous communities, and extend its exploration of national issues including migration, domestic and family violence, digital safety, addiction, media literacy, reconciliation, multilingualism and the celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

While COVID-19 transformed SBS’s engagement with communities beyond its content, face-to-face events and activations were replaced with support for digital forums and festivals, personalised updates and offers of information and support to help SBS partners reach their own communities with trusted information.

This year marked the second year of the SBS and NITV partnership as the official National NAIDOC Principal Media Partner and Official Education Partner. Due to COVID-19, the annual National NAIDOC Awards were cancelled and NAIDOC Week postponed from its usual time of July to November, but SBS - with NITV at the heart of the network - was focused on engaging audiences when connection and celebration

were needed most. A cross-network offering of content celebrated the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, supporting Australians in celebrating First Nations excellence from their homes, at a time when lockdowns and COVID-19 restrictions meant many of the events planned in cities and towns around the country were put on hold.

SBS Learn, SBS’s education portal which produces and hosts educational materials for schools linked to Australian Curriculum and SBS programming, became another important resource to support communities through the pandemic. Mandated shutdowns of schools across Australia saw teachers reach for education resources that were easy to access, drafted by subject matter experts and designed to deploy in an online or in-person environment. SBS Learn experienced an increase in visitors to the site of 42 per cent since June 2020.

SBS Learn provided a suite of impactful new resources across the year, including a NAIDOC Week Education Resource and video resources and accompanying materials to support teachers in exploring themes raised in the SBS documentary, See What You Made Me Do.

SBS’s deep and unrivalled connections to communities remain central to the trust audiences have in the organisation. SBS remains focused on the role it plays in supporting communities, across all that it does, particularly during challenging times.

Inspired Communities

As the diverse fabric of Australia evolves, SBS continues to deepen its connection with communities with the aim of increasing respect and understanding across society.

63 Inspired Communities

Inspired Communities

Community insights into COVID-19

In mid-2020, SBS sought the views of multicultural communities on what they needed from SBS during the pandemic, and their perspectives on the role of SBS in supporting the country to emerge and move towards recovery.

This research showed that Australian multicultural communities were still feeling optimistic about our nation’s recovery from the pandemic, though this sense of optimism was lower than that of the general population. Employment, finance, economic outlook, mental health, international travel restrictions and the availability of support services were the main community concerns, with mental health expected to remain in the top five issues during the longer-term recovery phase.

SBS’s community stakeholders overwhelmingly felt that SBS played a vital role in providing coverage and information about the pandemic, with 84 per cent feeling that SBS has served Australian communities ‘well’ or ‘very well.’77 In addition, 96 per cent of respondents believed that the SBS Multilingual Coronavirus Portal was doing a great job in delivering value to culturally and linguistically diverse audiences.78

77. SBS Community Brand Tracker . Waves 6. Base - July 2020.

78. SBS Community Brand Tracker . Waves 6. Base - July 2020.

SBS Outreach SBS Outreach extends the impact, reach and value of SBS programs by developing unique educational outreach projects. Channelled through the SBS Learn website, Outreach brings relevant, trusted, quality programming into Australianclassrooms.

SBS Learn In 2020-21, SBS Learn projects incorporated materials exploring the ongoing impacts of colonisation. To support classroom conversations about Australian history on January 26, SBS Learn equipped teachers with two new teacher resources: Stories from the Shore (drawing on NITV’s The Point); and First Nations’ Perspectives on Cook’s Arrival (based on NITV documentary, Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky, published in partnership with the Australian National Maritime Museum). These resources add to the rich library of materials on SBS Learn that explore Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander perspectives, knowledge andcultures.

In collaboration with DeakinUniversity, SBS Learn published a guide for teachers to examine Are Your Students Addicted to Technology?. Thisproject formed a companion piece to Are You Addicted To Technology, aninteractive

documentary on SBS OnDemand, which explores the use and misuse of technology, and healthier ways to manage student interactions with digitalengagements.

As an official education partner for NAIDOC Week, SBS Learn delivered a 40-page resource supporting study of the 2021 NAIDOC Week theme ‘HealCountry!’. Authored by leading educator and Yankunytjatjara and Wirangu descendant, ShelleyWare, the 2021 resource supports schools to celebrate NAIDOC Week, and embeds Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in their classrooms year-round.

In partnership with the eSafety Commissioner, SBS also created the video-based resource, Connect with Respect: Classroom Materials. These five videos and accompanying teaching materials feature young adults from diverse backgrounds speaking about what respectful relationships look and feel like to them, and how young people can contribute to a more equitable society. Connect with Respect was produced to support themes raised in the SBS documentary See What You MadeMe Do.

64 SBS Annual Report 2021

Community and Stakeholder Engagement, Activities and Partnerships

Against the backdrop of COVID-19, SBS sought innovative ways to connect with stakeholders to ensure that its work remained relevant and valued by the communities it serves. Supporting partners, communities and charities affected by the crisis, and connecting communities and stakeholders across Australia with SBS’s multilingual COVID-19 and vaccine information dominated activity in the second half of 2020 and early 2021.

Multicultural New South Wales SBS and Multicultural NSW have established a four-year partnership through which SBS provides support for major events, including the Premier’s Harmony Dinner and sponsorship of the Premier’s Lifetime Community Service Medal.

Through this partnership, SBS was the primary media partner of the NSW Premier’s Harmony Dinner on 13 March, 2021 at International Convention Centre Sydney. The event partnership included the host of SBS’s TheCook Up, Adam Liaw, as the Master of Ceremonies, and was attended by over 600 community stakeholders and leaders.

A feature of the night was the presentation of the NSW Premier’s Multicultural Community Medals across thirteen categories, which were judged by a panel including SBS Insight host, Kumi Taguchi.

Managing Director James Taylor presented the Lifetime Community Service Award to Abla Tohamy Kadous, Founder and President of the Islamic Women’s Welfare Association(IWWA).

Victorian Multicultural Commission SBS continues to partner with the Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC) on events in Victoria, including the 2021 Multicultural Film Festival, scheduled to be held in August2021. SBS’s Industry Diversity Manager, Michelle Cheng, is on the judging panel for this event with representatives from the VMC and SwinburneUniversity.

A selection of winning filmmakers will have their films screened on SBS On Demand and receive mentoring and tours from SBSstaff.

Multicultural Australia For the third consecutive year, SBS sponsored events hosted by Multicultural Australia (MA), a migrant and refugee service organisation based in Brisbane,Queensland.

REIMAGINE 2020, held from 1to14 November, 2020, was the first virtual festival organised by MA, after COVID-19 caused the cancellation of MA’s Luminous Lantern Parade and Mosaic Culture Festival. REIMAGINE 2020 combined these two events into a two-week online program to celebrate the contributions migrants and refugees have made to Queensland’s cultural landscape - through food, music, storytelling, business and arts. Ascorporate sponsor, SBS hosted a virtual market stall, showcasing NAIDOC Week 2020, the SBS Multilingual Coronavirus portal and Settlement Guide, SBS Food, SBS On Demand and SBS WorldMovies.

In 2021, SBS was the corporate sponsor of Multicultural Australia’s 14th Luminous Lantern Parade, which was held on 4June, 2021 at South Bank. Theannual event also coincided with Queensland Day, recognising the State’s culture, heritage, people and industry.

Australia for UNHCR The UNHCR Les Murray Refugee Award was established in 2021 by Australia for UNHCR, and the family of Les Murray, with the support of SBS. The Award aims to highlight a refugee (or group) who has settled or is securing settlement in Australia and who has made contributions in art, sports and media that generate positive awareness about the refugee community. The Award was announced on 18 June, 2021 and will be awarded for the first time in March 2022.

65 Inspired Communities

Australian National Maritime Museum - National Monument to Migration On Sunday, 21 March, 2021, SBS partnered with the Australian National Maritime Museum (ANMM) to host its annual Welcome Wall event, which celebrates Australia’s migrant heritage. The event, hosted by SBS The Feed co-presenter Alice Matthews, featured three storytellers who shared their journeys to calling Australia home and their joy at having their names inscribed on the WelcomeWall.

The ANMM is formally elevating the status of the Welcome Wall and establishing the exhibit as Australia’s National Monument to Migration. Thirty thousand names have already been inscribed on the permanent installation at Darling Harbour.

Sculpture by the Sea SBS has partnered with Sculpture by the Sea to celebrate the event’s multicultural contributions. As part of this partnership, SBS translated and subtitled the presentation of the Sydney Sculpture Conference 2020 keynote speaker, internationally renowned curator, Takuro Kurokouchi, which allowed Sculpture by the Sea to celebrate artistic contributions from across the world and reach a wider Australian audience online with speakers from Japan, China andIran.

Communities in Cultural Transition Forum On 15 September, 2020, SBS partnered with NSW STARTTS (Services for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors) for the annual forum of its flagship program, Communities in Cultural Transition (CiCT). The forum, titled Sharing our Stories, Showcasing our Successes, was hosted by SBS World News journalist and presenter Darren Mara. Theevent featured video messages from the Pulaar, Rohingya, Mandaean, South Sudanese and Tamil communities, all sharing their stories of settlement in Australia. The CiCT program has contributed significantly to the recovery of many refugees who experienced torture and trauma.

Willoughby City Council LunarNew Year In a partnership with Willoughby City Council, SBS was the Principal Media Partner for the annual Chatswood Lunar New Year Festival, which ran from 3 to 28 February, 2021. This partnership was an opportunity for SBS to support and strengthen relationships within the local community, as well as highlight the importance of cultural celebrations such as Lunar NewYear.

SBS Food was also the primary sponsor for the Chatswood Lunar New Year Food Trail, a directory of local restaurants which were participating in the festival with special offers for the community.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities

As the home of NITV, SBS aims to be the premier broadcaster of Indigenous content in Australia, contributing to the growth of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander media sector.

In 2020-21, SBS entered the third year of a NAIDOC partnership with the National Indigenous Australians Agency and the National NAIDOC Committee, and has embarked on an extensive consultation plan to support the creation of SBS’s fifth Reconciliation Action Plan.

NAIDOC Week 2020 NAIDOC Week is a significant calendar event for all Australians with strong connections to the SBS Charter, celebrating the achievements, history and cultures of Australia’s FirstNations peoples. SBS is both the official media partner and official education partner of NAIDOC Week, as part of a three-year agreement with the National NAIDOC Committee and the National Indigenous AustraliansAgency.

A COVID-19 delayed NAIDOC Week 2020 saw NITV broadcast a celebratory NAIDOC concert special, Stand Up and Be Counted, which was simulcast on SBS and social media platforms. Othercontent highlights during the week included, Big Mob Brekky, Who Do You Think You Are? Going Places with Ernie Dingo, Insight, and acclaimed films Storm Boy and Rabbit-Proof Fence, in addition to the translations of the

66 SBS Annual Report 2021

Uluru Statement from the Heart into more than 60languages, from SBS Radio teams (seepage33).

Research which has tracked results since the start of SBS’s NAIDOC Week partnership has shown an important shift in the awareness and understanding of NAIDOC since the partnership began in 2019. SBS has reached two million Australians each year via TV,79 and boosted awareness of NAIDOC Week amongst SBS audiences and the widercommunity.

The NAIDOC Week partnership has also delivered a strong reputational impact for SBS, with audiences indicating that they consider SBS’s NAIDOC commitment as having a very strong impact on the “promotion of cultural diversity” as well as “driving social cohesion”.

SBS Reconciliation ActionPlan The SBS Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) helps to drive reconciliation by facilitating understanding, promoting meaningful engagement, increasing equality, and developing sustainable employment and businessopportunities.

SBS published its first RAP in 2009 as a demonstration of a commitment to increasing awareness of the contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities to Australian society. Since 2009, SBS has delivered a further three RAPs and is currently in consultation

79. OzTAM & RegTAM; Combined Metro + Regional; 5+ Mins Consecutive Reach, Consolidated 28; NAIDOC Week programming; 2019 & 2020.

and drafting SBS’s fifth RAP (RAP5), which will be launched in late 2021.

RAP5 will demonstrate SBS’s commitment to leadership in reconciliation and leverage its unique position as Australia’s multicultural and Indigenous broadcaster to engage culturally and linguistically diverse audiences with opportunities to learn from, and about, First Nations cultures, history, communities and peoples.

With the benefit of the leadership and insight from SBS’s FirstNations leaders, staff, community advisers and partners such as Reconciliation Australia, SBS is committed to taking collaborative, creative, bold and brave action to achieve better outcomes for First Nations peoples and communities through RAP5.

Multicultural voices in NITV’s Sunrise Ceremony onJanuary26 SBS’s unique ability to connect multicultural communities with First Nations cultures was also demonstrated through NITV’s January 26 programming.

Culturally and linguistically diverse voices joined panel discussion on key NITV programs.

NITV current affairs program, ThePoint, on its special 25January episode featured Harmony Alliance Chair, NyadolNyuon and Chief Executive Officer of Federation Ethnic Communities’ Council of Australia (FECCA), MohammadAl-Khafaji.

The NITV Sunrise Ceremony program on the morning of 26January included interviews with Abu Hanifa Founder, Shaykh Wesam Charkawi, and Vietnamese-Australian writer and member of Sweatshop Writer’s Collective, Shirley Le.

First Nations Media Australia First Nations Media Australia (FNMA) is the national peak body for First Nations media. SBS, including NITV, has partnered with FNMA for several years. NITVis an affiliate member of FNMA and Tanya Denning-Orman, SBS Director of Indigenous Content is an FNMA Board member.

FNMA’s CONVERGE Conference was postponed due to COVID-19 from 2020 to May 2021. Held in Lismore, NSW, the event was attended by an SBS and NITV delegation who participate in and delivered workshops, celebrating the First Nations media sector, including the 30-year anniversary of the KooriMail. Thisconference creates opportunities for collaboration between broadcasters, media and the communications sector, and provides a space for the FirstNations media sector to connect and share insights.

AusSMC Indigenous Media Mentoring Program 2020 Every year SBS and NITV host the Australian Science Media Centre (AusSMC) Indigenous Media Mentoring Program. The program brings together up to 12 Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander scientists and researchers for media

67 Inspired Communities

training, funded by AusSMC. Workshops include using voice, understanding media and radio/ television interviews across twodays.

The program for 2021 was postponed to enable the delivery of face-to-face, practical workshops in SBS’s studios. Together with AusSMC, SBS is planning a hybrid delivery mode with web-based preparatory theory workshops to complement the hands-on in-person sessions.

First Nations Staff AdvisoryGroup In November 2020, SBS launched its First Nations Staff Advisory Group, bringing together Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander staff members to represent First Nations staff across SBS, including NITV. TheGroup serves as an advisory body to the organisation, providing advice and recommendations pertaining to First Nationsmatters.

This structure provides a mechanism through which the organisation can consult with its First Nations staff; receive support and advice in decision making in a culturally appropriate, respectful and informed manner, and promote and celebrate First Nations cultures, peoples andachievements.

Corporate Social Responsibility

SBS recognises that the nature of its work has a social impact on its employees, the community and the wider media sector, and it is committed to social accountability through day-to-day operations.

Community Service Announcements Through the provision of free airtime for Community Service Announcements (CSAs), SBS continues to provide a broad range of important community messaging, including in languages other than English via SBS Radio.

SBS has continued to prioritise eligible organisations providing services of need, especially to those impacted by COVID-19. Organisations that have been provided with free television airtime in 2020-21 include:

— Aussie Helpers

— Australian Men’s Shed Association

— Autism Camp Australia

— Backpack Bed for Homeless

— Clean Up Australia Day 2021

— Dementia Australia

— eSafety Commissioner

— Hello Sunday Morning

— Holyoake Counselling

— Kids Under Cover

— Malpa Young Doctors

— Musicians making a difference

— NAPCAN

— Narcotics Anonymous Australia

— National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect

— Neighbour Day 2020

— Odyssey House Community Services

— Orange Sky Laundry

— Our Watch

— Reach Out Australia

— Reconciliation Australia - National Reconciliation Week

— Refugee Advice and Casework Service

— Refugee Migrant Children Centre

— Relationships Australia

— Sane Australia

— SecondBite

— Settlement Services International

— SNAICC Children’s Day

— Starlight Foundation

— Support Act Wellbeing Helpline

— The Big Issue

— The Healing Foundation

— The Shepherd Centre

— UN Women Australia

— Wayside Chapel

SBS has also been able to connect the scheduling of this free airtime with key on-air content such as Addicted Australia, See What You Made Me Do and Who Gets To Stay In Australia. This is an effective way to ensure audiences are accessing services relevant to issues raised in content, and supports organisations by highlighting the way their services directly assist Australiancommunities.

68 SBS Annual Report 2021

SBS Community AdvisoryCommittee

The SBS Community Advisory Committee is a critical body that assists the SBS Board in ensuring that SBS’s content and services reflect the needs of communities and ensures the ongoing success of SBS in contributing to a more inclusive Australian society. TheCommittee is empowered to seek feedback from community groups about SBS services and draws on their unique positions within Australia’s diverse communities to advise the SBS Board on matters relevant to the SBS Charter. Its primary objectives in 2020-21 included:

— Providing ongoing advice to the Board and Executive

— Making recommendations to the Board on key issues impacting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and culturally and linguistically diverse communities

— Supporting SBS activities related to community engagement, partnerships, consultations, stakeholder relations and policies

— Providing feedback on programming, marketing and outreach activities affecting allAustralians

— Assisting SBS’s efforts to inform and educate all Australians to counter prejudice, racism and religiousdiscrimination.

During this unusual time, the Committee has also provided SBS with the benefit of their insights into the issues of importance to the community, and feedback on a number of SBS projects,

including SBS’s multilingual approach to COVID-19, the SBS Code of Practice Review, and SBS’s forthcoming fifth Reconciliation Action Plan.

The Committee met three times in 2020-21, with the SBS Managing Director and other SBS Executives attending meetings throughout the year. In addition to regular meetings, Committee members were provided with updates and information on SBS content and themes to enable them to share this with their networks and to drive engagement with the SBS suite of channels and platforms. Committee members were also invited to SBS community events, including SBS’s coverage of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian MardiGras.

The Committee includes two SBS Board members: SBS Chair, George Savvides, and SBS non-executive Board member, Dorothy West, who also serves as Committee Chair.

The maximum term for members of the Committee is two terms of two years. As a result, the following (five) appointments will end in September 2021.

— Mr Huss Mustafa OAM

— Ms Carmel Guerra OAM

— Mr Patrick Mua

— Professor Adrian Miller

— Dr Casta Tungaraza

In addition, Shannan Dodson has indicated she will not seek reappointment to the Community Advisory Committee when her first term expires in September2021.

Biographies

Dorothy (Dot) West SBS non-executive Board member and SBS Community Advisory Committee Chair

Please see biography on page 14.

George Savvides AM SBS Chair

Please see biography on page 12.

SBS Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Members

SBS CAC Deputy-Chair, MrHuseiyn (Huss) Mustafa OAM General Manager, Multicultural Community Banking at Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Huss Mustafa OAM is a Senior Executive at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) with more than 40 years’ experience in the financial services sector. He is currently General Manager of the Multicultural Community Banking Australia team. He played a leading role in establishing TheAustralian Turkish Business Council, served as its president for 11 years, and is now its Patron and Honorary Chair. In 2014, Husswas awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for his services to multiculturalism and the business community.

Ms Carmel Guerra OAM Chief Executive Officer, Centre forMulticultural Youth (CMY)

With 30 years’ experience in the community sector, Carmel Guerra is the Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY) - the first organisation in Australia to work exclusively with migrant and refugee young people.

69 Inspired Communities

Carmel continues to be an active participant on a number of boards and committees, for both government and non-government sectors, and is currently a member of the Migration Council Australia and Settlement Services Advisory Council. Carmel convenes the national Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (MYAN), is a member of the Youth Parole Board and in 2016 was recognised with a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for her outstanding achievements and service to the community.

Mr Patrick Mau (Mau Power) Musician and Filmmaker

Mr Patrick Mau is a lyrical storyteller and artist from Thursday Island in the Torres Strait. With a proud heritage from the Dhoebaw Clan of the GudaMaluilgal nations and the Argan tribe of the Maluilgal nations, MauPower is the first hip-hop act to emerge out of the Torres Strait and break out on the Australian music scene, making an impact through the art of telling stories that embody his many connections to cultures.

Professor Adrian Miller Pro Vice-Chancellor of Indigenous Engagement, Central QueenslandUniversity

Professor Adrian Miller is a descendant of the Jirrbal people of North Queensland. His interests include applied and translational research in communicable diseases in Indigenous communities; Indigenous public health; and Indigenous higher education.

Professor Miller’s research development has been a major focus for these activities, which have led to positive outcomes for Indigenous community members and organisations. He has a research track record in competitive grants with both Australian Research Council and National Health and Medical Research Council grant schemes and in June 2018, Adrian moved into a new role as Pro Vice-Chancellor of Indigenous Engagement at Central Queensland University.

Ms Mary Patetsos Chairperson, Federation EthnicCommunities’ Council of Australia(FECCA)

Ms Mary Patetsos is a professional Board Director, serving on both national and South Australian Boards with a rare blend of academic qualifications and expertise. Her membership includes Chair of Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA), Council member of the University of South Australia, Deputy Chairperson Health Performance Council, member of the Northern Adelaide Local Health Network Governing Board, Board member of Catherine House and member of the National Aged Care Alliance. Ms Patetsos is also a Chair and non-Executive Director of Power Community Limited and is a member of Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).

Dr Casta Tungaraza Chair, Advisory Group on Australia-Africa Relations; President, African Women’s Council of Australia

Dr Casta Tungaraza is Director of the Australian Institute of Swahili Language and African Culture, a member of the Western Australian Government’s Multicultural Advisory Group and a recipient of the West Australian Multicultural Services Award. Sheworks closely with the African diaspora in Australia, actively supporting the integration, participation and empowerment of African Australians within Australian society. In 2012, she received the national Living Legend and Most Influential African in Australia Awards, and in the same year, she was inducted in the Women’s Hall of Fame in Western Australia. Casta is currently the Chair of the Government’s Advisory Group on Australia-Africa Relations tasked with informing Australia’s thinking and policies on Africa, promoting people-to-people relations and enhancing trade and economic engagement between the twocontinents.

Ms Margherita Coppolino President, National Ethnic Disability Alliance (NEDA)

Margherita Coppolino is a photographer and Inclusion/ Intersectionality consultant and advisor to government, business and social justice organisations. She is currently the President of National Ethnic Disability Alliances and Board member for Footscray Community Arts Centre and Australia LGBTQI+ Multicultural Council.

70 SBS Annual Report 2021

As a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, her previous roles include Chairperson of Arts and Access Victoria, Australia Federation of Disability Organisations. Shehas also held non-executive positions with Spectrum Migrants Resources Centre, Action on Disability within Ethnic Communities, and Women with Disabilities Australia.

Margherita is a first generation Australian, born to Sicilian mother who migrated in 1959. She was born with a Short Statured condition and is a proud feminist and lesbian.

Ms Violet Roumeliotis AM Chief Executive Officer, Settlement Services International (SSI)

Violet Roumeliotis is a social entrepreneur who champions the strengths of diverse communities. Through her C-suite and board roles, Violet uses innovation and collective impact to promote social justice and inclusion in all forms. She is the CEO of Settlement Services International, a community organisation and social business that supports newcomers and other vulnerable individuals to achieve their full potential. During her eight years as CEO, Violet has taken SSI from a Sydney-based organisation with 68 staff to an 800-plus workforce that supports more than 37,600people nationally each year.

Ms Shannan Dodson Deputy CEO, National Aboriginal Sporting Chance Academy (NASCA)

Shannan Dodson is a Yawuru (Broome area) woman who was born in Katherine in the Northern Territory and currently lives in Sydney. Shannan has worked in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs for over 16 years and is a strategic communications and engagement specialist.

She is currently Deputy CEO of the National Aboriginal Sporting Chance Academy, a not-for-profit organisation delivering programs to enhance the health, education and employment prospects for Aboriginal young people. Shannan formerly ran her own consultancy and was the Communications Manager for the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Leadership and Engagement) Office at the University of Technology Sydney.

Shannan is the Co-Chair of the National NAIDOC Committee and the Indigenous Affairs Advisor for Media Diversity Australia which seeks to promote balanced representation in Australian media that more accurately reflects the Australian community. She is a regular contributor to NITV, the ABC and The Guardian. Shannan is passionate about FirstNations’ rights and understanding mental health issues, particularly intergenerational trauma for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Mr Stefan Romaniw OAM Executive Director, Australian Federation of Ethnic Schools Association (AFESA)

Stefan Romaniw OAM is the Executive Director of Community Languages Australia. Afterserving as Chairman of the Victorian Multicultural Commission and the Victorian Government’s Australia Day Committee, he continues his work with key multicultural committees and organisations within Australia, including Multicultural Arts Victoria, and RMIT Languages Advisory Committee. Stefan is the recipient of many awards, including the Order of Australia Medal for his service to education and language learning for people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds; the Centenary Medal for voluntary service to the community; and three levels of Orders of Recognition and Medals from the President of Ukraine.

71 Inspired Communities

Government andIndustry

News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code In 2020-21, SBS continued to constructively engage in the process leading to the Treasury Laws Amendment (News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code) Act 2021 (Bargaining Code), which received assent in March 2021. This included providing submissions to the ACCC and the Treasury, as well as giving evidence to a hearing before the Senate Legislation Committee on Economics.

SBS continues to work with digital platforms such as Google and Facebook, regarding the provision of news and current affairs on the platforms. Where relevant, SBS will participate in the Treasury’s review of the Bargaining Code, which is expected to take place after an initial twelve-month period has elapsed.

Media Reform Green Paper In November 2020, the Government published the Media Reform Green Paper: Modernising television regulation in Australia (the Green Paper). The Green Paper sought feedback on measures to support Australian content into the future, including through revenue that may arise from proposed changes to broadcasting spectrummanagement.

SBS provided its initial submission in response to the Green Paper in May 2021 and will continue to engage in the policy development process.

Digital Platform Inquiry 2020-25 The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is conducting a five-year Digital Platform Services Inquiry 2020-2025 into markets for the supply of digital platform services (the Inquiry). This Inquiry follows the ACCC’s Digital Platforms Inquiry which concluded at the end of 2018-19.

As part of this work, the ACCC’s Ad Tech Inquiry looks at markets for the supply of digital advertising technology services and digital advertising agency services. As a hybrid-funded public broadcaster, SBS content services include advertising and SBS has actively participated in theInquiry.

The ACCC also consulted on the operation of app marketplaces in Australia, releasing an issues paper in September 2020. Inthis respect the Inquiry focusses on two key app marketplaces in Australia, the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store, examining issues impacting app developers and consumers. Asan app developer and publisher, SBS provides apps that are free for Australian audiences. SBS made a submission in response to the issues paper in March 2021 and will continue to participate in further developments.

Online Safety Act 2021 SBS supports proper controls that mitigate online risks and ensure Australians can confidently take advantage of the benefits of the digital environment. Further to its February 2020 submission, SBS provided its second submission to the Department of Infrastructure,

Transport, Regional Development and Communications in February 2021 in relation to a bill for a new Online Safety Act. The Bill was passed on 23 June, 2021.

Industry Engagement SBS supports an innovative and diverse media sector through participation in a range of national and international industry bodies and initiatives. These networks are more important than ever, as the media industry goes through significant change.

SBS is a member of the Public Media Alliance (PMA), and the International Institute ofCommunications.

SBS’s membership and participation in the PMA provides connections to other public broadcasters to advance the interests of public media organisations and to promote their indispensable contribution to modern society.

Involvement in the International Institute of Communications allows SBS to contribute to global conversations on communications, technology, and digital development and to access international perspectives on policy and regulatory issues.

NITV’s membership of the World Indigenous Television Broadcasters Network (WITBIN) continues to provide content sharing and strategic partnershipopportunities.

72 SBS Annual Report 2021

In 2020-21, as all businesses across the country were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, SBS successfully protected its operations and brand with robust business continuity plans, risk management, and SBS’s agile, dedicated teams enabling the ongoing delivery of its content andservices.

Advice from health authorities to have employees work from home where possible shifted SBS to a hybrid workplace model. Notwithstanding this, the business continued to operate at full capacity, and this did not have a material impact on productivity or the delivery of SBS’s strategic objectives. SBS production activities were adjusted at some points during the year, with events cancelled or postponed, productions temporarily halted or requiring limited crew numbers, and travel bans and other restrictions in place.

SBS’s efficient approach, point of difference in the market, and contingency plans implemented in the previous financial year, ensured SBS could manage the strong economic headwinds in the first quarter of 2020-21, and meet its revised commercial targets for the year, with 31 per cent of SBS’s total operating revenue earned from commercial activities.

Having implemented a range of cost-saving initiatives the previous financial year to protect the business and workforce from the impacts of COVID-19, SBS continued to exercise financial diligence. A temporary pause on general wage increases was implemented from 1 July, 2020 to 30 June, 2021, and in October 2020 SBS

held a vote for employees covered by the SBS Enterprise Agreement 2019 (EA) to consider a six-month deferral of the scheduled two per cent wage increase from February 2021 to August 2021. The proposed EA variation was not approved, meaning the scheduled pay increase for employees covered by the EA went ahead in February 2021 as planned.

In 2020-21, SBS maintained its base funding from the Australian Government, which is critical to SBS’s ongoing ability to provide vital services for Australia’s diverse communities. In the October 2020 Federal Budget, SBS also received ongoing additional funding of approximately $2 million per year. In the May2021 Federal Budget, SBS was provided with a further $29 million over the next three years, specifically to enhance our language services, akey pillar of SBS’s strategy.

With a best-in-class operational cost base, SBS remained focused on achieving the most effective and efficient means to distribute its distinctive content across television, radio and digital platforms, allowing greater investment in compelling Charter-focused content andservices.

SBS remains committed to maintaining reliable services and adapting to the changing environment, to reach as many Australians as possible. As audience consumption increasingly shifts to digital platforms, in 2020-21 SBS continued to find technological solutions and innovative ways to store, manage and publish content across all its platforms, while also enabling improved analytics and business intelligence to drive future business decisions.

Great Business

SBS is an efficient and contemporary media organisation, investing in distinctive content and evolving its offering to meet the ever-changing needs of Australian audiences.

73 Great Business

Great Business

Ongoing efficiency program

Over the six-year period up to 2020-21, SBS’s efficiency program has culminated in over $54 million of realised savings in 2020-21. These efficiencies have been generated through vigilant annual planning processes, workflow improvements, the renegotiation of supplier agreements, an evolved operating model utilising best-in-class technology solutions, and investment in a working environment that fosters agile practices and a highly engagedworkforce.

SBS has reinvested these efficiencies in the growth of its digital services and distinctive cross platform content in line with its Charter, to educate, entertain and inform all Australians. Across2015-16 to 2020-21, SBS has increased its digital consumption hours by 312 percent, increased its metro share from 6.8 per cent to 8.9percent in a declining free to air market, and grown investment in commissioned hours by over 42per cent.

SBS six year trend - total expenses vs digital consumption hours, FTA metro share + First run commissioned hours

FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21

325

300

275

250

225

200

175

150

125

100

450

400

350

300

250

200

150

100

Expenditure (FY2016-21) Millions of dollars

Digital Consumption Hours, FTA Metro Share & Commissioned Hours (FY2016-21) Indexed (FY16 = 0)

Efficiency reinvested (left-hand axis)

Expenses excluding Efficiency (left-hand axis)

Commissioned hours (first run) (right-hand axis)

SBS Network FTA Metro share (right-hand axis)

Digital Consumption hours (right-hand axis)

365

27 30 41 48

385 399 403 406 406 427

372 365 358 373 373

Technology highlights and system enhancements

In 2020-21, SBS delivered several innovative projects to ensure its systems and business spaces remained up to date, optimised and secure. While operating under the constraints of COVID-19, a range of business-critical projects were completed, keeping SBS at the forefront of technological advances while continuing to invest resources and planning around cybersecurity.

74 SBS Annual Report 2021

Projects included implementing the cloud-based Technology Data Platform (TDP), enabling the organisation to become more analytics and data-driven, and building a new IP data network including WiFi, to allow migration from the outdated legacysolution.

In 2020-21, SBS also began work on the future digital architecture project to solve several challenges faced by SBS digital products, including fixing legacy code. The project set up a new foundation for SBS to build new product capabilities and refresh existing products.

Digital Acceleration Plan In 2020-21, significant progress was made in supporting SBS’s Digital Acceleration Plan. Thisincluded an increase in the use of audience data and research to further evolve digital platforms and to develop the SBS digital experience. Developmentsincluded:

— Introducing a new Live TV section in SBS On Demand, which has increased audienceengagement

— Completing the roll out of Dynamic Ad Insertion on SBS On Demand for a more seamless ad experience

— Rebuilding the SBS OnDemand website with improved search functionality and a more engaging design

— Improving SEO to SBS Mandarin, SBS Cantonese and SBS Arabic using Accelerated Mobile Pages which appear inlanguage

— Improving content discoverability and language preference functionality in the SBS Radio app

— Launching SBSä¸æ (SBSChinese), a mobile-first digital platform to super serve Mandarin and Cantonese speaking communities

— Improving functionality for the SBS Apple News app, including videos and “read more” suggestions, tobuildengagement.

Broadcast Operations SBS’s Broadcast Operations team is responsible for all television and radio studio operations, overseeing everything that goes to air and all internal infrastructureengineering.

In 2020-21, the team delivered programs using in-house resources and facilities, maintaining business-critical operations whilst adhering to strict COVID-19 protocols. SBS Radio on-air broadcasters were also supported to deliver programs while working from home, with broadcast-quality interface equipment.

Amongst other initiatives in 2020-21, SBS’s Studio Operations team continued to explore the limits of Augmented Reality graphics engines, with expert operators and artists now able to produce class-leading visualisations to provide a richer viewing experience across multiple channels, programs and genres including News, Entertainment, Sport and NITV.

Playout Services SBS’s playout arrangements with service partner, MediaCloudPtyLtd (Deluxe), was due to expire in January 2022, after seven years. In May 2021, following a thorough evaluation process of technical, operational and commercial factors, a preferred vendor, TelstraBroadcast Services, was awarded the new contract, encompassing the staff and assets acquired fromMediaCloud.

Cybersecurity As cyberattacks increased across the globe in 2020-21, SBS continued to mature its cybersecurity resilience strategy which helps to protect the organisation. The cybersecurity team continued to engage all SBS staff on the issue through regular communications and educational phishing campaigns to ensure increased vigilance in identifying malicious emails.

SBS experienced a notifiable breach of the Accellion File Transfer Appliance in January2021. Accellion was subject to a cyberattack by a malicious third party, which led to files shared by SBS being vulnerable to unauthorised access. This was assessed to be a notifiable data breach and SBS was required to notify the regulator and the potentially affected individuals.

75 Great Business

The matter was managed well overall and SBS obtained some important learnings and insights, which resulted in additional education pieces for staff and updates to policies, including updating the SBS Data Breach Procedures to improve notification provisions and expand the members of the Responseteam.

Privacy SBS is committed to high standards of privacy concerning personal information and it takes its audience privacy responsibilitiesseriously.

In 2020-2021, SBS continued to implement a Privacy Management Plan in accordance with the Australian Government Agencies Privacy Code, which requires SBS to measure its privacy maturity according to key attributes: Governance & Culture; Privacy Strategy; Privacy Processes; Risk & Assurance; and Data Breach Response. In line with these requirements, SBS has processes in place to undertake privacy impact assessments relating to the use of personal information and has robust data breach response protocols.

SBS was an official supporter of 2021 Privacy Awareness Week, an initiative to help promote a privacy culture coordinated by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Transmission

SBS Television and Radioservices SBS transmits 540 terrestrial television services around the country, serving approximately 97 per cent of theAustralianpopulation.

This is comprised of:

— 350 digital terrestrial services provided by BroadcastAustralia;

— 116 re-transmission services provided by Regional Broadcasters Australia (RBA) and Transmitters Australia (TXA); and

— 74 self-help services.

By including the VAST (ViewerAccess Satellite Television) platform, with its current base of 373,438 receivers, SBS reaches almost 100 percent ofAustralians. SBS is also retransmitted on the cable and satellite subscription services of Foxtel. In addition to the VAST and Digital Television platforms, SBS Radio is delivered in capital cities and regional centres using analogue and digital terrestrialtransmissions.

Transmission network infrastructure upgrades In 2020-21, SBS benefitted from several material network infrastructure upgrades completed by its transmission service provider, Broadcast Australia, as part of its network capital reinvestment program. This provided improved service reliability and reduced SBS’s overall carbon footprint.

Radio platform (terrestrial)

Service Category Analogue Radio Digital Radio (DAB+)

SBS managed sites

15 sites

— 9 FM

— 6 AM

23 sites80

Others 116 self-help (FM)181

Radio platform (terrestrial)

Services VAST DTV Digital Radio (DAB+)

Radio services

SBS1, SBS2, SBS3, NRN,82 PopDesi, Arabic24, PopAsia, SBS Chill

SBS1, SBS2, SBS3, Arabic24, PopDesi, SBS Chill, PopAsia

80. Self-help data is taken from the ACMA government database of Broadcast Licences.

81. Serving all capital cities; 8 main transmitters plus 16 infill repeaters.

82. NRN’ is the SBS Radio National service.

76 SBS Annual Report 2021

Service Performance Testing and Monitoring SBS continued to work with Broadcast Australia in 2020-21 to develop state-of-the-art testing and performance monitoring capabilities, with a more outcomes-based focus on overall system performance to ensure clarity, coverage and continuity of services. This has enabled SBS to significantly reduce the service downtime required for performance assurance testing and improved responsiveness to any unexpected transmissionfaults.

Fault Management System SBS operates a complex fault management system for all key suppliers. Each supplier is required to log, manage and report on matters that impact SBS transmission, including planned outages for maintenance or project work, and compliance with contractual technical performance specifications.

The SBS Managed Services team retains detailed records of transmission issues and faults in order to assess performance and efficacy of service contractor management. SBS’s real-time management of service outages supports its audience via the Reception Advice Line.

Reach (terrestrial delivery)

Service Mode June 2019 June 2020 June 2021

Television83 Digital 97% 97% 97%

Radio Analogue 63% 63% 63%

Digital 65% 65% 65%

Service availability

The service availability of SBS’s terrestrial television and radio services measures the proportion of time each transmitter is on air during theyear.

Service Mode June 2019 June 2020 June 2021

Television Digital 99.8% 99.7% 99.8%

Radio Analogue 99.8% 99.9% 99.8%

Digital (DAB+) 99.9% 99.8% 99.9%

83. Estimated potential population reach; Self-help and direct-to-home satellite (VAST) services not included.

Consistent commercial growth in a challenging market environment

SBS commercial returns are achieved through the sale of advertising and sponsorship. These are driven by SBS Media and delivered across SBS’s television, digital and radio platforms. SBS Distribution and In-Language Production teams complement this work by further extending the reach and returns of SBS content via cultural training, promotional partnerships and events, and video production and translation.

In 2020-21, SBS total advertising and sponsorship activities generated $119.8 million in revenue. This included continued growth in digital advertising across SBS websites and SBS On Demand, the SBS Inclusion program, as well as projects relating to COVID-19 Governmentcampaigns.

SBS’s focus on valuable business initiatives continued in 2020-21, with ongoing engagement with industry groups to review automation of television booking processes (buy side and sell side) as well as further improvements in key business systems. SBSalso successfully trialled and rolled out computer assisted translation software in the SBS In-Languagebusiness.

77 Great Business

In November 2020, SBS hosted its first virtual Upfront event showcasing SBS’s distinctive content strategy and the vital role SBS plays in the Australian media landscape. The event received over 2,000 registered guests of clients and media agency representatives across the country, which in turn helped to set SBS up for commercial success in 2021.

NITV In July 2020, SBS Media commenced representation of National Indigenous Television (NITV) as part of its whole-of-network offering to market.

In March 2021, SBS Media, with NITV, launched Beyond 3%, a trade marketing campaign engaging media agencies and marketers to re-think and increase their investment in Indigenous media platforms.

SBS Inclusion Program Collaborating with leading organisations, the SBS Inclusion Program helps build inclusion in Australian workplaces by providing training and resources on topics including LGBTQI+, Gender, Age, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Disability and Cultural diversity, Theprogram is now licensed to more than 550 organisations with over 850,000 employees having access to the suite of online training courses.

The accompanying online Cultural Atlas resource, which provides information on more than 70 countries’ cultures and customs, attracted more than 2.2million unique visitors in 2020-21.

Thought Leadership Research In 2020-21, SBS Media presented key research initiatives to clients, including new thought leadershipstudies:

— What it means to be an Australian: examining Australia’s national identity, values and hopes for the future, and the implications this has for advertising andbrands

— The future of TV is niche: in an increasingly cluttered and competitive landscape, this research examines the future of television in Australia.

SBS Radio and In-LanguageProduction COVID-19 was a major focus for SBS Radio and In-Language Production, as the team was engaged in delivering important health and economic recovery information across radio, print, subtitling, social and online video, in over 60 languages.

In addition, work with commercial clients increased in 2020-21, as more clients grew to understand the value of reaching consumers in their preferred language.

SBS Distribution SBS Distribution continued its cinema partnerships in 2020-21, promoting eight movies across the year including the Oscar-winning Another Round and important Indigenous movies High Ground and The Furnace. Other movies promoted included:

— La Belle Epoque

— Supernova

— Death of a Ladies Man

— Cousins

— Summerland

SBS Ombudsman

In 2020-21, the SBS Ombudsman received 231 complaints which were investigated as code complaints. In addition to this, 149 complaints were resolved informally by the office of the SBS Ombudsman and another 279 complaints were assessed as not raising code issues and were referred to other SBS divisions as feedback or for a response.

Code complaints allege a breach of the SBS Codes of Practice in relation to content broadcast or published by SBS. Complainants in relation to SBS television or radio content, who are dissatisfied with the outcome of the SBS Ombudsman’s investigation, may refer their complaint to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for external review.

During 2020-21, most code complaints (154) concerned television content broadcast on SBS, while 41 concerned SBS online content (including 17 complaints about SBS News articles). There were 15complaints about SBS VICELAND content, nine complaints were received about content broadcast on NITV, six complaints concerned SBS World Movies content, four concerned SBS Food content, and two related to SBS Radio content.

An SBS World News report on 16 May, 2021, which covered the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, produced 72 complaints. TheSBS Ombudsman found that this content breached the balance and impartiality provisions of Code 2.2. These complaints about

78 SBS Annual Report 2021

a single night’s coverage skewed the overall outcomes for the year, both in the number of complaints and the findings.

All complaints were received electronically, either by email or by online complaint form.

Types of Code Complaints The following graph shows the main SBS Codes of Practice issues raised in code complaints during 2020-21.

The most commonly raised code issues concerned Code2 (News and Current Affairs) which attracted a total of 159complaints. Complainants expressed a range of concerns about news and current affairs content, including 122 complaints that predominantly related to impartiality and balance and 32complaints that predominantly concerned accuracy. There were also five complaints concerning

the coverage of distressing events in news and current affairscontent.

There were 36 complaints about the classification of programs, and 16 complaints about prejudice, racism and discrimination. There were also six complaints concerning advertising, sixconcerning diversity of views and perspectives in general content, four that raised the NITV code, two that raised religion, one concerning editorial integrity and one relating to IndigenousAustralians.

Findings During 2020-21, the SBS Ombudsman completed 226investigations, upholding 79complaints, and dismissing 147complaints; 72 of the complaints that were upheld related to the SBS World News coverage of 16 May, 2021.

Australian Communications and Media Authority During 2020-21, the ACMA commenced one program investigation in relation to SBS content, as a result of an appeal from a code complainant investigation by the SBS Ombudsman. That concerns the classification of a documentary, Hitler’s Last Year, which was broadcast on 20 March, 2021. As of 30 June, 2021, the ACMA’s investigation was still in progress.

The ACMA also notified SBS that it declined to commence a formal investigation into an SBS World News report, broadcast on SBS on 4 February, 2021. Thecomplaint was escalated to the ACMA by the complainant after an earlier investigation by the SBS Ombudsman in which the report was found to have been in line with the Code.

Complaints Type

A Impartiality Balance NACA Code 2.2 B Classification Code 4

C Accuracy NACA Code 2.2

D Prejudice & Discrimination Code 1.3 E Advertising Code 5

F Diversity of Views Code 1.2

G Distressing Events NACA Code 2.3 H NITV Code 8

I Religions Code 1.6

J Indigenous Australians Code 1.3.1 K Editorial Integrity Code 1.1

122 52.81%

15.58%

13.85%

A B C D E F G H I J K

6.93%

2.60%

2.16%

1.73%

0.87%

0.43%

79 Great Business

SBS Corporate

Government Revenue In 2020-21, SBS received a total appropriation of $296.9 million from the Australian Government. This included $2.1million of funding for enhanced language services provided in the October2020 budget.

Triennial Funding SBS’s budget for the triennium 2019-20 to 2021-22 financial years was confirmed in 2019, following completion of the triennial funding process. SBS will be submitting its funding request as part of the next triennial funding cycle (2022-23to 2024-25 financial years), inlate 2021 ahead of the 2022 FederalBudget.

Major Investing and Financing Activities SBS actively and responsibly manages its finances. Thisinvolves preparation of estimates for appropriation and equity injection funding, taking into account movements in the inflation parameter applicable to SBS. Cash holdings are monitored throughout the year and, where funds are not immediately required for operational activities, investments are made.

Employees Suppliers Program

Amortisation Depreciation

Expenditure by classification ($m) Operating Revenue

Financial Results

200

150

100

Government Appropriation 69%

Goods and Services 31%

Interest 0.2%

FY 19-20

FY 20-21

The Corporation ended the 2020-21 financial yearwitha surplus of

$ 5.8 million*

The Corporation’s total assets decreased during the financial year from $365.694 million to

$ 359.982 million

The level of contributed equity by the Government remained constant at

$110.403 million

SBS generated

31%of its total operating revenue from the sale of goods and services, predominantly advertising revenues across the SBSplatforms, in 2020-21

* Surplus allows responsible management of cashflow requirements in future financial years.

80 SBS Annual Report 2021

All investments have been made in accordance with the investing requirements of the Special Broadcasting Service Act 1991 and the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

Level of Overhead SBS regularly conducts benchmarking exercises to ensure it is meeting or exceeding industry standards regarding expenditure on corporate overheads. In2020-21, the percentage of SBS’s total expenditure spent on administrative overheads remained at a low 7.6 per cent. This reflects the concerted effort by SBS to improve efficiencies in this area to deliver more funds to content creation.

National DAB Licence Company Limited In October 2009 SBS formed, with the ABC, the National DAB Licence Company Ltd. Thecompany was formed in order to obtain a category 3digital radio multiplex transmitter licence as provided for by section 102E of the Radiocommunications Act 1992. SBS and the ABC are the only shareholders in the company.

Related Entity Transactions SBS has procedures in place to identify and report on any related party transactions. These are set out in note 3.3 to the SBS Financial Statements that follow.

SBS Governance

Statement of Governance SBS business practices are governed by clear delegations of authority; project (program) management; policies for statutory compliance; codes of conduct; review processes; budget information linked to all planning processes; policies and processes to ensure compliance with competitive neutrality; and regular monitoring and reporting to the SBS Board and itsCommittees.

Good corporate governance at SBS is also based on an acceptance by all staff that the highest standards of integrity and ethical behaviour are expected of them, as well as transparency and consistency, in all their actions.

SBS Board and its Committees The SBS Board has three standing committees: TheAudit and Risk Committee, the Codes Review Committee and the Remuneration Committee. Referto pages 16 for details.

SBS Code of Practice Review SBS revised the SBS Code of Practice (Code) in 2020-2021. TheSBS Code sets out the principles and policies SBS uses in fulfi lling its Charter functions.

Revisions considered developments within SBS and changes in the media landscape and industry practice, and was informed by consultation with the SBS Community Advisory

Committee. For the first time, the Code now covers all SBS content, regardless of platform. Information about the new Code, its obligations and the complaints process is available to audiences in more than 60 languages.

The revised Code was approved by the SBS Board in February 2021, on the advice of the Board’s Codes Review Committee, and notifi ed to the Australian Communications and Media Authority. The revised Code came into effect on 1 July, 2021.

SBS Modern Slavery Statement SBS is committed to addressing potential modern slavery risks in its operations and supply chains, submitting its first Modern Slavery statement to the Department of Home Affairs in March 2021 for the 2019-20 financial year, as required under the Commonwealth ModernSlavery Act 2018.

In 2020-21, the working group continued to improve the approach to SBS’s modern slavery obligations with a focus on: (a) undertaking further review and due diligence of its supply chains and business practices; (b) conducting training for relevant SBS staff to build organisation-wide skills to address modern slavery risks; (c) increasing internal communications about modern slavery; and (d) measuring the effectiveness of SBS’s actions to address modern slavery risks and developing further actions forimprovement.

81 Great Business

External and Internal Audit The audit of SBS’s financial statements is carried out by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO). The ANAO gave an unmodified opinion on the 2020-21 financial statements ofSBS.

SBS has an agreement with EYfor the delivery of the Internal Audit for SBS. EYperformed audits throughout 2020-21 in accordance with the Internal Audit Plan approved by the SBS Audit and Risk Committee. Whereapplicable, recommendations for improvements to the control environment were brought to the attention of SBS management and remediation plans are in place as agreed with management to address issuesraised.

The following internal audits were conducted in 2020-21: Contractor Management Induction Post Implementation Review, FollowUp High Risk WHSAssignment, Procure to Pay End to End Process Review, Cyber Security Program Review, PayrollProcess and Workforce Rostering Review, Business Resilience Post COVID-19, and Data and Information Governance.

SBS Finance Manual SBS’s financial policies and procedures are contained in the SBS Finance Manual which is available to all staff on the SBSintranet.

SBS Risk Management Plan The SBS Risk Management Plan and risk assessment identifies and addresses the major risks and opportunities associated with SBS activities. This includes the consideration of risk in achieving SBS’s strategic objectives. The SBS Risk Management Plan is reviewed annually and was approved by the Board in August2020.

Risk management at SBS aims to:

— Provide assurance that SBS has identified its highest-risk exposures and has taken steps to properly managethese

— Ensure that SBS’s business planning processes include a focus on areas where risk management is needed

— Ensure the integration of the various and many risk control measures that SBS already has in place

— Be comprehensive, practical and effective.

The SBS Audit and Risk Committee receives regular reports on the management of identified ‘highest risks’ facing SBS, with identification of risks allowing for the redirection or refocusing of resources to address key issues.

SBS Disaster Recovery Plan, Business Continuity Plan and Incident Management SBS continues to maintain a Disaster Recovery site which has significantly enhanced SBS’s television broadcast resilience capabilities, providing redundancy to facilities in Melbourne and Canberra and enabling continued operations in the event of any issue impacting on broadcasting capabilities from Sydney or Melbourne facilities.

SBS maintains a Business Continuity Plan to ensure business recovery in the event of a full or partial loss to the SBS premises. In line with a commitment to continuous improvement, the plan is reviewed, tested and updated annually. Due to COVID-19, testing delivered in April 2021 was conducted as a workshop, similar to the workshop run in 2019 that focused on a pandemic scenario. The scenario in this workshop canvased a documentary team being kidnapped while deployed overseas and explored the political, geographic and linguistic challenges.

SBS’s Emergency Control Organisation provides head wardens and area wardens for each office, comprising management, security and staff. Annual training ensures consistent management of on-site incidents and evacuation protocols.

82 SBS Annual Report 2021

SBS Security In 2020-21, SBS Security continued to improve and update security operations across the Artarmon and Federation Square premises. This included an upgrade of the CCTV system and a Security Risk Assessment of the Artarmon site. The key outputs of the independent review included an asset critical assessment, threat assessment, vulnerability assessment, security risk register and treatment options.

Safety and security training modules provided to all employees as part of their onboarding induction through the SBSU online learning platform have significantly increased general security and safetyawareness.

SBS Fraud Control Plan The SBS Fraud Control Plan reflects SBS’s responsibility to effectively manage the risk of fraud and demonstrates its commitment to the requirements of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (the PGPA Act) and section 10 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Rule 2014 (the fraud rule) as well as the Public Interest Disclosure (PID) Act 2013.

The SBS Fraud Control Plan was developed using the methodology outlined in the International Standard for Risk Management, (AS ISO 31000:2018). The SBS Fraud Control Plan is reviewed biennially and was most recently approved by the Board in August 2019. The Board is satisfied that SBS is taking all reasonable

measures to prevent, detect and deal with fraud and is meeting its obligations under the fraud rule.

SBS’s fraud control arrangements were developed in the context of SBS’s overarching risk management framework, in accordance with the Commonwealth Risk Management Policy, and SBS has reviewed and aligned its fraud control frameworks and systems to the Commonwealth Fraud Control Policy.

Indemnities and Insurance Premiums for Officers As part of its general insurance protection, SBS has a Directors and Officers Liability Insurance Policy in place. The cost of this policy for 2020-21 was $81,351(GST excluded).

Ministerial Directions and Notifications SBS has not been notified by way of a government policy order under the PGPA Act of any general policies of the Australian Government that apply to SBS.

No ministerial directions have been issued under the SBS Act.

Compliance Report Management provides a Quarterly Compliance Report to the Audit and Risk Committee which includes details of compliance against the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act). In addition, a biannual assessment of SBS’s compliance status against its Corporate Compliance Obligations is reported to the Audit and RiskCommittee.

There have been no significant issues reported in relation to non-compliance with the PGPAAct.

Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and sustainabilityinitiatives SBS recognises that its normal business operations have an impact on the environment and it seeks to mitigate any adverse environmental impacts through several sustainability initiatives including recycling, improvements to energy efficiency, water conservation measures and the purchase of products made from recycledmaterials.

SBS maintains a proactive approach and responsive energy strategy to mitigate the effects of ongoing cost increases within the Australian retail energy market. This includes monitoring the performance of the Sydney premises’ heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system to maximise energy efficiency.

In 2020-21, the general office recycling program recycled a total of 141.14 tonnes of waste and 53.42 tonnes of paper and cardboard. Approximately 194.57tonnes, or 72 per cent, of all waste generated by SBS was recovered, diverted from landfill or re-used.

83 Great Business

In addition, 1,267 kilograms of e-waste were recycled, and dedicated programs continued to encourage staff to recycle toner cartridges, mobile phones, and phone batteries, redundant electrical and data cabling, fluorescent lighting tubes and waste generated through building refurbishment work.

The SBS Green employee group, established in 2019 to increase awareness of SBS’s energy consumption and waste creation, encourages staff to play an active role in reducing both.

SBS continues to purchase recycled paper for printing, photocopying, hand towels and toilet paper, in addition to products made from recycled materials for pin boards, acoustic panelling and furniture. A composting area at SBS’s Sydney premises also reduces organicwaste.

Locations SBS Headquarters are located at 14 Herbert Street, Artarmon, NSW. SBS maintains an office and broadcast facilities in Federation Square, Melbourne, and an office at Parliament House, Canberra, ACT. It leases space for sales teams in Brisbane (ABCCentre, South Brisbane,QLD), Adelaide(Glenside, SA) and Perth(Subiaco,WA).

84 SBS Annual Report 2021

I, Mr George Savvides AM, as a member of the accountable authority of the Special Broadcasting Service, present the 2020-21 annual performance statements of the Special Broadcasting Service, as required under paragraph 39(1)(a) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPAAct). In my opinion, these annual performance statements are based on properly maintained records, accurately reflect the performance of the entity, and comply with subsection 39(2) of the PGPAAct.

Our Purpose As described in our Charter, the principal function of the SBS is to provide multilingual and multicultural radio, television and digital media services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians, and, in doing so, reflect Australia’s multicultural society.

In the SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, SBS has interpreted this function into a purpose that has a positive impact on Australia’s diverse society:

SBS inspires all Australians to explore, respect and celebrate our diverse world and in doing so, contributes to a cohesive society.

This purpose is mapped to the Portfolio Budget Statements (PBS) as follows:

Purpose Delivered by Outcome

Linked PBS Programs and sub-programs

“SBS inspires all Australians to explore, respect and celebrate our diverse world and in doing so, contributes to a cohesive society”

Whole of organisation

Outcome 1 Program 1.1 - SBS General Operational Activities

Program 1.2 - SBS Transmission and Distribution Services

Results and Analysis of performance against Purpose The Annual Performance Statement (APS) outlines the identified deliverable, the performance criterion, the target outcome and the actual result for the year, as well as any relevant commentary regarding performance against each of the criteria. The APS has been compiled and reviewed for accuracy by SBS’s Finance team with input from other teams including Television and Online Content, Audio and Language Content, Corporate Affairs, Audience Data and Insights, and Technology.

The data is retrieved from a number of different internal and external data sources, which include:

— IBMS and Oracle (internal); and,

— OzTAM and RegTAM TV ratings databases and Broadcast Australia (external).

These source systems are essential business information systems routinely used by SBS management for resource planning and management reporting and are maintained accordingly.

SBS performed strongly across key initiatives for 2020-21. Significant changes that had an impact on both SBS and the highly competitive market for audiences in Australia included the following:

— The COVID-19 pandemic affected SBS’s operations organisation-wide, however, SBS mobilised to ensure staff safety and gave particular focus to the ongoing wellbeing of its employees

— COVID-19 also had impacts on content scheduling, content production and the availability of content in market for acquisition by SBS

— An ongoing increase in penetration of mobile devices, smart TVs and streaming boxes and devices as well as high speed internet resulting in audiences consuming more on-demand content consumed through multiple platforms

Annual Performance Statement

Great Business

— Further competition in the Australian market emerged from new or enhanced video on demand services. New entrants to the market may degrade SBS’ competitive standing when they compete directly with SBS for content, and/or compete with SBS for audience time

— Commercial TV networks continued to invest heavily in live sport and reality television to retain declining broadcast TV audiences.

Despite these challenges, SBS achieved increased audience engagement and also delivered on commercial objectives.

The tables below summarise SBS’s results against the purpose of the organisation, using the criteria identified in the Portfolio Budget Statements and the SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan. These results are broken down by significant activity area, all of which contribute to SBS achieving its purpose.

Content creation, acquisition and curation

Deliverable

Performance Criterion Source

FY20-21 Target FY20-21 Actual Commentary

Providing programs aligned with Australia’s multicultural society and perspective

(Pages 29-54; Appendices 1-5)

Broadcasting in languages other than English

(Appendices 1, 3, 6, 8, 9)

Number of hours of TV programming broadcast in CALD - all linear channels

Program 1.1, 2020-21 Portfolio Budget Statements, p500*

24,000 hours

28,299 hours

Targeted exceeded. CALD (Cultural and Linguistically Diverse) content includes 10,055 hours of programming broadcast in LOTE (languages other than English) across all linearchannels.

Number of hours of locally commissioned programs broadcast (firstrun) NITV

Program 1.1, 2020-21 Portfolio Budget Statements, p500

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p21

30 hours 38 hours Target exceeded; this includes commissioned and in-house productions but excludes news, current affairs, special events and sports programming.

Number of hours of locally commissioned programs broadcast (first run) SBS and SBS VICELAND

Program 1.1, 2020-21 Portfolio Budget Statements, p 500

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p 21

80 hours 107 hours Target exceeded; this includes commissioned and in-house productions but excludes news, current affairs, special events and sports programming.

Percentage of radio broadcasts in languages other than English

90% 97% Target exceeded.

Total Digital Registrations

Program 1.1, 2020-21 Portfolio Budget Statements, p500

9.50m 9.58m Target exceeded. This figure represents SBS’s total digital registrations at the end of the reporting period. 1.3m were added in the period FY20-21.

86 SBS Annual Report 2021

Deliverable

Performance Criterion Source

FY20-21 Target FY20-21 Actual Commentary

Average Monthly Radio Podcast Downloads

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p21

1.80m 3.75m Target exceeded. COVID-19 changed audience behaviours as podcast consumption increased in the market overall. SBS also bolstered resourcing for podcast creation and curation.

Primetime Metro TV Share SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan,

p21

8.5% 8.9% Target exceeded.

* Note: In the SBS Corporate Plan for the period 2020-21 to 2023-24, the target for Number of hours of TV programming broadcast in CALD was 10,000, covering SBS and SBS VICELAND (refer SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan p.21). An expanded performance criterion was subsequently included in the SBS Corporation Portfolio Budget Statements for 2020-21 to reflect all linear broadcast channels and thus capture the breadth of SBS’s diverse content offering to Australian audiences. This criterion is reported on above, with a target of 24,000 hours that was exceeded. For reference, in FY20-21, SBS delivered 12,297 hours of TV programming in CALD on SBS and SBSVICELAND, exceeding the target outlined in the Corporate Plan for the period.

Through SBS’s commissioned content, news and current affairs and radio language programs, SBS continued to tell stories which explore and celebrate Australia’s diverse multicultural society. Highlights included:

— Commissioned dramas Hungry Ghosts and The Unusual Suspects - unique and entertaining stories featuring Australia’s multicultural communities

— Commissioned documentaries such as Addicted Australia and See What You Made Me Do, that explore Australia’s history, social issues, and ongoing evolution in a multicultural world, whilst encouraging national reflection and debate

— 97 per cent of SBS radio programming broadcast in languages other than English (LOTE). SBS broadcast in over 60 languages in 2020-21.

As always, SBS continued to bring the best culturally and linguistically diverse content from across the world to Australian audiences, across all of our platforms.

(For more details, see pages 29-54).

Content Broadcast, Technology & Distribution

Deliverable Performance Criterion Source

FY20-21 Target FY20-21 Actual Commentary

Maintaining and improving the availability of SBS’s digital transmissions

Extending the reach of SBS’s digital network

(Pages 73-77; Appendices 11, 13)

Population reach - Digital transmission sites (including VAST Satellite) Program 1.2, 2020-21

Portfolio Budget Statements, p 501

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p 23

100% 100% Target met.

Availability of digital television transmission services (fullymanagedservices)*

99.82% 99.94% Target exceeded.

Population reach for terrestrial services (excluding satellite)

97% 97% Target met.

Availability of Radio transmission services (fully managed services)**

99.86% 99.98% Target exceeded.

Cost-effective delivery of transmission and distribution services

Transmission and Distribution expenditure as % of total operatingexpenditure

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p 23

17.5% 16.6% Target exceeded

(less than 17.5%).

* Based on contracted availability which excludes planned maintenance and infrastructure upgrade outages.

** Analog radio transmission only.

Content creation, acquisition and curation (Continued)

87 Great Business

Through broadcast and digital distribution of content, SBS sought to reach and engage as many Australians as possible with content which reflects the SBS Charter. By innovative deployment of technology and the smart use of capability partners, SBS ensured efficiency and cost-effectiveness in broadcast capabilities.

SBS delivered on its goals for 2020-21, achieving all of its performance targets as set out in the 2020-21 Portfolio Budget Statement and SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan. SBS continued to implement broadcast, technology and distribution solutions that enabled the effective and efficient delivery of this function.

SBS is the only Australian broadcaster to transmit three high definition channels, being SBS HD, SBSVICELAND HD and SBS World Movies.

(For more examples and information, see pages 9, 73-77).

Content Commercialisation

Deliverable

Performance Criterion Source

FY20-21 Target FY20-21 Actual Commentary

Commercialisation of content to support delivery of Charter focused content

Total own source revenue ($ millions)

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p 26

$112.1m $135.9m Target exceeded. FY20-21 target was predicated on a significant decline in the advertising market due to COVID-19, however the market recovery was stronger than expected.

SBS’s commercial activities include SBS Media Sales, SBS In-Language translation services, and SBS’s Distribution and Inclusion training and consultancy activities.

The primary purpose of SBS’s commercial activities is to generate positive returns across our network portfolio of channels and platforms, to reinvest in distinctive Charter-driven content for our audiences, and to facilitate the transition to digital consumption by audiences.

Over the past 12-months, SBS’s commercial activities maintained their premium position in the free-to-air advertising market and delivered above-market television advertising growth while also increasing digitalrevenue.

(For more examples and information, see pages 9, 73-77).

Content Support Activities

Deliverable Performance Criterion Source

FY20-21 Target FY20-21 Actual Commentary

Effective and efficient support of core content and content commercialisation activities

Content support activities - share of total operating expense (%, including transmission)

SBS 2020-21 Corporate Plan, p 27

10% 9% Target exceeded

(Less than 10%).

Content support activities - share of total FTEs (%)

10% 10% Target met.

SBS’s support activities encompass the functions that allow SBS to deliver content, distribution and commercial activities. These teams include human resources and organisational development, corporate affairs, legal, corporate services, corporate strategy and finance.

SBS continued to support activities efficiently and the functions represent 9 per cent of overall expenditure as well as 10 per cent of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff, which met targets and was consistent with historicalperformance.

88 SBS Annual Report 2021

Independent Auditor’s Report 90

Statement by the Directors and Chief Financial Officer 92

Statement of Comprehensive Income 93

Statement of Financial Position 94

Statement of Changes in Equity 95

Cash Flow Statement 96

Notes to the Financial Statements 97

Overview 97

1. Financial Performance 98

1.1 Expenses 98

1.2 Own-source and Government revenue 99

2. Financial Position 101

2.1 Financial assets 101

2.2 Non-financial assets 102

2.3 Payables 107

2.4 Interest bearing liabilities 107

3. People and relationships 108

3.1 Employee provisions 108

3.2 Key management personnel remuneration 109

3.3 Related party disclosures 109

4. Managing uncertainties 110

4.1 Financial instruments 110

4.2 Fair value measurement 111

5. Aggregate assets and liabilities 113

6. Contingencies 114

7. Correction of Errors 114

8. Budgetary reports and explanations of major variances 115

8.1 Budgetary reports 115

8.2 Major budget variances for 30 June 2021 120

89 Financial Statements

Financial Statements for the year ended 30 June 2021

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT To the Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts

Opinion

In my opinion, the financial statements of the Special Broadcasting Service Corporation (the Entity) for the year ended 30 June 2021:

(a) comply with Australian Accounting Standards - Reduced Disclosure Requirements and the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability (Financial Reporting) Rule 2015; and

(b) present fairly the financial position of the Entity as at 30 June 2021 and its financial performance and cash flows for the year then ended.

The financial statements of the Entity, which I have audited, comprise the following as at 30 June 2021 and for the year then ended:

y Statement by the Directors and Chief Financial Officer; y Statement of Comprehensive Income; y Statement of Financial Position; y Statement of Changes in Equity;

y Cash Flow Statement; and y Notes to the financial statements, comprising a summary of significant accounting policies and other explanatory information.

Basis for opinion

I conducted my audit in accordance with the Australian National Audit Office Auditing Standards, which incorporate the Australian Auditing Standards. My responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s Responsibilities for the Audit of the Financial Statements section of my report. I am independent of the Entity in accordance with the relevant ethical requirements for financial statement audits conducted by the Auditor-General and his delegates. These include the relevant independence requirements of the Accounting Professional and Ethical Standards Board’s APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including Independence Standards) (the Code) to the extent that they are not in conflict with the Auditor-General Act 1997. I have also fulfilled my other responsibilities in accordance with the Code. I believe that the audit evidence I have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for my opinion.

Accountable Authority’s responsibility for the financial statements

As the Accountable Authority of the Entity, the Special Broadcasting Service Board is responsible under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (the Act) for the preparation and fair presentation of annual financial statements that comply with Australian Accounting Standards - Reduced Disclosure Requirements and the rules made under the Act. The Accountable Authority is also responsible for such internal control as the Accountable Authority determines is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, the Accountable Authority is responsible for assessing the ability of the Entity to continue as a going concern, taking into account whether the Entity’s operations will cease as a result of an administrative restructure or for any other reason. The Accountable Authority is also responsible for disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the assessment indicates that it is not appropriate.

Independent Auditor’s Report

GPO Box 707 CANBERRA ACT 2601 38 Sydney Avenue FORREST ACT 2603 Phone (02) 6203 7300

90 SBS Annual Report 2021

Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements

My objective is to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes my opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with the Australian National Audit Office Auditing Standards will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of the financial statements.

As part of an audit in accordance with the Australian National Audit Office Auditing Standards, I exercise professional judgement and maintain professional scepticism throughout the audit. I also:

y identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for my opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control;

y obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Entity’s internal control;

y evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by the Accountable Authority; y conclude on the appropriateness of the Accountable Authority’s use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related

to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Entity’s ability to continue as a going concern. If I conclude that a material uncertainty exists, I am required to draw attention in my auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify my opinion. My conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of my auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Entity to cease to continue as a going concern; and y evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the financial statements, including the

disclosures, and whether the financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.

I communicate with the Accountable Authority regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that I identify during my audit.

Australian National Audit Office

Mark Vial Acting Executive Director

Delegate of the Auditor-General Canberra 25 August, 2021

91 Financial Statements

Statement by the Directors and Chief Financial Officer

STATEMENT BY THE DIRECTORS AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

In our opinion, the attached financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2021 comply with subsection 42(2) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act), and are based on properly maintained financial records as per subsection 41(2) of the PGPA Act.

In our opinion, at the date of this statement, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the Special Broadcasting Service Corporation will be able to pay its debts as and when they fall due.

This statement is made in accordance with a resolution of the directors.

Signed …………………………… Signed …………………………… Signed …………………………

George Savvides James Taylor Nitsa Niarchos

Chairman Managing Director Chief Financial Officer

25 August, 2021 25 August, 2021 25 August, 2021

92 SBS Annual Report 2021

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Restated*

Net Cost of Services

Expenses

Employee benefits 1.1A 151,114 143,168

Suppliers 1.1B 186,721 169,163

Depreciation and amortisation on owned assets 2.2A 11,146 11,716

Depreciation and amortisation on right-of-use assets 2.2B 13,138 16,134

Program inventory amortisation 2.2C 52,559 55,702

Finance costs 1.1C 741 1,061

Impairment loss on financial instruments 1.1D 117 2

Write-down and impairment of other assets 1.1E 11,500 8,837

Foreign exchange losses - 37

Total expenses 427,036 405,820

Less:

Own-source income

Own-source revenue

Revenue from contracts with customers 1.2A 132,064 115,362

Term deposit interest income 1.2A 779 1,680

Rental income 1.2B 1,402 1,342

Royalties from program rights 1,393 1,686

Other revenue 196 328

Total own-source revenue 135,834 120,398

Gains:

Foreign exchange gains 49 -

Total own-source income 135,883 120,398

Net cost of services 291,153 285,422

Revenue from Government 1.2C 296,933 290,054

Surplus on continuing operations 5,780 4,632

Other Comprehensive Income

Items not subject to subsequent reclassification to net cost of services

Changes in asset revaluation reserve 6,195 (64)

Items subject to subsequent reclassification to net cost of services

Loss on cash flow hedging instruments (1,980) (240)

Total other comprehensive income 4,215 (304)

Total comprehensive income 9,995 4,328

* Comparative information restated as per Note 7.

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

Statement of Comprehensive Income for the year ended 30 June 2021

93 Financial Statements

Statement of Financial Position as at 30 June 2021

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Restated*

Assets

Financial assets

Cash and cash equivalents 2.1A 11,790 18,926

Trade and other receivables 2.1B 27,088 20,145

Term investments 2.1C 38,089 28,586

Total financial assets 76,967 67,657

Non-financial assets

Owned

Land 2.2A 53,963 48,500

Buildings 2.2A 42,979 43,898

Plant and equipment 2.2A 20,760 20,972

Computer software 2.2A 8,122 11,207

Other intangibles 2.2A 9,319 9,319

Right-of-use

Buildings 2.2B 8,542 9,574

Plant and equipment 2.2B 37,807 64,861

Program inventories 2.2C 77,137 75,085

Other non-financial assets 2.2D 24,386 14,621

Total non-financial assets 283,015 298,037

Total assets 359,982 365,694

Liabilities

Payables

Trade creditors and accruals 2.3A 25,729 17,804

Other payables 2.3A 17,795 17,064

Total payables 43,524 34,868

Interest bearing liabilities

Lease liabilities 2.4 47,016 73,958

Total interest-bearing liabilities 47,016 73,958

Provisions

Employee provisions 3.1 33,373 30,803

Other provisions 2.3B 1,040 1,031

Total provisions 34,413 31,834

Total liabilities 124,953 140,660

Net assets 235,029 225,034

Equity

Contributed equity 110,403 110,403

Reserves 85,457 81,450

Retained surplus 39,169 33,181

Total equity 235,029 225,034

* Comparative information restated as per Note 7.

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

94 SBS Annual Report 2021

Statement of Changes in Equity for the year ended 30 June 2021

Contributed equity

Asset

revaluation reserve

Hedge reserve

Retained surplus

Total equity

2021 2020 2021 2020 2021 2020 2021 2020 2021 2020

Note $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 Restated* $’000 $’000 Restated*

Opening balance

Balance carried forward from previous year 110,403 110,403 81,037 81,373 413 653 33,181 30,197 225,034 222,626

Adjustment on initial application of AASB 16 - - - - - - - (1,386) - (1,386)

Correction of Errors 7 - - - - - - - (534) - (534)

Adjusted opening balance 110,403 110,403 81,037 81,373 413 653 33,181 28,277 225,034 220,706

Comprehensive income

Surplus for the year - - - - - - 5,780 4,632 5,780 4,632

Other comprehensive income

Asset revaluation - - 6,195 (64) - - - - 6,195 (64)

Loss on cash flow hedging instrument - - - - (1,980) (240) - - (1,980) (240)

Total comprehensive income - - 6,195 (64) (1,980) (240) 5,780 4,632 9,995 4,328

Transfers between equity components

Transfer of revaluation gain in relation to assets written off during the year (i) - - (208) (272) - - 208 272 - -

Total transfers between equity components - - (208) (272) - - 208 272 - -

Closing balance as at 30 June 110,403 110,403 87,024 81,037 (1,567) 413 39,169 33,181 235,029 225,034

(i) During the year the Corporation wrote off plant and equipment that had previously been revalued upwards by $0.208m (2020: $0.272m) (Refer Note 1.1E). At the time of write-off this asset revaluation surplus was transferred to retained surplus.

* Comparative information restated as per Note 7.

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

95 Financial Statements

Cash Flow Statement for the year ended 30 June 2021

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Restated*

Operating activities

Cash received

Receipts from Government 296,933 290,054

Sale of goods and rendering of services 141,057 134,893

Interest 739 1,711

Net GST received 6,443 9,527

Total cash received 445,172 436,185

Cash used

Employees (150,196) (141,914)

Suppliers (272,675) (243,286)

Interest payments on lease liabilities (732) (1,051)

Total cash used (423,603) (386,251)

Net cash from operating activities 21,569 49,934

Investing activities

Cash received

Term investments 238,196 203,152

Total cash received 238,196 203,152

Cash used

Purchase of plant and equipment (7,216) (11,482)

Term investments (247,658) (211,714)

Total cash used (254,874) (223,196)

Net cash used by investing activities (16,678) (20,044)

Financing activities

Cash used

Principal payments of lease liabilities (12,027) (16,587)

Total cash used (12,027) (16,587)

Net cash used by financing activities (12,027) (16,587)

Net (decrease) / increase in cash held (7,136) 13,303

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the reporting period 18,926 5,623

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the reporting period 2.1A 11,790 18,926

* Comparative information restated as per Note 7.

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

96 SBS Annual Report 2021

Notes to the Financial Statements

Overview The financial statements are those of the Special Broadcasting Service Corporation (the “Corporation”). Theobjectives of the Corporation are set out in the Special Broadcasting Service Act 1991.

a) The basis of preparation

The financial statements are general purpose financial statements and are required by section 42 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with:

i) Public Governance, Performance and Accountability (Financial Reporting) Rule 2015 (FRR); and

ii) Australian Accounting Standards and Interpretations - Reduced Disclosure Requirements issued by the Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) that apply for the reporting period.

The financial statements have been prepared on an accrual basis and in accordance with the historical cost convention, except for certain assets and liabilities at fair value. Except where stated, no allowance is made for the effect of changing prices on the results or the financial position. The financial statements are presented in Australian dollars, which is the Corporation’s functional currency and values are rounded to the nearest thousand dollars unless otherwise specified.

b) New and amended Accounting Standards

All new, revised or amending Standards and Interpretations that were issued prior to the sign-off date and are applicable to the current reporting period did not have a material effect on the Corporation’s financial statements.

c) Significant accounting judgements and estimates

In the process of applying the accounting policies, the Corporation has made the following judgements that have the most significant impact on the amounts recorded in the financial statements:

i) Valuation of land and buildings as detailed in Note 2.2A.

ii) Program amortisation as detailed in Note 2.2C.

iii) Long service leave as detailed in Note 3.1.

No accounting assumptions or estimates have been identified that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reporting year.

d) Taxation

The Corporation is exempt from all forms of taxation except Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

e) Foreign exchange

Transactions denominated in a foreign currency are converted at the effective exchange rate on the date of the transaction.

The Corporation enters into foreign currency hedging arrangements to protect its purchasing power in relation to foreign currency exposures. Expenditures denominated in foreign currencies are converted to Australian dollars at the exchange rates prevailing at the date of the transaction or at the hedged rate.

All the gains and losses are taken to profit or loss with the exception of forward exchange contracts that are classified as cash flow hedges used to hedge highly probable transactions. Gains and losses on cash flow hedges held at balance sheet date are taken to equity.

f) Events after the reporting period

There were no subsequent events that had the potential to significantly affect the ongoing structure and financial activities of the Corporation.

g) Changes to comparatives

Where appropriate, comparatives have been reclassified from the prior year to align to the current periodpresentation.

97 Financial Statements

Notes to the Financial Statements (Continued)

1. Financial Performance This section analyses the Corporation’s financial performance for the year ended 30 June 2021.

1.1 Expenses

2021 2020

$’000 $’000

1.1A Employee benefits

Wages and salaries 119,918 113,680

Superannuation

Defined contribution plans 12,495 12,065

Defined benefit plans 4,253 3,734

Leave and other entitlements 14,448 13,689

Total employee benefits 151,114 143,168

Accounting Policy

Accounting policies for employee related expenses are contained under Note 3, People and relationships.

1.1B Suppliers

Goods and services supplied or rendered Restated*

Materials and minor items 11,460 9,865

Office supplies 2,450 1,554

Other program purchases 35,797 30,570

Broadcasting 67,821 65,733

Administrative expenses 43,841 39,586

Contract staff 19,820 15,523

Production services 3,659 4,230

Audit fees 120 140

Total goods and services supplied or rendered 184,968 167,201

Goods supplied 49,707 41,981

Services rendered 135,261 125,220

Total goods and services supplied or rendered 184,968 167,201

Other supplier expenses

Workers’ compensation premiums 361 211

Short-term leases 63 185

Low value leases 1,015 1,221

Variable lease payments 314 345

Total other supplier expenses 1,753 1,962

Total suppliers 186,721 169,163

* Comparative information restated as per Note 7.

The above lease disclosures should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes 1.1C, 1.2B, 2.2B and2.4.

98 SBS Annual Report 2021

Accounting Policy

Short-âterm leases and leases of lowâ-value assets

The Corporation has elected not to recognise Right-of-Use Assets and Lease Liabilities for short-term leases of assets that have a lease term of 12 months or less and leases of low-value assets (less than $10,000). The entity recognises the lease payments associated with these leases as an expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term.

1.1C Finance costs

2021 2020

$’000 $’000

Interest on lease liabilities 732 1,051

Unwinding of discount - provision for restoration 9 10

Total finance costs 741 1,061

The above lease disclosures should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes 1.1B, 1.2B, 2.2B and 2.4.

Accounting Policy

All borrowing costs are expensed as incurred.

1.1D Impairment loss on financial instruments

Impairment on trade and other receivables 117 2

1.1E Write-down and impairment of other assets

Plant and equipment 485 188

Intangible assets 533 11

Impairment of program inventories 10,482 8,638

Total write-down and impairment of other assets 11,500 8,837

1.2 Own-source and Government revenue Own-source revenue

1.2A Revenue from contracts with customers

Service delivery, including advertising revenue 130,472 114,069

Sale of goods 547 854

Other revenue 1,045 439

Total revenue from contracts with customers 132,064 115,362

Accounting Policy

Revenue from contracts with customers

The Corporation derives revenue from the transfer of goods and services, with sales to both non-government and Australian Government entities on normal commercial terms and conditions. Wherean enforceable contract exists, revenue recognition is based on the delivery of performance obligations and an assessment of when control is transferred to the customer.

The key revenue streams are from government funding, advertising revenue and sponsorships.

99 Financial Statements

Notes to the Financial Statements (Continued)

Revenue is recognised either when the performance obligation in the contract has been performed (‘point in time’ or ‘over time’) as control of the performance obligation is transferred to the customer. Advertisingrevenue is recognised at a point in time when the advertisement is broadcast, with revenue for the delivery of other services and other revenue at the time the service is delivered. Revenue from the sale of goods is recognised at the point in time when control has been transferred to the customer.

The transaction price is the total amount of consideration to which the Corporation expects to be entitled in exchange for transferring promised goods or services to a customer. The consideration promised in a contract with a customer may include fixed amounts, variable amounts, or both.

Receivables for goods and services, which have 30 or 45 day terms, are recognised at the nominal amounts due less any impairment allowance amount. Collectability of debts is reviewed at the end of the reporting period. Allowances are made when collectability of the debt is no longer probable.

Term deposit interest income

Interest revenue is recognised using the effective interest method.

1.2B Rental income

2021 2020

$’000 $’000

Total operating lease income 1,402 1,342

Maturity analysis of operating lease income receivables (undiscounted):

Within 1 year 1,419 1,387

One to two years 1,226 1,214

Two to three years 357 349

Three to four years 176 170

Four to five years 178 171

More than five years 427 413

Total undiscounted lease payments receivable 3,783 3,704

The Corporation leases out a small proportion of its owned properties (refer to Note 2.2A) and has classified these leases as operating leases because they do not transfer substantially all of the risks and rewards incidental to the ownership of the assets. Each lease contains an initial non-cancellable period and subsequent further terms; as well as lease renewal clauses (with a minimum 6-month notification period) and are subject to market rent reviews. There were no sub-leases as at 30 June 2021.

Accounting Policy

Operating lease income received is recognised on a straight-lined basis over the lease term. Refer to accounting policy under Note 1.2A Revenue from contracts with customers.

1.2C Revenue from Government

2021 2020

$’000 $’000

Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications 296,933 290,054

Total revenue from Government 296,933 290,054

Accounting Policy

Funding received or receivable from the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications as a Corporate Commonwealth Corporation payment item is recognised as Revenue from Government by the Corporation unless the funding is in the nature of an equity injection or a loan.

100 SBS Annual Report 2021

2. Financial Position This section analyses the Corporation’s assets used to conduct its operations and the operating liabilities incurred as a result. Employee related information is disclosed in Note 3 People and relationships.

2.1 Financial assets

2.1A Cash and cash equivalents

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Total cash on hand or on deposit 11,790 18,926

Accounting Policy

Cash is recognised at its nominal amount. Cash and cash equivalents include:

a) Cash on hand; and

b) Demand deposits in bank accounts with an original maturity of 3 months or less that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and subject to insignificant risk of changes in value.

2.1B Trade and other receivables

Total goods and services receivable (i) 24,943 18,997

Other receivables

Net GST receivable from the Australian Taxation Office 2,357 1,245

Interest 3 4

Total other receivables 2,360 1,249

Total trade and other receivables (gross) 27,303 20,246

Less impairment allowance

Goods and services (215) (101)

Total trade and other receivables (net) 27,088 20,145

(i) The majority of goods and services receivables relate to advertising agencies. All trade and other receivables are expected to be recovered within 12 months. Credit terms were 45 days for advertising (2020: 45 days) and 30 days for all other trade receivables (2020: 30 days).

Accounting Policy

Financial assets

Trade receivables, loans and other receivables that are held for the purpose of collecting the contractual cash flows where the cash flows are solely payments of principal and interest that are not provided at below-market interest rates, are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method adjusted for any loss allowance.

2.1C Term investments

All term deposits are expected to be recovered within 12 months (2020: 12 months).

The Corporation has a series of investments with banks. The investments are made under Section 59(1)(b) of the PGPA Act. The Corporation’s investments have Standard & Poor’s credit ratings of BBB+ or higher and are not deemed to be impaired.

101 Financial Statements

Notes to the Financial Statements (Continued)

2.2 Non-financial assets

2.2A Reconciliation of the opening and closing balances of owned property, plant and equipment andintangibles

Land

Buildings on

freehold land

Leasehold Improve-ments Buildings

Plant and

equipment Computer software1

Other

intangibles2 Total

$’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000 $’000

Restated*

$’000 $’000

As at 1 July 2020

Gross book value 48,500 35,000 9,540 44,540 22,066 33,465 11,850 160,421

Accumulated depreciation and impairment - - (642) (642) (1,094) (22,258) (2,531) (26,525)

Total as at 1 July 2020 48,500 35,000 8,898 43,898 20,972 11,207 9,319 133,896

Additions:

Purchase - - - - 5,882 162 - 6,044

Internally developed - - - - - 1,172 - 1,172

Revaluations recognised in other comprehensive income 5,463 1,477 - 1,477 (745) - - 6,195

Impairments recognised in net cost of services - - - - - - - -

Depreciation and amortisation - (1,522) (874) (2,396) (4,864) (3,886) - (11,146)

Retirements:

Cost - - - - (12,711) (3,742) - (16,453)

Accumulated depreciation - - - - 12,226 3,209 - 15,435

Total as at 30 June 2021 53,963 34,955 8,024 42,979 20,760 8,122 9,319 135,143

Total as at 30 June 2021 represented by

Gross book value 53,963 34,955 9,540 44,495 20,760 31,057 11,850 162,125

Accumulated depreciation and impairment - - (1,516) (1,516) - (22,935) (2,531) (26,982)

Total as at 30 June 2021 53,963 34,955 8,024 42,979 20,760 8,122 9,319 135,143

1. The carrying amount of computer software included $3.381m of purchased software (2020: $4.96m) and $4.741m of internally generated software (2020: $6.87m). Impairment of internally generated software for current year was $0.532 (2020: Nil).

2. Goodwill is not amortised but is assessed annually for impairment (based on its “fair value” or “value in use” calculated using the net present value of estimated future net cash inflows of the cash-generating unit (CGU) to which it has been allocated). Inthe current and prior financial year, the amount of goodwill recognised was reviewed, using estimated cash inflows assuming a risk adjusted pre-tax discount rate of 14.75% (2020: 14.75%).

* Comparative information restated as per Note 7.

No intangible assets or land and buildings are expected to be sold or disposed of within the next 12 months.

102 SBS Annual Report 2021

Revaluations of non-financial assets

All revaluations were conducted in accordance with the revaluation policy stated at Note 4.2.

In the current year an independent valuer conducted a desktop revaluation of Land and Buildings and a full valuation of Plant and Equipment. A full Land & Building and Leasehold Improvements valuation was conducted in the prior financial year.

Contractual commitments for the acquisition of property, plant, equipment and other intangibles

At 30 June 2021, the Corporation had a total contractual commitment of $1.015m (2020: $3.323m) for the acquisition of television and radio broadcasting equipment, and building improvements.

The Corporation has no contractual commitments (2020: $0.173m) for the acquisition of intangible assets.

Accounting Policy

Acquisition of assets

Assets are recorded at cost on acquisition except as stated below. The cost of acquisition includes the fair value of assets transferred in exchange and liabilities undertaken. Financial assets are initially measured at their fair value plus transaction costs where appropriate.

Assets acquired at no cost, or for nominal consideration, are initially recognised as assets and income at their fair value at the date of acquisition, unless acquired as a consequence of restructuring of administrative arrangements. In the latter case, assets are initially recognised as contributions by owners at the amounts at which they were recognised in the transferor’s accounts immediately prior to therestructuring.

Asset recognition threshold

Purchases of property, plant and equipment are recognised initially at cost in the Statement of Financial Position, except for purchases costing less than $2,000, which are expensed in the year of acquisition (otherthan where they form part of a group of similar items which are significant in total).

The initial cost of an asset includes an estimate of the cost of dismantling and removing the item and restoring the site on which it is located. This is particularly relevant to ‘make good’ provisions in property leases taken up by the Corporation where there exists an obligation to restore the property to its original condition. These costs are included in the value of the Corporation’s leasehold improvements with a corresponding provision for the ‘make good’ recognised at net present value.

Revaluations

Following initial recognition at cost, property, plant and equipment (excluding ROU assets) are carried at fair value less subsequent accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses. Valuations are conducted with sufficient frequency to ensure that the carrying amounts of assets did not differ materially from the assets’ fair values as at the reporting date. The regularity of independent valuations depended upon the volatility of movements in market values for the relevant assets.

Revaluation adjustments are made on a class basis. Any revaluation increment is credited to equity under the heading of asset revaluation reserve except to the extent that it reversed a previous revaluation decrement of the same asset class that was previously recognised in the surplus. Revaluation decrements for a class of assets are recognised directly in the Statement of Comprehensive Income surplus except to the extent that they reversed a previous revaluation increment for that class.

Any accumulated depreciation as at the revaluation date was eliminated against the gross carrying amount of the asset and the asset was restated to the revalued amount.

Fair value measurement

Asset Class Fair value measured at

Land Market selling price

Buildings excl. leasehold improvements Income approach

Leasehold improvements Depreciated replacement cost

Plant and equipment Market selling price or depreciated replacement cost

103 Financial Statements

Notes to the Financial Statements (Continued)

Depreciation

Depreciable property, plant and equipment assets are written-off to their estimated residual values over their estimated useful lives to the Corporation using, in all cases, the straight-line method of depreciation.

Depreciation rates (useful lives), residual values and methods are reviewed at each reporting date and necessary adjustments are recognised in the current, or current and future reporting periods, asappropriate.

Depreciation rates applying to each class of depreciable asset are based on the following useful lives:

Class of non-financial assets 2020-2021 Average 2019-2020 Average

Buildings 50 years 50 50 years 50

Leasehold improvements Lease term 15 Lease term 15

Property, plant and equipment 3 to 20 years 7 3 to 20 years 7

Intangibles (excluding goodwill and trademark) 5 to 7 years 6 5 to 7 years 6

The aggregate amount of depreciation allocated for each class of asset during the reporting period is disclosed in the reconciliation of the opening and closing balances of property, plant and equipment and intangibles of this note.

Leasehold improvements are amortised on a straight-line basis over the shorter of either the unexpired period of the lease or the estimated useful life of the improvements.

Impairment

All assets were assessed for impairment at 30 June 2021. Where indications of impairment exist, the asset’s recoverable amount is estimated and an impairment adjustment made if the asset’s recoverable amount is less than its carrying amount.

The recoverable amount of an asset is the higher of its fair value less costs of disposal and its value in use. Value in use is the present value of the future cash flows expected to be derived from the asset.

Derecognition

An item of property, plant and equipment is derecognised upon disposal or when no further future economic benefits are expected from its use or disposal.

Intangibles

The Corporation’s intangibles comprise purchased and internally developed software for internal use, goodwill and trademark. These assets are carried at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.

Software is amortised on a straight-line basis over its anticipated useful life. All software assets were assessed for indications of impairment as at 30 June 2021. The useful lives of the Corporation’s software are 5 to 7 years (2020: 5 to 7 years).

Goodwill

Goodwill is recognised on the purchase of a business unit in accordance with AASB 3 “Business Combinations”. Goodwill is tested for impairment annually.

Contract rights and trademark

Contract rights are amortised over their anticipated useful lives (6 years). The trademark is not amortised as it has an indefinite useful life, but is tested for impairment annually.

104 SBS Annual Report 2021

2.2B Reconciliation of the opening and closing balances of right-of-use assets

Buildings

Plant and equipment Total

$’000 $’000 $’000

As at 1 July 2020

Gross book value 10,601 79,930 90,531

Accumulated depreciation (1,027) (15,069) (16,096)

Total as at 1 July 2020 9,574 64,861 74,435

Depreciation (1,038) (12,100) (13,138)

Adjustments to leases during the period1 6 (14,954) (14,948)

Total as at 30 June 2021 8,542 37,807 46,349

Total as at 30 June 2021 represented by

Gross book value 10,607 61,952 72,559

Accumulated depreciation (2,065) (24,145) (26,210)

Total as at 30 June 2021 8,542 37,807 46,349

1. The adjustment relates mainly to leasing contract changes to the utilisation of one of the transponders effective 1 July 2020, and is no longer accounted for as a lease under AASB 16, but deemed a service agreement. Following this, the cost of this service arrangement is recognised in Note 1.1B Suppliers.

Lease Right-of-Use (ROU) Assets

Leased ROU assets are capitalised at the commencement date of the lease and comprise of the initial lease liability amount, initial direct costs incurred when entering into the lease less any lease incentives received.

On initial adoption of AASB 16 the Corporation has adjusted the ROU assets at the date of initial application by the amount of any provision for onerous leases recognised immediately before the date of initial application. Following initial application, an impairment review is undertaken for any ROU lease asset that shows indicators of impairment and an impairment loss is recognised against any ROU lease asset that is impaired. Lease ROU assets continue to be measured at cost after initial recognition in Commonwealth agency, General Government Sector and Whole of Government financial statements.

In the previous year, the Corporation aggregated its right-of-use buildings and plant and equipment together with owned buildings and plant and equipment in the Statement of Financial Position, and its accompanying depreciation expenses in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. In the current year, the Corporation has decided to separately present owned and right-of-use buildings and plant and equipment on the face of the Statement of Financial Position and its accompanying depreciation expenses in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. The comparatives are restated to present the equivalent amount of assets in the comparative period on the face of the statement of financial position and its accompanying depreciation expenses in the Statement of Comprehensive Income.

The depreciation rates for right-of-use assets are based on the commencement date to the earlier of the end of the useful life of the right-of-use asset or the end of the lease term.

105 Financial Statements

Notes to the Financial Statements (Continued)

2.2C Program inventories

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Program acquisitions (i) 24,947 25,132

Commissioned programs (i) 30,658 36,605

Commissioned programs - in progress 19,747 10,789

Prepaid program rights (ii) 1,785 2,559

Total inventories (iii) 77,137 75,085

(i) Program inventory balances are the net of cost less accumulated amortisation and impairment. During the current financial year, $52.56m was recognised as amortisation expense (2020: $55.70m).

(ii) Amortisation for prepaid programs commences once the licence period starts. As at 30 June of each year the licence period for these prepaid programs had not commenced.

(iii) A review of programs and amortisation is undertaken annually, which resulted in an amount of $10.48m being written off during the year ended 30 June 2021 (2020: $8.64m). This is reported in Note 1.1E Write-down and impairment of other assets.

Accounting Policy

Program costs are capitalised as inventory and amortised over time to reflect their expected usage.

Program acquisitions

Program acquisitions are amortised on a straight-line basis over the shorter of three years or licence period (for movies), or over the shorter period of two years or licence period (for documentaries and other overseas purchased programs).

Commissioned programs

Commissioned programs are valued at cost and amortised on a straight-line basis over the shorter of three years or licence period.

Some programs are fully amortised in the current period. All internally produced news and current affairs programs, as well as sports events, are expensed immediately at the time the expense is incurred.

2.2D Other non-financial assets

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Prepayments 24,386 14,621

Total other non-financial assets 24,386 14,621

No indicators of impairment were found for other non-financial assets.

106 SBS Annual Report 2021

2.3 Payables

2.3A Trade creditors and accruals

2021 2020

Notes $’000 $’000

Trade creditors and accruals (i) 25,729 17,804

Other payables

Salaries and wages 7,341 6,110

Superannuation 274 158

Prepayments received 1,296 1,430

Contract liabilities 8,884 6,099

Payable to Government (ii) - 3,151

Other payables - 116

Total other payables 17,795 17,064

Total payables 43,524 34,868

(i) Trade creditors and accruals settlement was usually made within 30 days.

(ii) The Corporation previously received funds from Government for providing broadcasting and program work which has come to an end. The amount has been repurposed for the maintenance of services at retransmission sites through to 30 June 2025. This is now reported as Contract Liabilities in Note 2.3A.

2.3B Other provisions

Provision for restoration as at 1 July 1,031 745

Revaluation adjustment - 276

Unwinding of discount or change in discount rate 9 10

Total as at 30 June 1,040 1,031

The Corporation currently has an agreement for the leasing of premises at Federation Square Melbourne and Parliament House, Canberra which has provisions requiring the Corporation to restore (“make good”) the premises to its original condition at the conclusion of the lease.

2.4 Interest bearing liabilities

Lease liabilities 47,016 73,958

The cash outflow for leases for the year ended 30 June 2021 was $12m (2020 - $16.6m).

Maturity analysis - contractual undiscounted cash flows

Within 1 year 9,433 16,728

Between 1 to 5 years 15,831 33,834

More than 5 years 25,589 29,355

Total leases 50,853 79,917

The Corporation in its capacity as lessee has lease arrangements for the leasing of office spaces, transmission equipment, playout facilities, satellite transponders and vehicles.

The above lease disclosures should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes 1.1C, 1.2B and 2.2B.

Accounting Policy

For all new contracts entered into, the Corporation considers whether the contract is, or contains a lease. A lease is defined as ‘a contract, or part of a contract, that conveys the right to use an asset (the underlying asset) for a period of time in exchange for consideration.

107 Financial Statements

Notes to the Financial Statements (Continued)

Once it has been determined that a contract is, or contains a lease, the lease liability is initially measured at the present value of the lease payments unpaid at the commencement date, discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease, if that rate is readily determinable, or the department’s incremental borrowing rate.

Subsequent to initial measurement, the liability will be reduced for payments made and increased for interest. It is remeasured to reflect any reassessment or modification to the lease. When the lease liability is remeasured, the corresponding adjustment is reflected in the right-of-use asset or profit and loss depending on the nature of the reassessment or modification.

3. People and relationships This section describes a range of employment and post-employment benefits provided to our people and our relationships with other key people.

3.1 Employee provisions

2021 2020

$’000 $’000

Leave 33,229 30,420

Separation and redundancies 144 383

Total employee provisions 33,373 30,803

Special Broadcasting Service Corporation (SBS)—Report for 2020-21 (2025)