SBS was founded on the belief that all Australians, regardless of geography, age, cultural background or language skills should have access to high quality, independent, culturally-relevant Australian media.
The multiple language programs available through SBS TV, radio and online ensure that all Australians are able to share in the experiences of others, and participate in public life. The quality of our programs and the multiplicity of our viewpoints come from the freedom we have to draw on the best of all cultures for our programming.
Currently, SBS reaches an average audience of 13.1 million people per month on television, and on average serves almost 7 million unique browsers each month online, including an average 1.3 million streams each month for radio.
SBS On Demand's distinctive streaming service is available on more platforms and devices than any other Australian broadcaster's service, and includes over 6000 hours of programs, with 900 movies of which 70% are in languages other than English.
The Special Broadcasting Service Act 1991
SBS operates under the SBS Act 1991 and has a Board of Directors appointed by the Federal Government. Responsibility for SBS lies within the portfolio of the Minister for Communications and the Arts, Senator the Honourable Mitch Fifield.
The SBS Act provides us with editorial independence from government and our Charter (section 6 of the Act) sets out our principle function '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'.
SBS Charter
Our Charter ensures a commitment to Australians and to making a difference; beyond that, our purpose is to inspire all Australians to explore, appreciate and celebrate our diverse world, and in doing so, contribute to a cohesive society. Read the SBS Charter.
Visit our policies and guidelines which outline the policies followed by SBS in fulfilling its Charter, including information about the SBS Codes of Practice.
Our offering
SBS operates six free-to-air TV channels (SBS, SBS HD, SBS VICELAND, SBS VICELAND HD, Food Network and NITV), eight radio stations (SBS Radio 1, 2 and 3, SBS Radio 4, SBS Arabic 24 including PopAraby, SBS PopDesi, SBS Chill and SBS PopAsia) and World Movies, a subscription TV channel. SBS Online provides audio streaming of all of our language programs and is home to SBS On Demand video streaming service. In Australia SBS is one of five main free-to-air networks.
SBS On Demand is a world of inspired entertainment – a curated selection of premium drama, documentaries and movies from across the world, available anytime, anywhere and absolutely free. With over 6,000 hours of programming and instant catch-up of your favourite SBS programs, SBS On Demand has something for everyone. SBS TV is watched by more than 13 million Australians each month. SBS Radio is the world's most linguistically diverse radio network, broadcasting in over 70 language programs to a potential audience of more than three million Australians who speak a language other than English in their homes. SBS Online continues to grow and on average serves almost 7 million unique browsers each month.
