In the reorganisation of Austria's broadcasting authorities in early 2001, the Austrian Communications Authority (KommAustria) was set up as a "one-stop shop" for all official broadcasting matters in the first instance. As a result, KommAustria assumed the responsibilities of the former private broadcasting authority in the fields of terrestrial radio broadcasting, cable and satellite broadcasting, as well as the broadcasting-related duties of the telecommunications authorities. In addition, the Private Television Act (PrTV-G) 2001 – now superseded by the Audiovisual Media Services Act (AMD-G) – put KommAustria in charge of introducing private terrestrial television and digital broadcasting. Since October 2010, the authority has also been responsible for the legal supervision of audiovisual media services in Austria. On the basis of amendments to the ORF Act and KommAustria Act, KommAustria also assumed responsibility for legal supervision of the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF) and its subsidiaries in 2010. RTR is responsible for providing KommAustria with operational support.

The pages in this section provide information on the duties and activities of KommAustria and RTR in the field of media regulation.