Surf cam at Winki Pop at Bells Beach sparks frenzy

A furore has embroiled a Victorian surfing community after a camera capturing the view of a renowned surf beach was installed at a private property.

A newly-installed surf camera at a renowned surf beach has caused controversy after being made available only to paid subscribers.

The live streamed video of Winki Pop, a world class surf break at Bells Beach in Torquay, is attached to a private home.

The video footage can only be accessed by those with a subscription to the online surf forecast company Swellnet.

Surf cameras operate at numerous other beaches in Australia.

Australia has 23 surfing reserves, 15 of which have live surfcams overlooking the waves.

But the camera has triggered the ire of locals.

A petition, which now has more than 2500 signatures, has been circulating, against the camera.

Darren Noyes-Brown from the Surf Coast branch of the Surfrider Foundation - a non-profit conservation organisation - which started the petition told news.com.au the camera was at “odds with the core values of the Bells Beach Surfing Recreation Reserve”.

Mr Noyes-Brown said the camera was a “commercialisation of public space” and described it as “unnecessary”.

Bells Beach is one of the most popular surfing beaches in Australia.

“There are many other surf cams and online services that report on wave size, wind direction and tides that surfers can use to decide on when and where to surf,” he said.

“The surf can change the way people enjoy and interact with the coast.”

Deakin University senior criminology lecturer Monique Mann has written a discussion paper on the issue.

She told news.com.au that there were a “range of gaps in regulatory governance” of the camera.

“The major problem with SurfCams installed on private property but overlooking public space is that they fall within gaps and loopholes in existing law and regulation,” she said.

“This is because the image-generating capacity of the camera transcends the boundary between private and public land.

“The problem is magnified because SurfCams fall outside current laws, policies and regulations.”

A zoomed-in view of the surf camera.

Dr Mann said it was important to note that it wasn’t “closed circuit”, but that the camera was “live broadcasting footage to the internet constantly”.

She said filming at Bells Beach for commercial purposes is prohibited but Swellnet appears to be circumventing this prohibition as the camera is fixed to a private residence on the cliffs that overlooks the reserve and films public spaces.

Chief executive of Swellnet Ben Matson told news.com.au that the company was a “small family-owned Australian business” that has operated its national Surfcam network for 18 years.

A spokesperson for the company said the discussion paper had conceded Swellnet had not broken any laws.

Mr Matson said Dr Mann did not contact Swellnet at any time “prior to, or following” publication of her paper and it included “incorrect statements”.

“Another surfcam overlooking Bells Beach and Winkipop was omitted from her report. This camera installed almost twenty years ago, is owned by Swellest’s competitor, Surfline, who are based in the USA and owned by private equity firm The Chernin Group,” Mr Matson said.

“Swellnet is currently considering its legal options.”