A television network or broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small number of terrestrial networks. Many early television networks evolved from earlier radio networks.
Television in New Zealand was introduced in 1960 as a state-run service. The broadcasting sector was deregulated in 1989, when the Government allowed competition to the state-owned Television New Zealand (TVNZ). There are currently three forms of broadcast television: a terrestrial (DVB-T) service provided by Freeview; satellite services provided nationwide by both Freeview and Sky; and an internet television service delivered over cable and fibre broadband provided by Vodafone.
Television New Zealand, more commonly referred to as TVNZ, is a television network that is broadcast throughout New Zealand and parts of the Pacific region. All of its currently-operating channels are free-to-air and commercially funded.
Sky Network Television Limited, more commonly known as Sky, is a New Zealand broadcasting company that provides pay television services via satellite, media streaming services and broadband internet services. It is also a wholesale channel provider to New Zealand IPTV provider Vodafone. As at 30 June 2021, Sky had 955,168 subscribers consisting of 561,989 satellite subscribers and 393,179 streaming subscribers. Despite the similarity of name, branding and services, such as Sky Go and MySky shared with its European equivalent, Sky, there is no connection between the companies.
Three is a New Zealand nationwide television channel. Launched on 26 November 1989 as TV3, it was New Zealand's first privately-owned television channel. The channel currently broadcasts nationally in digital free-to-air form via the state-owned Kordia on terrestrial and satellite. Vodafone also carries the channel for their cable subscribers in Wellington and Christchurch. It previously broadcast nationally on analogue television until that was switched off on 1 December 2013.
Free-to-air (FTA) services are television (TV) and radio services broadcast in clear (unencrypted) form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring a subscription, other ongoing cost, or one-off fee. In the traditional sense, this is carried on terrestrial radio signals and received with an antenna.
Prime is a New Zealand free-to-air television network. It airs a varied mix of programming, largely imported from Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Kordia is a New Zealand government-owned broadcast and telecommunications company, operating in Australia and New Zealand. It provides national communications services for broadcast and telecommunications customers in New Zealand, as well as specialised network systems. New Zealand customers include: Vodafone New Zealand, 2degrees, Sky Television, TVNZ, Mediaworks, Radio New Zealand, Spark New Zealand, Freeview, and The Radio Network. In Australia, Kordia provides contracting and consulting services for major telecommunications players, including Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and Hutchison.
Cue TV was a regional television station in New Zealand which started in October 1996 as Mercury Television. The majority of its programming was from the Southern Institute of Technology (SIT2LRN), who used the channel as a nationwide local educational television service. Most of the non-educational programming on Cue TV was locally produced, with the remainder being from international sources like Deutsche Welle. The channel was available nationwide, on Freeview, Sky and Telstra.
TVNZ 1 is the first national television channel owned and operated by the state-owned broadcaster Television New Zealand (TVNZ). It was one of the major television broadcasters in New Zealand, starting out from 1960 onwards as independent government-operated facilities in the four main centres of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin, and eventually began sharing programming between them all in real time in 1969, becoming NZBC TV. The collective group was renamed Television One in 1975 upon the break-up of the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, and became a part of TVNZ in 1980 when Television One and South Pacific Television merged. The channel assumed its current name in October 2016.
TVNZ 2 is the second New Zealand television channel owned and operated by the state-owned broadcaster Television New Zealand (TVNZ). It targets a younger audience than its sister channel, TVNZ 1. TVNZ 2's line up consists of dramas, comedies, and reality TV shows. A small number are produced in New Zealand which are either of a comedic, soap opera or reality nature, with rest of the line-up imported from mostly a Warner Bros. or Disney catalogue or a FremantleMedia or Endemol soap opera/reality TV catalogue.
Freeview is New Zealand's free-to-air television platform. It is operated by a joint venture between the country's major free-to-air broadcasters – government-owned Television New Zealand and Radio New Zealand, government-subsidised Māori Television, and the American-owned Discovery New Zealand. It consists of a HD-capable digital terrestrial television service, to around 86% of the population in the major urban and provincial centres of New Zealand, and a standard-definition satellite television service, called Freeview Satellite, covering the whole of mainland New Zealand and the major offshore islands. Freeview uses the DVB-S and DVB-T standards on government-provided spectrum.
TVNZ 7 was a commercial-free New Zealand 24-hour news and information channel on Freeview digital television platform and on Sky Television from 1 July 2009. It was produced by Television New Zealand, which received Government funding to launch two additional channels. The channel went to air just after 10 am on 25 March 2008 with a looped preview reel. The channel was officially launched at noon on 30 March 2008 with a special "kingmaker" political debate held within the Parliament building and featuring most of the elected minor party leaders. The channel went off air at midnight on 30 June 2012 to the Goodnight Kiwi.
TVNZ OnDemand is an online New Zealand television and video on demand streaming service offered by Television New Zealand since 2007. It offers a variety of free content, such as news updates and programmes seen on TVNZ channels. TVNZ OnDemand offers most of the programmes broadcast on air with licensing agreements to be shown for users in New Zealand. In addition, it offers dozens of local and international titles exclusively available on the platform.
TVNZ 6 was a digital-only, commercial-free television channel operated by Television New Zealand. It launched in September 2007, and was available in 60.3% of New Zealand homes on the Freeview and SKY Television Digital platforms. TVNZ 6 was on air daily from 6AM to 12 Midnight.
TVNZ Sport Extra was a temporary sports television station in New Zealand, operated by TVNZ. Broadcasting on channel 20 on Freeview, it showed live and delayed free-to-air coverage of selected events. Eric Kearley, TVNZ's Digital Launch Manager, has stated there was no further plans for this channel until the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Four was the second New Zealand television channel owned and operated by MediaWorks New Zealand, broadcast via the state-owned Kordia transmission network. The channel launched on 29 June 1997 as TV4 and was replaced by C4 on 3 October 2003. It was relaunched on 6 February 2011 as a separate channel from C4.
U was an interactive youth-oriented New Zealand television channel, owned and operated by TVNZ. The channel launched on 13 March 2011, and featured reality programming, as well as an interactive live show and music content. It replaced the now defunct TVNZ 6. Leading up to the launch of U, there were 13 days' worth of promotional videos and programming information aired to advertise the new channel.
Igloo was a New Zealand prepaid pay TV service launched on 3 December 2012. The Pace-supplied receiver provides customers access to free-to-air channels through Freeview, and previously a small selection of pay TV channels could be purchased for 30 days. On 1 March 2017, Igloo closed and the receiver was updated to allow viewers to use New Zealand's Freeview television service.
This is a list of New Zealand television events and premieres occurred, or are scheduled to occur, in 2011, the 51st year of continuous operation of television in New Zealand.
