The Newsroom

Australian TV News

(August 2010)

This site closed in March 2021 and is now a read-only archive
WA
watchingtv
I've heard about that rumour to dump Home and Away off to 7TWO, to bring Today Tonight back to the East Coast. Surely that's just going to kill not just the show off, but the several dollars Seven get from international syndication? I heard that Channel 5 over here practically finance the thing.


I think I read this on TVTonight early September. There are I think 2 regions left broadcasting TT which air within the old slot 6:30-7.

27 days later

JI
Jimmyson
Looks like we are seeing the long term effects of technology and regional news. WIN Television (one of the Regional TV broadcasters) is set to close its Ballarat Newsroom, which produces local news bulletins for Regional centres around Victoria.

Source

The alternative is to Live Stream the news from the cities over the internet. Not a wise idea, considering that the current infrastructure can't cope with an entire town streaming the news. It's doesn't seem practical too as most homes in regional Victoria barely receive adequate connections, and the National Broadband Network rollout isnt expected to be completed for another 7 years.
VM
VMPhil
shows starting at 8.30pm (though in reality starting at 8.50pm)

What accounts for the massive drift between billed and actual on air time?

The networks playing stupid games with each other and the viewers - 10 minutes late is the norm, 20 minutes later isn't that unusually and 40-50 minutes late happens a lot too - and generally overrunning live shows are not the reason behind it.

Australian TV traditionally programmes on the half hour but the 8.30pm slot is now generally billed as 8.40pm, but nobody expects them to meet it. In the last few years reality TV formats have dominated primetime, many of which started out as either once a week hour-long shows or nightly 30-minute shows but then expanded into airing 4-5 nights a week with hour-long editions, which in practice are usually 70-80 minutes with one edition a week often around the two hour mark.

In addition the 7pm landscape has changed - Nine moved their current affairs show there a while ago, while Ten has The Project from 6.30-7.30. Home and Away is just about holding on to the slot for Seven (though often nights are dropped and double or triple episodes play out on other nights), but rumour is that Seven are looking to move it from the slot next year, probably to 7Two.

Fascinating the cultural differences when it comes to TV scheduling in countries. Over in America, the late night shows start as late as 11.30 and 12.30 (maybe it should be 'early morning' shows!) whereas over here anything past 11 is usually just filler.

I've heard about that rumour to dump Home and Away off to 7TWO, to bring Today Tonight back to the East Coast. Surely that's just going to kill not just the show off, but the several dollars Seven get from international syndication? I heard that Channel 5 over here practically finance the thing.

Isn't it the same with Neighbours? That without the UK broadcasts, it probably would have gone off air years ago, and it too has been moved to a lesser/digital channel (from Ten to Eleven). I don't think even over here that either of them are anywhere near as big as they used to be, though.
BR
Brekkie
Aussie TV finally catching up with the rest of the world with Channel 9 the first to take advantage of the relaxation of multi-channeling rules and simulcast their main channel in HD from Nov 26. They will also rebrand GO! and Gem as 9Go! and 9Gem (adding the dots to the logos), while the ridiculous "Jump-in" brand for their on demand service is dropped in favour of 9Now, which will also include live streams of their channels. Yes, Australia is finally catching up.

http://www.tvtonight.com.au/2015/10/nine-upfronts-2016-nine-goes-hd-new-lifestyle-channel-and-daryl-somers-returns.html



Brief history of HD in Australia - 7, 9 and 10 all launched HD simulcasts around 2008 of their main channels which included "breakaway" programming in certain slots prior to them launching multi-channels. Then as limits were put on the number of multi-channels they could have (one HD and one SD I think, with "data casting" channels later added) they all ditched the HD simulcast of the main channel in favour of launching a new channel in HD. The rule was only revied earlier this year.
Last edited by Brekkie on 28 October 2015 10:40pm - 2 times in total
DB
dbl
Its ridiculous that the main channels were SD in the first place!
NG
noggin Founding member
Australia is still suffering the downside of trailblazing HDTV along with the US. Aus started HD broadcasting when they launched DVB-T in the late 90s/early 00s - when Europe went SD 16:9. As a result Australia is still stuck with DVB-T and MPEG2 for terrestrial HD

Countries that launched HD later were able to use the second generation compression system, H264, which allows for around half the bitrate to be used, and those who really went for it (UK, Sweden etc.) also introduced DVB-T2 modulation (which delivers around 50% more data in the same spectrum).

This means Aus is always going to struggle to deliver the same number of HD channels as broadcasters in Europe who are using DVB-T2 and H264. Legislation that prevented the broadcasters from simulcasting their main channel in HD was also crazy.
MQ
Mr Q
I distinctly recall one media analyst commenting in an Australian TV programme back in about 2000/01 that if Australia's digital TV model "were a horse, they'd shoot it".


EDIT:
Helpfully, there's even an archive of the programme in question... http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/stories/4Cprograms_165776.htm
BR
Brekkie
9HD will use MPEG4 rather than the MPEG2 used for Gem, which frees up the space for 9Life. Mediaweek estimate 90% of homes should be able to view it.

http://www.mediaweek.com.au/nine-is-broadcasting-its-channel-in-hd-but-not-for-everyone/
NG
noggin Founding member
9HD will use MPEG4 rather than the MPEG2 used for Gem, which frees up the space for 9Life. Mediaweek estimate 90% of homes should be able to view it.

http://www.mediaweek.com.au/nine-is-broadcasting-its-channel-in-hd-but-not-for-everyone/


Interesting that they are going for H264. Think most TVs sold in the last 5 years or so are likely to support it - but I'm surprised the figure is 90%. I don't think 90% of SD Freeview homes in the UK would cope with H264. I know that of four TVs I own, only one does. Wink (The joy of owning a DVB-T modulator...)
LL
London Lite Founding member
9HD will use MPEG4 rather than the MPEG2 used for Gem, which frees up the space for 9Life. Mediaweek estimate 90% of homes should be able to view it.

http://www.mediaweek.com.au/nine-is-broadcasting-its-channel-in-hd-but-not-for-everyone/


Interesting that they are going for H264. Think most TVs sold in the last 5 years or so are likely to support it - but I'm surprised the figure is 90%. I don't think 90% of SD Freeview homes in the UK would cope with H264. I know that of four TVs I own, only one does. Wink (The joy of owning a DVB-T modulator...)


I still see old CRT sets being dumped, so there are still a load of old sets presumably with DVB-T boxes in use. Although I have a DVB-T2 set as my main tv, I have an old CRT in the kitchen with a Tesco cheap DVB-T box and a 32" CRT as a back-up.
NG
noggin Founding member
9HD will use MPEG4 rather than the MPEG2 used for Gem, which frees up the space for 9Life. Mediaweek estimate 90% of homes should be able to view it.

http://www.mediaweek.com.au/nine-is-broadcasting-its-channel-in-hd-but-not-for-everyone/


Interesting that they are going for H264. Think most TVs sold in the last 5 years or so are likely to support it - but I'm surprised the figure is 90%. I don't think 90% of SD Freeview homes in the UK would cope with H264. I know that of four TVs I own, only one does. Wink (The joy of owning a DVB-T modulator...)


I still see old CRT sets being dumped, so there are still a load of old sets presumably with DVB-T boxes in use. Although I have a DVB-T2 set as my main tv, I have an old CRT in the kitchen with a Tesco cheap DVB-T box and a 32" CRT as a back-up.


Though we're talking about H264/MPEG4 vs MPEG2 not DVB-T vs DVB-T2.

There are DVB-T (not DVB-T2) sets (and set top boxes) with H264 compatibility, as DVB-T + H264 was introduced in some European countries before DVB-T2 was practical, or because a decision was taken not to use it. However this only started happening in the mid-to-late 00s, and there are lots of TVs (including HDTVs) with DVB-T/MPEG2 only tuners.

132 days later

MP
Michael Power
People are trolling the hell out of 7News with simpsons screenshots posing as real news
http://pedestriantv-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images%2Farticle%2F2016%2F03%2F11%2F12801431_10153603781774247_5690842973226683116_n.jpg
http://pedestriantv-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images%2Farticle%2F2016%2F03%2F11%2F10273170_1031050013629156_1693644469161702293_o.jpg
scottishtv and Larry the Loafer gave kudos

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