And an outfit that LOSES money!!! So much money has been pumped in by the operators from money generated from other regions. It has been a long time coming. Cut the cord!
2 Likes
The way ACMA allocates commercial radio & TV licences itās now a priced based allocation, but would SCA actually be willing to expand into Mildura as there is the potential for ARN to buy SCA, Mildura is an Independent licence area so It wouldnāt be able to be Included In the Western Victoria TV1 licence area Mildura was excluded from aggregation because of the small market. It was replaced with the Albury market because back then you needed a TV market of 1 million viewers to make aggregation viable.
It makes you wonder what the future is for markets which are completely owned by WIN like Mt Gambier, Riverland & Griffith & whether all their services will be retained.
2 Likes
And not just them, but other solus/JV operated 10 Network services, will their 10 Network service survive any more than a couple more years? And those in aggregated areas like Nth NSW/Sth NSW etc may not last 5 more years as well?
If free to air continues to decline, within 10-15 years, the 10 Network may cease to exist altogether in this country, even in Sydney and Melbourne.
3 Likes
Can you sell a 38b licence to someone who isnāt an existing licensee in that market?
1 Like
Problem still is, no one would buy it.
2 Likes
Not disputing that, but thereās no point in talking about finding a buyer if it canāt be sold
3 Likes
Will the latest developments in Mildura affect other joint ventures such as TDT, DDT, CDT and WDT? More WDT as itās owned by the same owners as MDT?
4 Likes
According to a MDT press release (posted on TV Tonight), the station has been running at a loss since it began in 2006, and the management had been having ongoing discussions with the federal government.
I notice the ACMA has not responded yet about the proposed MDT closure.
4 Likes
Could it make a one off rule to allow WIN and 7 to transfer ownership to SCA so that channel 10 can still survive in Mildura?
2 Likes
This is not a one-off scenario. Any such move would see further joint venture areas hastened to be cut by the precedent set as operators are keen to maintain a profitable operation.
4 Likes
Iād have to refresh my memory but i thought they could be sold under certain conditions
1 Like
Mildura has a bit of history with television, you could say.
They were the first region in Australia to switch off analogue TV (back in 2010), and now look like being the first to switch off a digital TV network too. Sad though.
7 Likes
Statement from Mildura Digital Television: (Source TV Tonight)
The Board of Mildura Digital TV (MDT) today announced it has taken the difficult decision to wind up its operations effective June 30, 2024.
MDT has been delivering Australian programs into Mildura since 2006. The joint venture owners, Seven and WIN, have continued to fund MDT despite the station running at a loss since its inception.
Whilst MDT realises this is not an ideal situation, the financial position is no longer tenable.
āThe state of the regional advertising market means MDT is unable to justify the cross subsidy of delivering TEN programs to the Mildura television market. Without the subsidy provided by the joint venture owners, MDT will be insolvent and no longer a going concern,ā said Chris Halios-Lewis
Chairman, Mildura Digital Television said, āIt is a regrettable position we find ourselves in. We have had ongoing discussions with Government but this has not provided us with any certainty that continuing MDT is viable.
āWhilst we understand this will be a surprise to the local community, the challenging nature of the regional television market has led to this action.
āIf we are to avoid further disruption to regional markets the Government will need to accelerate reform plans to ensure a sustainable regional media market,ā said Mr Halios-Lewis.
Communications with the public and local stakeholders has commenced to ensure a clear understanding of the change. For people wishing to continue to watch TEN programs, they can do so online at 10play.com.au or the 10play app on your devices.
4 Likes
Who would buy what is essentially a toilet where you continuously flush away $50 notes every few minutes to keep it going.
As I have banged on for years, all the old legacy TV1 markets need abolishing as regional television no longer stacks up as viable.
7,9 and 10 need to be given a national licence, same as ABC and SBS, with existing regional interests paid out with their cancelled licences. As there will be more regional areas starting to lose services at a growing rate soon, Mildura is just the start.
8 Likes
Why make SCA carry the can? As it makes no money whoever owns it, why force it onto someone else?
Agree, WDT next.
I can see a time when Seven is gobbled up by Nine with Nine being the sole remaining commercial TV business in this country.
I finally got an answer in why SCA does not want to be in television. Because SCA knows that ten faces an uncertain future in television. Am I correct or am I barking up the wrong tree?
1 Like
The only solution is if the local council were to take ownership of the MDV transmitter and apply to ACMA to be a self-help re-broadcaster of CDT. Being as CDT is a fulltime relay of ATV, it makes sense. But why saddle the ratepayers of Mildura some would rightly ask?
2 Likes
Any independently owned regional TV business faces an uncertain future, including the likes of SCA, WIN and Imparja. More so with the growing shift to on-line distribution away from FTA transmission. And as the independent regionals have no capacity to on-line stream their metro partnerās content or even limit it, they will increasingly be bypassed to the point of being unviable soon.
3 Likes