TEN: Second entertainment channel
TEN has confirmed it will launch a general entertainment channel in the second half of the year.
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News
TEN has confirmed it will launch a general entertainment channel in the second half of the year.
The new channel is expected to have a unique name, but TEN has not indicated what programming will appear on it.
To launch sometime after June 30, the channel will not be built on repeating shows that debuted on the main TEN signal.
“It will be a general entertainment channel,” David Mott has told The Australian. “It’s got to be original.”
The channel also won’t be treated like a poor sibling of TEN.
“It will have equal weighting with TEN. In the digital environment, why wouldn’t you?”
TEN has been hit hard by the arrival of 7TWO and GO!, which pick up audiences similar to that of SBS. While TEN has had ONE on air for more than a year, it has struggled to compete with the channels playing broad, international TV.
Meanwhile Nine’s second digital multi-channel would not be launched until after July.
Seven has confirmed it is also planning a second multi-channel for this year, although the format and timing are not known.
Networks are also awaiting the outcome of the Anti-Siphoning List review which could allow them to play more sports on digital multi-channel.
Source: The Australian
95 Responses
i’d love to see anime in the mornings, or even on a low rating friday/saturday night, with new or old episodes of pokemon, naruto, one piece, yu-gi-oh (probably wont happen in prime time but theres a wishhhhhhhh)
Great news, I too would love to see some of the old drama and comedy series back on our screens.
Would be fantastic to have Prisoner back – although TEN don’t own the rights to the series anymore.
However, knowing how TEN target the younger demographic I would say that it would be highly unlikely
@Matthew See – Veronica Mars, go buy or rent the DVD, it’s well worth it!
I can’t wait for the new channels but then with conflicts I’ll need a PVR with more recording power, to do 4 or 5 channels at once LOL
Bring back Big Brother… 🙂
These are the shows Ten would probably screen on a 3rd channel.
Smallville. If Ten haven’t lost the rights (being 2 seasons behind), for not screening it for so long, after Nine stupidly sold the show to them. 90210, Melrose Place. Both these mediocre remake shows would rate abysmally on Ten’s standard channel. Friday Night Lights. It’s currently showing on Friday night – Saturday morning in a graveyard slot on Ten’s standard channel. Monk, Pysch. Ten may be testing Monk on 6.30 pm Saturdays, but they skipped several seasons. The Cleveland Show. Life Unexpected. UK and US Masterchef. Army Wives. Ten are showing it at 12 am Tuesday night – Wednesday morning. US Big Brother from CBS (both the network and cable TV version). There’s no way Ten would be dumb enough to revive it in an Aus version. US American Idol and US X Factor. Caprica, Eureka. I’m unsure if Ten have the rights to Caprica. They didn’t renew their supply deal with Universal, who signed a deal with Seven. 7 PM Project. They could do a longer version, a couple times a week.
I’m glad to see they’re trying to get original programming on there. I was kinda hoping they’d play the old episodes of Pokemon (from a time when their kids programming was actually good).
On that note, how about putting some anime on? We are not getting enough from ABC and SBS, and even when SBS does put it on it’s some crappy movie from the 80s or something, played at 2am. Anime is also great for Ten’s demographic.
“The new channel is expected to have a unique name” —— Meaning they’ll just go with TEN-3. Perhaps they could call it TEN-4 (would be good for a few CB radio jokes).
I agree with others would love to see some of the best stuff they’ve created over the years, dramas like early Neighbours, Prisoner, E Street, Richmond Hill, The Restless Years, even Number 96 if they still have it, gameshows like Perfect Match and Blankety Blanks and other stuff like The Comedy Company, It’s A Knockout, Candid Camera etc.
All these multi channels seem to be doing is diluting the amour of great shows out there by putting them on more channels. I’d be happier if they didn’t launch another channel.
Content ideas? Dig out from the archives Its A Knockout, Perfect Match, Ridgy Didge, Carsons Law, Prisoner, Henderson Kids, Neighbours, Richmond Hill, E Street, Simon Townsends Wonder World etc etc
Who does have the rights to The Star Trek and Lost In Space franchises ?
@ Jerome
No, they’re not. They were, for a short time, but they haven’t been putting breakaway programming on 7HD or 9HD for a year or two now. They likely will have to reintroduce it if they plan new channels though, because as far as I’m aware the legislation doesn’t allow for any new transport streams on the commercial channels yet, so they’ll have to utilise their existing 3 streams, if they want a new station. (then again maybe the legislation will change before then too)
@Bogues
In most regions LCN 11 is a copy of OneHD and LCN 12 is actually OneSD. On that basis, what’s the bet the new station is called One-Two?
Please don’t take the following too seriously but here’s what I’d like to see:
24h Simpsons, Futurama and anime channel.
Who’s with me?
**Sounds of crickets chirping in the background**
How about ETN (Entertainment Television Network) or ENT (Entertainment) for a channel.
Ten has said that the the channel won’t be built around programming that has debuted on the main channel. It will be interesting what sort of programming they have in mind. A broader choice is always very welcome.
Any plans in the future of a news channel as well?
Who wants to see old school Big Brother repeats? 😀
@Ryano: HD on FTA television in Australia is, sadly, doomed. Despite the massive uptake of full-HD TVs, the vast majority of viewers don’t give a rat’s about picture quality. These are, of course, the same people who are happy to listen to music on public transport through a mobile phone’s voice-band-only speaker, and who helped make Border Security one of the nation’s top-rating programs.
This is why I regularly fly to the US and the UK so I can see my favourite shows in HD. Just got back from the UK, actually. Doctor Who looked amazing in HD.
Maybe they should try a Teen Oriented Block.
Whatever it is it will be better than Go!
I’ve always wanted SyFy’s Ghost Hunters, GHI, GHA and Destination Truth on Aussie FTA and i’ve always thought of Ten being the channel most likely to pick them up. I know that The SciFi Channel (Australia) shows some of, if not all of these, so Ten won’t get first run, but that isn’t an issue. Perhaps even finish off Battlestar Galactica (i would prefer they start it from the beginning as i have yet seen it and haven’t got around to it yet), then show Caprica.
@Andrew – The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson would be a great addition, perhaps even put it on at say 10:30pm, so that it doesn’t overlap with Letterman on the main channel.
@ryaneco – It’s going to be good having a fresh new look for the new channel. I think branding it as it’s own ‘network’ is a good way to go. Perhaps we might finally see Ten doing cross-promotion between the three channels. If you only watched the main channel, you would only be aware of ONE from watching Sports Tonight.
@steven guy – Nine have the rights to Star Trek if i’m not mistaken and the plan was to show the entire ST collection on GO… however, there’s still no sign of this.
@Bruce S – That’s the big question for the eastern regional Ten viewers isn’t it. You would hope that because Ten have announced the new channel so early (as opposed to the 7/Prime 7TWO or SCTen ONE debacle), SCTen hopefully have been notified, or at least been reading the news and with any luck might take a page from Nine’s book RE GO’s launch.
7 and 9 are already multilcasting on their HD channels during the day and occasinally late at night. if the quantity of muticasts raises a bit i think that’s all we need from them until 2013. i’d prefer the primetime shows to stay in HD.
Monk. Psych. That is all i want.
What about NET for the name? It’s Ten backwards.
@ Andrew – Wow, there’s actually someone who is unaware of the plain existence of SBS and ABC. No wonder you had minimal choice.
Hooray, the sooner the better. I think they should just go with Channel 11, we are so use to numbers here in Oz, why not just stick with it?
I love the fact it will stand side by side to Ten and not be the poor little brother of the channel.
I hope it becomes a new fully fledged commercial network with its own identity, Maybe Ten can have its news at 5pm and then another news service at 6pm on Channel 11 to take on 7 and 9. I would love to see youth slanted news service that blends in News/Current Affairs/Entertainment.
I really don’t want to see a Channel full on Aussie repeats, it feels such a cheap channel and such a waste, sure there is nostalgia, but its no means must watch TV.
What I would love to see:
5pm: Music/Request Show – Channel V Style
6pm: A alternation News/Current Affairs/Entertainment service – Youth Slanted
7pm: Game Show – eg. Sales Of the Century/Temptation
7.30pm: US/Aussie Sitcom – Smallville, Supernatural, 90210, MP
8.30pm: Big Brother
9.30pm: US/Aussie Sitcom
10pm: Tonight Show/7pm Project/The Circle Style Show
Maybe we should send this article to Southern Cross now so they know that they have to have something in place, so they can’t pull the old “we don’t know about it” trik they pulled for ONE HD.
Yippy!