FreeView Explained

1 Responses to “FreeView Explained”

---

• Richard Francis

  March 7, 2009 at 7:10 pm

  Freeview is all very in theory but it has a big hole in it, so people should’t be too disappointed if they find the most exciting thing about the idea is the commercials promoting it.
  Problem is Australia’s is a small market with a finite audience in a languishing economy and there’s only so much advertising revenue to be spread around, which is what drives commercial television. None of the channels will say they’re doing great right now, so adding extra channels will only stretch the lean budget further, so the likelihood of exciting new viewing is minimal.
  While Ten has announced its One (a very confusing name) with a bit of a fanfare, the other networks have said little and certainly not announced any launch dates for new channels. ABCTV has done well with its ABC2, and digital customers may have spotted an ABC3 in their menus which is presently repeating ABC1. They have announced an all-kids channel. ABC2’s programming is partly composed of repeats from the same week’s ABC1 programming, as well as repats of older shows, and this isn’t such a bad thing. All the channels have vaults full of old programs, although they still incur charges should they wish to repeat them, thus back to the original problem … there’s just not enough cash to really make a difference with the ‘new’ channels. Just don’t expect too much.