Hitchhike TV (also known as HTV) is a
news website
An online newspaper (or electronic news or electronic news publication) is the online version of a newspaper, either as a stand-alone publication or as the online version of a printed periodical.
Going online created more opportunities for newspa ...
. Originating as Brisbane
community television
Community television is a form of mass media in which a television station is owned, operated or programmed by a community group to provide television programs of local interest known as local programming.
Community television stations are most c ...
channel Briz 31, the service became available on 28 February 2017 as the station's terrestrial broadcasting went offline but started serving news through their website to the viewers.
History
1994–February 2017: Brisbane community television
Brisbane's first community television channel was formed by Wes Tatters, Ric Adams, Simon Bunker, Ben Morrisson and Cait Spreadborough. The station began broadcasting a two-week test transmission in 1992 during the opening of
South Bank Parklands
The South Bank Parklands are located at South Bank within the suburb of South Brisbane in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The parkland, on the transformed site of Brisbane's World Expo 88, was officially opened to the public on 20 June 1992.
...
, under the name Briz TV. During the broadcast week many different formats produced by the members went to air. Along with live footage from the opening of South Bank, member-produced formats included a variety show ''On the Bed with Simon and Karen'' where guests were invited to a studio in their
pyjamas
Pajamas ( US) or pyjamas (Commonwealth) (), sometimes colloquially shortened to PJs, jammies, jam-jams, or in South Asia night suits, are several related types of clothing worn as nightwear or while lounging or performing remote work from hom ...
and be interviewed by the hosts.
The following two years were spent lobbying the
Australian Broadcasting Authority
The Australian Broadcasting Authority (ABA) was an Australian government agency whose main roles were to regulate broadcasting, radiocommunications and telecommunications. The Authority took over the functions of the Australian Broadcasting Trib ...
(ABA) for permission to broadcast on a full-time basis and developing a draft funding model for the organisation. At that time, there were no licence categories available except the experimental broadcasting category.
The station began broadcasting in the Brisbane area from Vulture Street Studios on 31 July 1994 as Briz 31 on
analogue channel 31 (callsign CTQ-31) after an arrangement was struck with
Telstra
Telstra Group Limited is an Australian telecommunications company that builds and operates telecommunications networks and markets voice, mobile, internet access, pay television and other products and services. It is a member of the S&P/ASX 20 ...
to provide broadcasting facilities at the
ABQ-2 transmitter tower on
Mount Coot-tha
Mount Coot-tha is a mountain and a suburb of the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , there were no residents in the suburb. Visible from much of the city, Mount Coot-tha is a popular bushland tourist destination including the Mou ...
. With the lack of a marketing campaign to drive brand awareness at the time, many people confusingly called it "Bruce 31".
During Briz 31's early years daily programming consisted of ''Community Billboard'', a text-based information service consisting of weather, local news and classifieds. Regular programming would begin from 4pm usually consisting of locally-produced content and public domain films. Notable programmes from this era included ''Crazy Crosswords'', a crossword puzzle game show interlaced with self-aware humour and ''Tamara Tonite'', a long-running variety show hosted by titular Brisbane drag queen which continued into 2004. As Briz 31 moved into the 2000s, regular programming eventually took up the channel's daytime slot and the station was successfully given a permanent broadcasting license by the ABA in 2004. A nightly news bulletin produced by the
Queensland University of Technology
Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is a public research university located in the urban coastal city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. QUT is located on two campuses in the Brisbane area viz. Gardens Point and Kelvin Grove. The univ ...
's journalism school was broadcast on the channel, as well as current affairs programmes by
Deutsche Welle.
To reflect its expansion into other parts of Queensland outside of Brisbane, the station was renamed Channel 31 in October 2006.
In 2007 the station had a major transmitter upgrade, which allowed it to reach another 40% of viewers mainly in
Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
and the surrounding areas. In July 2008 the station was renamed QCTV for "Queensland Community Television".
In November 2009 the station announced their intent return to the "31" name and was renamed 31 QCTV before being renamed simply 31 in April 2010. The station had announced in March 2010 that after a long period of uncertainty it would begin broadcasting in
digital by 7 June 2010, and upon launching on digital channel 44 (broadcast on 529.500 MH) on 7 June 2010, the station was renamed 31 Digital.
The station's analogue broadcast later ceased on 15 May 2011.
In September 2014, Australian federal communications minister
Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia.
Turnbull grad ...
announced that licensing for community television stations would end in December 2015. In September 2015, Turnbull, now
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
, announced an extension of the deadline to 31 December 2016. The deadline was again extended to 30 June 2017 by Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield in December 2016.
Leading up to the various deadlines, 31 Digital, like other community television stations, moved operations online, and streamed its channel live on their website which allows access to viewers outside of its traditional broadcast area. 31 Digital ceased broadcasting on television at 11:59 pm on 28 February 2017. Days before 30 June 2017, the deadline was again extended to 31 December 2017 by Fifield, but 31 Digital had already ceased broadcasting.
March 2017–present: Online service
With the close of terrestrial broadcasting, the channel shifted its focus to online
video on demand
Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of ...
and reinvented itself as Queensland Online TV (also known as Q Online TV).
Sports discussion program ''The Commentary Box'' was released via Facebook on 27 February 2017 as the inaugural show under the new branding. The show featured three fans discussing the highlights of the previous week, with a Queensland focus.
In June 2018, the service was rebranded as Hitchhike TV, returning to a linear streaming service with the video on demand element removed. Hitchhike TV streamed legacy 31 Digital content from their website in short programming blocks
with an announcement it would eventually become a 24-hour streaming service. However, the service was discontinued in 2020 with no official statement.
HTV Awards
The HTV AWARDS is an initiative by Hitchhike TV where individuals and organisations are awarded in a series of categories, each of which isolate a specific contribution to their industry. The standard awards list nominees in each category from which a winner is selected.
Programming
Produced in-house
* ''Crazy Crosswords'' (1994–1996)
* ''The Bike Show''
* ''Clips 31''
* ''Tamara Tonite''
* ''Art Studio''
* ''The Boat Show''
* ''The Late Nite Show with Scott Black''
* ''This Town Brisbane''
* ''The Storyteller'' (1995–1996)
* ''Community Billboard'' (1994–2002)
* ''The Commentary Box'' (2017)
Other programming
* ''
Hot Dog with the Lot''
*
Harness Racing
* ''Underground Sounds''
* ''4WDTV''
* ''Queensland
Pro Wrestling
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...
''
* ''QUT News'' - a news bulletin produced by
Queensland University of Technology
Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is a public research university located in the urban coastal city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. QUT is located on two campuses in the Brisbane area viz. Gardens Point and Kelvin Grove. The univ ...
* ''My
Autistic
The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
Brother'' - A show created to raise autistic awareness
Identity history
31 Digital
* 1994–1999: ''Getting Together''
* 2006–2008: ''Your local television''
* 2008–2009: ''Queensland's Only Community Television Station''
* 2010–2017: ''Your stories... Your station''
Queensland Online TV
* 2017–2018: ''Q Online. Local. Always.''
Hitchhike TV
* 2018–2020: ''Locally Sourced. Crafted with Love.''
See also
*
Community television in Australia
Community television in Australia is a form of free-to-air non-commercial citizen media in which a television station is owned, operated and/or programmed by a community group to provide local programming to its broadcast area. In principle, co ...
*
Television broadcasting in Australia
Television broadcasting in Australia began officially on 16 September 1956, with the opening of TCN-9, quickly followed by national and commercial stations in Sydney and Melbourne, all these being in 625-line black and white. The commencement da ...
References
External links
*
31 Digital website(archived site)
31 Digital HistoryCampaign to go digitalCouriermail articleACMA search for broadcastersBrisbane Digital TV channels
{{Video digital distribution platforms
English-language television stations in Australia
Australian community television
Television stations in Brisbane
Television channels and stations established in 1994
Australian companies established in 2017
Defunct video on demand services
Video on demand services
Television channels and stations disestablished in 2017
Australian companies disestablished in 2020
Television stations in Queensland