TV Avala (full legal name: TV Avala d.o.o.,
Serbian Cyrillic
The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, th ...
: ТВ Авала) was a Serbian television network with national frequency. Registered as a
limited liability company
A limited liability company (LLC for short) is the US-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...
, the station was given a national TV frequency in
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
in April 2006.
Five months after that, it premiered on September 17, 2006 at 8 pm. With its editorial policy, TV Avala initially reminded many of the old
RTS
RTS may refer to:
Medicine
* Rape trauma syndrome, the psychological trauma experienced by a rape victim
* Revised Trauma Score, a system to evaluate injuries secondary to violent trauma
* Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome, a condition characterized by ...
's third channel (3K), which ceased operations on May 5, 2006 at twelve midnight.
After using the conventional format of movies, news, and sports for its first four years on the air, the network made a substantial turn towards business news in March 2010.
With headquarters located in the
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
municipality of
Savski Venac
Savski Venac ( sr-cyr, Савски Венац, ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality of the city of Belgrade. According to the 2011 census results, the municipality has a population of 39,122 inhabitants.
It is one of the three municipal ...
, TV Avala broadcasts 24 hours a day.
Overview
One of the first shows broadcast on TV Avala was ''
Star Trek: Enterprise
''Star Trek: Enterprise'', titled simply ''Enterprise'' for its first two seasons, is an American science fiction television series created by Rick Berman and Brannon Braga. It originally aired from September 26, 2001, to May 13, 2005 on Uni ...
'', the first time in almost fifteen years one of the
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
series to be broadcast legally in Serbia. Due to this Serbian
Trekkie
A Trekkie or Trekker is a fan of the '' Star Trek'' franchise, or of specific television series or films within that franchise.
History
Many early Trekkies were also fans of ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' (1964–1968), another show with scienc ...
s have strongly sported this television, making a fan-site and a
forum
Forum or The Forum (plural forums or fora) may refer to:
Common uses
* Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States
*Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city
**Roman Forum, most famous example
*Internet ...
even before official site was online. Enterprise had medium ratings and public hoped that older shows of franchise will be shown. After Enterprise ended its run, there was annunciations for other Star Trek shows, but have yet to be seen.
Ownership
TV Avala's ownership structure includes 4 subjects (2 individuals and 2 companies).
The majority stake in TV Avala is held by businessman
Danko Đunić (51%). In late February 2008, a 5% stake in the television was bought by
Željko Mitrović
Željko Mitrović (born on 31 May 1967) is a Serbian media magnate, entrepreneur, investor, CEO and founder of the Pink Media Group.
Career
In 1988, Mitrović had founded one of the first music recording studios in Serbia. He opened a radio sta ...
, owner of competing station
RTV Pink
Pink is a privately owned, national radio station and TV channel in Serbia. Pink is the leading commercial station in the Serbian television broadcast market. Pink's parent company is the Belgrade-based Pink International Company
Pink Internat ...
.
For the next several years TV Avala's ownership structure includes 9 subjects (2 individuals and 7 companies): Đunić and Mitrović as well as Tehnoprogres d.o.o. (30.68%), Media Plus d.o.o. (14.94%), Ekonomski institut a.d. (0.99%), Tuck Vision d.o.o. (0.94%), Dexin Film d.o.o. (0.94%), ITM Group d.o.o. (0.47%), Metalac a.d. (0.47%).
In October 2008, Germany's
RTL Group
RTL Group (for "Radio Television Luxembourg") is a Luxembourg-based international media conglomerate, with another corporate centre in Cologne, Germany. The company operates 68 television channels and 31 radio stations in Germany, France and ...
was given a green light to buy 49% of TV Avala for €45 million, but ultimately decided against the acquisition.
Sometime in 2010, Austrian-registered company Greenberg Invest GmbH (listed as owned by Austrian lawyer Johannes Werner Krauß) bought shares in TV Avala owned by Tehnoprogres d.o.o. (30.68%), Media Plus d.o.o. (14.94%), Tuck Vision d.o.o. (0.94%), Dexin Film d.o.o. (0.94%), ITM Group d.o.o. (0.47%), and Metalac a.d. (0.47%) totaling 48.41%.
In mid October 2012, after two months of negotiations, Saša Popović, the owner of
Grand Production
Grand Production ( sr, Гранд продукција) is a Serbian record label and production company predominantly focused on folk performers. The label produces the weekly television show ''Grand Parada'', launched their own cable television ...
, and Željko Mitrović agreed to purchase the controlling stake in TV Avala. At the same time it was announced that the network will change its name to Narodna TV starting from January 7, 2013. However, from November 4, 2012 at 8 am, the station started broadcasting as Pink2.
Personnel
From its inception in 2006, TV Avala's editor-in-chief was
Srđan Đurić who was also the adviser to then prime minister
Vojislav Koštunica
Vojislav Koštunica ( sr-cyrl, Војислав Коштуница, ; born 24 March 1944) is a Serbian former politician who served as the last president of FR Yugoslavia from 2000 to 2003 and as the prime minister of Serbia from 2004 to 2008.
...
.
On November 14, 2008, it was announced that editor-in-chief Srđan Đurić had left the network. On December 26, 2008, it was announced that
Aleksandra Radujko (former anchorwoman on TV Pink and wife of high-ranking
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
official and
Telekom Srbija
Telekom Srbija a.d. Beograd is a Serbian state-owned telecommunications operator. It was founded in May 1997 as a joint-stock company, by spinning off the telecommunications business from PTT Srbija (present-day „ Pošta Srbije"). In April 201 ...
CEO Branko Radujko) was to take over as the new editor-in-chief.
In March 2010, TV Avala's managing board named Željko Mitrović as the 'special advisor to the operational management' in essence giving him a free rein of the network's personnel affairs. His first move was letting Radujko go and naming
Robert Nemeček
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
as the new editor-in-chief. Mitrović also initiated a substantial format makeover for the network.
In October 2010, TV veteran
Bojana Lekić was brought in as the station's general manager, marking her return to television after four years since the demise of
BKTV
RTV BK Telekom (Serbian Cyrillic: Радио Телевизија Браћа Карић Телеком) was a privately owned radio and television company based in Belgrade, Serbia. It functioned as a revenue-generating media outlet with a "G" ra ...
where she was the editor-in-chief. The original idea at TV Avala was for Lekić to work alongside Nemeček. However, one month later in November, Nemeček was relieved of his editor-in-chief duties by the managing board and replaced with Lekić, initially in the temporary caretaker role until permanent person is hired.
Lekić, who continued performing editorial duties in temporary role for over a year, left in January 2012 amid turmoil in the middle of the strike at the station. She was replaced with the station's managing board member Dušan Pančić who thus became the new editor-in-chief.
Viewership and finances
According to
AGB Nielsen Media Research for the year 2007, TV Avala ranked sixth place for overall view, ranked amidst all the Serbian channels with national coverage. (3.6% TV market share and 2.2 million average daily viewers tuning in for at least one minute) behind
RTS1
RTS1 (Serbian Cyrillic: РТС1; First program of RTS ( sr, Први програм РТС-а/), First channel of RTS (/ ) or only First (/ )) is a Serbian public mainstream TV channel operated by RTS.
Previously on RTS1
Serbian TV series
*Ј ...
,
Pink
Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
,
B92
RTV B92, or simply B92 (stylized as b92, formerly BΞ92 and B 92), is a Serbian news station and broadcaster with national coverage headquartered in Belgrade.
Founded in 1989 as radio station, it was a rare outlet for Western news and informati ...
,
RTS2
RTS2 (Serbian Cyrillic: РТС2; Second program of RTS ( sr, Други програм РТС-а/), Second channel of RTS (/ ) or only Second (/ )) is a Serbian public TV channel operated by RTS. It focuses on culture, in addition to offering mus ...
, and
Fox televizija
Prva (; sr-Cyrl, Прва) or Prva Srpska Televizija ( sr-Cyrl, Прва српска телевизија, lit=First Serbian Television), is a Serbian commercial television network with national coverage.
Launched on 31 December 2006 at 7&nbs ...
. According to its calendar year 2007 annual financial report submitted to Serbian Economic Register Agency, the company had 172 employees and it posted a loss of
RSD602,358,000 (approximately €7.5 million at the time with €1=RSD80).
In the 2008 annual report, the company reported 160 employees and a loss of RSD499,176,000 (approximately €5.5 million at the time with €1=RSD90).
Finansijski izveštaj za 2008
/ref>
TV rights
SPORTS:
* Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...
* Copa Libertadores
The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in S ...
Previously aired telenovelas
References
External links
Official website of TV Avala
Željko Mitrović kupio pet odsto televizije „Avala“
''Blic'', February 28, 2008
''Politika'', March 24, 2008
{{Television in Serbia
Defunct television networks
Television channels and stations established in 2006
Television channels and stations disestablished in 2012
2006 establishments in Serbia
Defunct television channels
2012 disestablishments in Serbia
Defunct mass media in Serbia