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ABC Australia, formerly Australia Television International (or just Australia Television), ABC Asia Pacific, Australia Network and Australia Plus, is an Australian
pay television Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to Subscription business model, subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichan ...
channel, launched in 1993 and operated by the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
as part of the ABC television network of services. The channel broadcasts a mix of programming, including lifestyle, drama, sports, English-language learning programs, children's programming and news and current affairs to viewers across
East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
,
Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
,
South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
,
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
and
Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...
. It is partially funded by Australia's
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is the department of the Australian federal government responsible for foreign policy and relations, international aid (using the branding Australian Aid), consular services and trade and inv ...
, as well as some advertising (unlike the ABC's domestic television services).


History


Origins

Radio Australia ABC Radio Australia, also known as Radio Australia, is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Australia's public broadcaster. Most programming is in English, with some in Tok ...
had been operating as part of the ABC since 1939 while the passing of the '' Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983'' allowed the corporation to operate an additional international television service. The channel was originally proposed by directors Mark Armstrong and David Hill, who felt that a television channel would further heighten Australia's presence in the Asia-Pacific region and demonstrate the ABC's technical abilities. Prime Minister
Paul Keating Paul John Keating (born 18 January 1944) is an Australian former politician and unionist who served as the 24th prime minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He previously serv ...
launched Australia Television International on 17 February 1993, televised live to 50 countries in the south-east Asian region, from the ABC's television studios in
Gore Hill Gore Hill is an urban locality on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Gore Hill is located within the southern part of the suburb of Artarmon, and the north-west of the suburb of St Leonards. History It takes its na ...
. The actual broadcast was from the Darwin uplink where Dominic Stone, the service's Program Director and David Hill, managing director of the ABC commissioned the first transmission. The establishment of the new channel was funded by a special government grant of .PDF
/ref> It was originally a part of the so-called "Gang of Five", which was a consortium that was set up to compete against
Star TV Star TV may refer to: * E! (Canadian TV channel) (formerly Star!), a Canadian entertainment news channel * Las Estrellas (Spanish for The Stars), the Mexican television network * Estrella TV (Spanish for Star TV), the American Spanish-language net ...
in the region. (The others in the group were
CNN International CNN International (CNNI, simply branded on-air as CNN) is an international television channel that is owned by CNN Global. CNN International carries news-related programming worldwide; it cooperates with sister network CNN's national and inter ...
,
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
,
ESPN International ESPN International is a family of sportscasting and production networks around the world. It was begun in 1989, is operated by ESPN Inc. and owned by The Walt Disney Company. Operating regions Latin America Spanish-speaking countries * E ...
its_Asian_operations.html" ;"title="Fox Sports (Southeast Asian TV network)">its Asian operations">Fox Sports (Southeast Asian TV network)">its Asian operations/nowiki> and
TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and ...
TVB_Superchannel.html" ;"title="TVBS.html" ;"title="/nowiki>with TVBS">TVB Superchannel">TVBS.html" ;"title="/nowiki>with TVBS">TVB Superchannel/nowiki>) The consortium's channels were initially transmitted via Palapa satellite, but were later also added to Apstar satellite. The operation of the new channel was funded by a combination of government subsidies and commercial sponsorship. The presence of commercials, not previously seen or heard on the ABC, resulted in the creation of an updated edition of the ''ABC Editorial and Programme Practices'', stipulating that the "Australia Television service will retain editorial control and independence in all programming". Funding cuts made in the 1997–1998 federal budget, and recommendations made in the Mansfield Report, meant that control of Australia Television was handed over to the
Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...
in 1998. Under Seven's direction the channel continued to receive federal funding, and carry some
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
.


2002–2006: ABC Asia Pacific

Despite efforts made by Seven to expand into Asia using the service, it continued to lose money. In 2001, the government announced a five-year, tender for the service – at the time watched primarily by Australian expatriates for its news programmes, football coverage, and children's programming. Seven chose not to bid, while
Imparja Television Imparja Television (IMP) is an independent Australian television station servicing over , across six states and territories: Northern Territory, South Australia, Tasmania, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. It is based in Alice Spring ...
's application was unsuccessful. The ABC won the contract and Australia Television was rebranded as ABC Asia Pacific on 1 January 2002 (or 31 December 2001?), with content from the
Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...
,
Nine Network The Nine Network (stylised 9Network, commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of five main free-to-air television netw ...
,
Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...
, and the ABC's own original content, as well as news bulletins produced by
Sky News Australia Sky News Australia is an Australian news channel owned by News Corp Australia. Originally launched on 19 February 1996, it broadcasts rolling news coverage throughout the day, while its prime time lineup is dedicated to opinion-based programs f ...
. The tender was renewed in 2005; the ABC was re-awarded control of the service until 8 August 2011, over other applicants including
Sky News Australia Sky News Australia is an Australian news channel owned by News Corp Australia. Originally launched on 19 February 1996, it broadcasts rolling news coverage throughout the day, while its prime time lineup is dedicated to opinion-based programs f ...
. Soon afterwards, the network stopped showing content from Sky News Australia, replaced with bulletins produced by the ABC's own news and current affairs division from its Southbank studios in Melbourne.


2006–2014: Australia Network

ABC Asia Pacific changed its name to Australia Network on 7 August 2006, at the same time introducing a number of new programs, as well as the expansion of its existing news programs and English-language learning programs. Following a restructure of the ABC in early 2007, Australia Network became a part of the corporation's International, Corporate Strategy and Governance division. The channel was not available in Australia or New Zealand, owing to rights restrictions, although ''ABC News for Australia Network'' bulletins were carried overnight on
ABC News 24 ABC News (formerly ABC News 24; also referred to as the ABC News channel) is an Australian 24-hour news cycle, 24-hour News broadcasting, news channel launched and owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The channel replaced the forme ...
and
Al Jazeera English Al Jazeera English (AJE; ar, الجزيرة‎, translit=al-jazīrah, , literally "The Peninsula", referring to the Qatar Peninsula) is an international 24-hour English-language news channel owned by the Al Jazeera Media Network, which is own ...
in Australia and on Face TV in New Zealand. Several Australia Network programmes are also available online in Australia on the ABC's iview platform. Australia Network became available in
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
on
Astro Astro may refer to: Entertainment and media * Astro (South Korean band), a South Korean boy band * Astro (UB40) (1957–2021), member of the British reggae band UB40 * Astro (Chilean band), a Chilean indie rock band * Astro (Japanese band), ...
(Channel 514) in December 2008. In 2010 the then
Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
government invited media organisations to submit tenders to deliver the Australia Network for 10 years. In November 2011, the Government closed the tender, "due to significant leaks of confidential information to the media", and asked the
Australian Federal Police The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is the national and principal federal law enforcement agency of the Australian Government with the unique role of investigating crime and protecting the national security of the Commonwealth of Australia. Th ...
to investigate. In the meantime, the ABC's contract was extended until August 2012 to allow time for a decision to be made on its future. On 5 December 2011, the Government announced that the Australia Network would no longer be open to tender and that the ABC would take over its operations permanently. Concerns were raised about the process, and the
Australian National Audit Office The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) is the supreme audit institution of Australia, functioning as the national auditor for the Parliament of Australia and Government of Australia. It reports directly to the Australian Parliament via the ...
noted that the tender process "presented the Australian Government in a poor light and cost the two tenderers... time and money". The government was obliged to pay millions in compensation to Sky News. In the 2014–2015 Australian federal budget by the Abbott government, all funding to the Australia Network was cut and its closure was announced, days before it was about to sign a contract with Shanghai Media Holdings to begin broadcasting in China (making it only the third foreign broadcaster with access to the country). 80 jobs, mostly in Melbourne, were lost and the government was forced to compensate the ABC for breaking its contract, which had been promised in funding for ten years of operation by the previous Labor government.


2014–2018: Australia Plus

Following the closure of Australian Network, Australia Plus, a new multi-platform international service was launched on 29 September 2014 as a replacement. The channel continued to broadcast entertainment, sports, education and English learning shows from
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
through Asia and Pacific partners. Big events from Australia, such as Melbourne Cup, Sydney's New Year's Eve Fireworks and the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race were also featured on the channel. In 2015, the New Zealand government established ''Pasifika TV'', a service providing Pacific island broadcasters with a 24/7 feed of sport, news and other content. Most of it is from New Zealand. In August 2016, three commercial partners, the
Victorian Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as just the Victorian Government, is the state-level authority for Victoria, Australia. Like all state governments, it is formed by three independent branches: the executive, the judicial, and th ...
, vitamin and supplement company
Swisse Swisse is a vitamin, supplement, and skincare brand. Founded in Australia in 1969 and globally headquartered in Melbourne, and was sold to Health & Happiness, a Chinese company based in Hong Kong previously known as Biostime International, in ...
and
Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...
signed contracts with Australia Plus. Under the '' Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983'' the ABC International Division is allowed to operate as a commercial operation, in a way similar to
BBC Worldwide BBC Worldwide Ltd. was the wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the BBC, formed out of a restructuring of its predecessor BBC Enterprises in January 1995. The company monetises BBC brands, selling BBC and other British programming for broadcas ...
.


2018–present: ABC Australia

Australia Plus was rebranded as ABC Australia on 1 July 2018. ABC Head of International Strategy David Hua said, “The rebranding of the international television service makes sense to our audiences overseas, who want distinctive Australian content from a highly-respected media organisation.” The rebranding came just weeks after the lifting of the
geo-blocking Geo-blocking or geoblocking is technology that Internet filter, restricts access to Internet content based upon the user's geographical location. In a geo-blocking scheme, the user's location is determined using Internet geolocation techniques, su ...
of the
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
live stream on the ABC website and YouTube channels. In 2020, the Australian Government established ''PacificAus TV'', which offers 1000 hours of free Australian commercial TV each year to Pacific island broadcasters.


Description

The channel broadcasts a mix of programming, including lifestyle, drama, sports, English-language learning programs, children's programming and news and current affairs. The service is available via subscription to viewers across East Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Pacific Islands, including India, Japan, Vietnam, Afghanistan, the Philippines,
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
and
Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...
.


Programming

In addition to those listed below, the now rebadged ABC Australia shows a range of programming targeted at audiences within the region, including evening news bulletins at two-hour intervals targeted at different parts of the region, and a number of English-language educational programs produced by the Network including ''Study English'', ''Living English'', ''English Bites'' and ''The Business of English''. Drama series shown include ''
Home and Away ''Home and Away'' (often abbreviated as ''H&A'') is an Australian television soap opera. It was created by Alan Bateman and commenced broadcast on the Seven Network on 17 January 1988. Bateman came up with the concept of the show during a trip ...
'', ''
Offspring In biology, offspring are the young creation of living organisms, produced either by a single organism or, in the case of sexual reproduction, two organisms. Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny in a more general way. This ca ...
'', ''
Packed to the Rafters ''Packed to the Rafters'' was an Australian family-oriented comedy drama television program which premiered on the Seven Network on Tuesday 26 August 2008 at 8:30 pm. The show continued on Tuesdays in this timeslot for its entire run. The d ...
'', '' Rake'', ''
The Doctor Blake Mysteries ''The Doctor Blake Mysteries'' (also ''The Blake Mysteries'') is an Australian television series that premiered on ABC TV on 1 February 2013 at 8:30 pm. The series stars Craig McLachlan in the lead role of Dr. Lucien Blake, who returns home to ...
'', '' The Time of Our Lives'', factual entertainment programs ''
Bondi Vet ''Bondi Vet'' is an Australian factual television series. It follows the lives of veterinary surgeon Chris Brown at the Bondi Junction Veterinary Hospital (near Bondi Beach), and emergency veterinarian Lisa Chimes at the Small Animal Special ...
'', ''One Plus One (TV program)'', and ''Cosmo Times'', lifestyle programs ''
Big Break ''Big Break'' is a British television game show, created by Roger Medcalf, Mike Kemp and Terry Mardell, presented by comedian Jim Davidson and snooker commentator John Virgo, and broadcast on BBC One between 1991 and 2002. Inspired by ITV's '' ...
'', ''
Food Safari ''Food Safari'' is an Australian television food series presented by Maeve O'Meara and produced by Kismet Productions in association with SBS TV Australia, and explores the cuisines brought to Australia by its immigrants. From seasons 1 to 4, each ...
'' and ''
Poh's Kitchen Poh Ling Yeow (; born 1973) is a Malaysian-born Australian cook, artist, actress, author and television presenter. Early life and history Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, into a fifth-generation Malaysian Chinese family, and her mother is of ...
'', music program '' Rage'', light entertainment programs '' Gruen Planet'', '' Good Game'' and '' Good Game SP'', the children's shows '' Play School'', '' Blue Water High'', ''
A gURLs wURLd ''A gURLs wURLd'', also known as ''Emma's Chatroom'' and ''Cyber Girls'', is an Australian children's television series, co-produced by Screen Australia, Southern Star Entertainment, Southern Star Singapore, the Media Development Authority of ...
'', and ''
Scope Scope or scopes may refer to: People with the surname * Jamie Scope (born 1986), English footballer * John T. Scopes (1900–1970), central figure in the Scopes Trial regarding the teaching of evolution Arts, media, and entertainment * Cinem ...
''. The news programming of the channel is produced and broadcast from the news studios in Sydney, the headquarters of the ABC News channel and the network news service.


Funding

ABC Australia is partially funded by Australia's
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is the department of the Australian federal government responsible for foreign policy and relations, international aid (using the branding Australian Aid), consular services and trade and inv ...
, as well as some advertising (unlike the ABC's domestic television services). Along with the rest of the ABC, the channel has suffered from successive funding cuts, particularly under
Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...
governments since the 1996 Howard government, with particularly deep cuts in 2014 under the Abbott government and an ongoing
indexation Indexation is a technique to adjust income payments by means of a price index, in order to maintain the purchasing power of the public after inflation, while deindexation is the unwinding of indexation. Overview From a macroeconomics standpoin ...
freeze . In 2019, the ABC's budget for all international operations was , at the same level as it was in the 1980s. This compares with the allocated to
China Central Television China Central Television (CCTV) is a Chinese state- and political party-owned broadcaster controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Its 50 different channels broadcast a variety of programing to more than one billion viewers in six lan ...
(CCTV) service, and for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's international services.


Other international services

ABC Radio Australia ABC Radio Australia, also known as Radio Australia, is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Australia's public broadcaster. Most programming is in English, with some in Tok ...
was launched in 1939, and continues to broadcast in the Asia-Pacific region although no longer on
short-wave Shortwave radio is radio transmission using shortwave (SW) radio frequencies. There is no official definition of the band, but the range always includes all of the high frequency band (HF), which extends from 3 to 30 MHz (100 to 10 me ...
transmission, so does not reach all of the remote islands. The ABC has increased its
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
presence for international audiences; the iview
streaming service Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...
is available via an app, and
ABC News Online ABC News, or ABC News and Current Affairs, is a public news service produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Broadcasting within Australia and the rest of the world, the service covers both local and world affairs. The division of ...
includes
Chinese-language Chinese (, especially when referring to written Chinese) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and many minority ethnic groups in Greater China. About 1.3 billion people (or approximately 16% of the wor ...
and
Tok Pisin Tok Pisin (,Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student’s Handbook'', Edinburgh ; Tok Pisin ), often referred to by English speakers as "New Guinea Pidgin" or simply Pidgin, is a creole language spoken throughout Papua New Guinea. It is an ...
articles.


Slogans

*''Everyone's ABC Asia Pacific'' (2002–2006) *''A different view'' (Australia Network, 2006–2010) *''From our world to yours'' (Australia Network, 2010–2014) *''Your World, Our World, One World'' (Australia Plus, 2014–2018) *''Yours'' (2018–present)


See also

*
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
*
History of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation had its origins in a licensing scheme for individual radio stations administered by the Postmaster-General's Department established in 1923 into a content provider in radio, television and new media. From 1 ...
*
Radio Australia ABC Radio Australia, also known as Radio Australia, is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Australia's public broadcaster. Most programming is in English, with some in Tok ...


References


Further reading

*


External links

* * {{Use dmy dates, date=July 2018 Australian Broadcasting Corporation television Cable television in Hong Kong International broadcasters Television channels and stations established in 1993