Press release from TVS
TVS congratulates the TV Week Logies on its decision to allow Community TV program makers to submit entries from next year. This follows a call from the community sector after last year’s refusal to allow the highly acclaimed TVS program The Bazura Project to compete for the award for Outstanding Comedy Show.
TVS Chief Executive, Laurie Patton, noted that this significant breakthrough came as the community channels were all poised to go digital. “TVS is gearing up for a March launch of our new digital channel”, Mr Patton said. “We expect that the ability to simulcast in both digital and analogue will significantly increase our audiences and confirm a permanent place for Community Television in the emerging world of multi-channel free-to-air television. What’s more, the producers of the Logies clearly recognise the value of Community TV”.
In November last year the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, allocated vacant spectrum previously known as Channel A to enable Community TV stations to simulcast until the switch to digital-only television in the capital cities in 2013. The Government also allocated funding, totalling $2.6 million, to assist stations to meet the costs of commencing digital simulcasts.
"Community TV stations provide a unique platform for the expression of the views and interests of a wide range of community groups and individuals that would otherwise go unheard. In addition to providing an outlet for local viewpoints and diverse opinions Community Television acts as a training ground for new entrants to the broadcast industry," Mr Patton concluded.