Broadcasting in Singapore

Broadcasting in Singapore began in 5 May 1923 when Radio Singapura was established as the first local mass market radio service. Subsequently in 15 February 1963 before the withdrawal of the British Armed Forces, and after the merger with Malaya, Singapore launched her first television service began has Televisyen Singapura (TV Singapura) for under owner by Radio Television Singapore (RTS).

Contents

History

Radio

Radio Singapura (1923–1963)

Radio Singapura, the first local radio service was launched on 5 May 1923. The radio service shut down temporarily due to the World War II efforts, and radio frequencies were tightly controlled. The service resumed and flourished as Singapore gained gradual autonomy from the United Kingdom after the war.

Radio Singapura subsequently became part of Radio Television Singapore (RTS), which in turn became part of the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). After SBC was fully privatised it became the Radio Corporation of Singapore (RCS).

Rediffusion Singapore

With the success of Radio Singapura another key player in the broadcasting industry in the pre-independence Singapore, Rediffusion Singapore, introduced cable broadcasting service to Singapore in 1949. Rediffusion Singapore brought radio to housing areas which lacked decent radio reception with unrivalled sound quality compared to the conventional radio technologies at that time.

SAFRA Radio

SAFRA Radio is managed by the SAFRA National Service Association, a non-profit organisation that is dedicated to the welfare of National Servicemen (colloquially called "NSmen"). SAFRA Radio runs two stations, Power98FM and 883JiaFM, broadcasting in English and Mandarin Chinese respectively. The stations cater to national and professional servicemen, and both radio stations are entertainment-based, featuring modern commercial music and the latest entertainment news.

SPH UnionWorks

SPH UnionWorks is a joint radio broadcasting entity of SPH Multimedia and NTUC Media. It was created in 1 January 1994 as UnionWorks, relinquishing NTUC Media’s full ownership of 2 local radio stations Heart 100.3FM and 91.3FM The Most Music.

Heart 100.3FM was re-branded into UFM 1003, which had a striking similarity with SPH MediaWorks’s Mandarin Chinese television free-to-air terrestrial channel, SPH MediaWorks Channel U. 91.3FM The Most Music was re-branded as 'WKRZ 91.3', with considerable resemblance to the SPH MediaWorks TV Works channel.

The letter "Z" in the name of WKRZ 91.3 is pronounced "zee" as in the US, instead of the British "zed". The name of the station is pronounced as "W", "K", "R", "Z" individually to create an "Americanised" illusion, mimicking the naming conventions of radio stations in the United States.

In 2006, Singapore Press Holdings increased its share in its radio subsidiary to 60 % and SPH UnionWorks is thus renamed to its present name. The radio stations under this subsidiary were also renamed as Radio 91.3 FM and Radio 1003, with new programming and lineup.

Television

Company names

Only 2 television broadcasting companies have ever been created in Singapore since 1 January 2005 has SPH Mediaworks and present MediaCorp TV. The former eventually merged with the latter in 31 December 2004 only 1 television broadcasting companies have ever been created in Singapore. Televisyen Singapura (TV Singapura), Televisyen Malaysia (Singapura) (TV Malaysia (Singapura)), Radio Television Singapore (RTS), Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) and Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS), were the predecessors of the Media Corporation of Singapore (MediaCorp Group), with each name change signifying a period of privatisation and liberalisation.

MediaCorp is the direct successor of the SIM Group of Companies based parent by Singapore International Media (SIM) – the parent company of Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) and Radio Corporation of Singapore (RCS) which in 12 February 2001 were renamed MediaCorp TV (network channel MediaCorp TV and MediaCorp TV12) and MediaCorp Radio respectively owner by MediaCorp their second satellite television broadcasting and radio broadcasting transmit receive earth station on Caldecott Broadcast Centre based in Singapore International Foundation regional broadcast venture Singapore International Television (SITV) and Radio Singapore International (RSI).

Several free-to-air terrestrial television channels are managed by companies that are directly affiliated with Televisyen Singapura (TV Singapura), Televisyen Malaysia (Singapura) (TV Malaysia (Singapura)), Radio Television Singapore (RTS), Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) and MediaCorp TV.

Radio Television Singapore (1963–1980)

The Television service began with a 1.5 hour monochrome service launched on Television Singapura under close regulation by a department within the government's Ministry of Culture in 15 February 1963. [MediaCorp Channel 5|Television Singapura (English)]] was formal inauguration of regular television broadcast took place in 2 April 1963 with four hours of Singapore English programmes daily.

Television Singapura (Mandarin) the second television channel was introduced in 23 November 1963 to broadcast programmes in Tamil and predominantly in Singapore Mandarin.

Both Television Singapura (English) and Television Singapura (Mandarin) are still in transmission today.

Colour transmission

The first colour television signal was transmitted in 1 May 1974 the first colour programmes being the The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Black Beauty. Subsequently, the first live colour telecast of the company the 1974 FIFA World Cup Final between West Germany and Netherlands via satellite transmission took place in 7 July 1974.

Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (1980–1994)

With the passing of an Act of Parliament and after much public effort, Radio Television Singapore (RTS) was partially privatised and given autonomy and flexibility in its lineup of programmes and handling issues such as personnel, finance and production. Radio Television Singapore (RTS) became Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) in 1 February 1980.

Immediately after the partial privatisation, the company managed breakthroughs that were hitherto impossible due to the direct influence of the Ministry of Culture. After two years, Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) produced its first local drama for SBC-8. SBC also produced various awarding-winning documentaries and current affairs talkshows; were however, criticised for her marginalised broadcast of news and current affairs, carrying news that are supporting the common misconceptions that are much silenced.

In 31 January 1984, Singapore Broadcasting Corporation launched Singapore's third free-to-air terrestrial television channel, SBC-12 after the government announced its life to nurture a gracious and elegant society. SBC-12 carried mostly art and cultural programmes marking the inception of niche programming.

SBC continued to innovate, and eventually introduced the Star Search contest in 1988, which launched the career of some of today's most recognised local artistes. The trend of innovating accelerated when the company was totally privatised in the early 1990s.

Television Corporation of Singapore (1994–2001)

SBC was fully privatised in 1 October 1994 and split into 3 individual companies under the SIM Group of Companies based parent by Singapore International Media (SIM) has : Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) took over the television broadcasting arm of Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), Radio Corporation of Singapore (RCS) took over thr radio broadcasting arm of Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) while TV12 (TV12 Singapore) under name STV12 (Singapore Television Twelve) operated Channel 12 manager by Prime 12 (Perdana 12) and Premiere 12 their second satellite television broadcasting and radio broadcasting transmit receive earth station on Caldecott Broadcast Centre based in Singapore International Foundation regional broadcast venture Singapore International Television (SITV) and Radio Singapore International (RSI).

In 27 September 1995, TCS-5 and TCS-8 began 24-hour transmission and 2 new free-to-air terrestrial television channels were created from STV-12 began name such Prime 12 and Premiere 12. TCS-8 dropped its Tamil language programmes these were moved to the new Prime 12. For the first time in the history of Singaporean broadcasting, there were 4 free-to-air terrestrial television channels broadcasting programmes in all 4 official languages.

In 1999, the Singapore International Media (SIM) restructuring exercise Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) became one of its Strategic Business Units (SBU).

In started launched 1 March 1999, Channel NewsAsia was launched a member of Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) latest offering of a free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore while the channel is available overseas via a post-paid service on Singapore Cable Television (SICTV).

In 30 January 2000, STV12 underwent an entire makeover, and the Suria The new Malay language channel with programming similar to TCS-5 channel replaced Prime 12 as a channel for the entertainment needs of the Malay community, while Premiere 12 became Central a channel separated into 3 sections according to the time slot given at different part of a day as

The STV12 channels did not commence 24 hour transmissions, despite rumours, while Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) such : TCS-5 and TCS-8 continued their 24-hour transmission with significant reform to their programming for late evenings. SportCity, a channel dedicated to sport programmes, was introduced by Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) and subsequently renamed CityTV in May 2001 and introducing programmes catering to a larger range of audience, before being shut down in January 2002 due to economic recession and a lack of viewership.

MediaCorp TV (2001–present)

Singapore International Media (SIM) underwent a corporate restructure exercise in 12 February 2001. The Group was reorganised to become the Media Corporation of Singapore (MediaCorp Singapore). Television Corporation of Singapore (TCS) was renamed has MediaCorp TV, Radio Corporation of Singapore (RCS) was renamed has MediaCorp Radio and STV12 (Singapore Television Twelve) operated TCS-12 manager by Prime 12 and Premiere 12 was renamed MediaCorp TV12 became two individual Strategic Business Units (SBU) under the new corporation.

SPH MediaWorks (2001–2004)

With the liberalisation process near completion, Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) began preparing to introduce an alternative broadcaster to challenge the well-established MediaCorp. In 6 May 2001, SPH announced the creation of SPH MediaWorks, which would transmit 2 new free-to-air terrestrial television channels has : Channel U and TVWorks broadcasting in Singapore Mandarin and Singapore English respectively. The process of establishing the 2 new channels entailed one of the largest staff crossovers in Singapore. A significant number of MediaCorp TV employees moved to SPH MediaWorks including renowned producers celebrated artistes and notably the media veteran Man Shu Sum one of the pioneers in the local broadcasting industry.

With the launch of Channel U and TVWorks in 6 May 2001, SPH MediaWorks immediately began a long and excruciating ratings war. Survey results by research firm Taylor Nelson Sofres showed MediaCorp launched has : Channel 5, Channel 8, Suria, Central, Channel NewsAsia and CityTV to be constantly in the lead. However, SPH MediaWorks rebutted this with figures by another research firm AC Nielson, which showed that Channel U was in the lead.

Due to the different research figures used by the two companies, ratings were often biased towards the company using them. In 2003 after Singapore Broadcasting Authority becomes the MDA both companies stopped presenting the ratings of the rival either in their web sites or on air; MDA introduced its own ratings as well showing MediaCorp channels in the lead.

In 3 March 2002, TVWorks was renamed Channel i in an attempt to revamp the Singapore English television channel. It had suffered considerably in the ratings war and became the channel with the lowest viewership. SPH MediaWorks was awarded the "Broadcaster of the Year" in the 2001 Asian Television Awards an award clinched by MediaCorp previously while Channel U received the "Channel of the Year" an award previously received by MediaCorp TV's Channel 5.

In 17 September 2004, Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) and MediaCorp announced the possibility of merging the broadcasting arms of the respective companies. It was eventually agreed that a new holding company, MediaCorp Television Broadcasting Arm would be created to operate the MediaCorp and SPH MediaWorks channels affected by the merger, namely MediaCorp has : Channel 5, Channel 8, Channel U, TVMobile, Suria, Central, Channel NewsAsia and [of teletext services#Singapore|Teletext]. Singapore Press Holdings had previously said that SPH MediaWorks was unprofitable and the merger agreement excluded Channel i was closing ceremony dissloved disestablishment off the air and closedown sign-off the end shut down stop late night final ceased transmission on New Year's Day in 2005 at 01:30 am local time early dawn morning time.

It was also agreed that MediaCorp would retain 80% stake in the new holding company, while Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) would cash in for a 20 % stake. The agreement also included the end of the free newspaper battle; Suria, Central and Channel NewsAsia (CNA) would continue to be operated solely by the MediaCorp, with Channel 5, Channel 8 and Channel U a member of MediaCorp TV, Suria and Central a member of MediaCorp TV12 and Channel NewsAsia a member of MediaCorp News.

In New Year's Eve in 2004, it was announced that the merger was completed and the new company would begin operations on New Year's Day in 2005. The merger was one of the largest in the local market to date. SPH MediaWorks was closing ceremony dissloved disestablishment off the air and closedown sign-off the end shut down stop late night final ceased transmission on New Year's Day in 2005 at 01:30 am local time early dawn morning time.

The return of market monopoly

After the merger of MediaCorp TV and SPH MediaWorks from mass market free-to-air terrestrial television channel and free daily national newspaper operations on New Year's Eve in 2004, MediaCorp the first local broadcaster once again became the monopoly in the free-to-air terrestrial channels broadcasting market after four years.

Private ownership of satellite dishes is illegal although international television channels (such as The Filipino Channel, Arirang TV, NHK World Premium, NHK World Television, Russia Today, TV5MONDE Asie, DW-TV Asia, KBS World, Cartoon Network Southeast Asia, Disney Channel Asia, Disney Junior Asia, Nickelodeon Southeast Asia, Nick Jr. Southeast Asia, Eurosport, Eurosport News, Golf Channel, All Sports Network, NBA TV, History, CI, Biography Channel, National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo Adventure, Nat Geo Wild, Discovery Channel, Discovery Science, Animal Planet, Discovery Home & Health, Discovery Turbo, TLC, BBC Lifestyle, Food Network Asia, Asian Food Channel, E! Entertainment, Style Network, Fashion TV, truTV, Australia Network, BBC Knowledge, BBC Entertainment, HBO Asia, Cinemax Asia, STAR Movies, MGM Channel, Turner Classic Movies, Thrill, Fox Family Movies, STAR World, FX, FOX Crime, FOX Channel, AXN Asia, AXN Beyond, Animax Asia, Universal Channel, Warner Channel, KIX, Diva Universal, ITV Granada, Syfy Universal, MTV Southeast Asia, Channel [V] International, Televisi Republik Indonesia, TV1 a member of Radio Televisyen Malaysia, Sensasi, MNC Business and MNC International a member of Media Nusantara Citra, TVB Entertainment News, TVB Classic, TVB Xing He and TVB Jade a member of TVB International, Taiwan Television, CCTV-1, STAR Chinese Channel, Xing Kong, Rediffusion Television Cantonese Channel and Rediffusion Television English Channel a member of Rediffusion Television, Phoenix Satellite Television, Phoenix InfoNews Channel, Celestial Movies, Celestial Classic Movies, STAR Chinese Movies, STAR Chinese Movies 2, MTV Mandarin, Channel [V] China, Channel [V] Taiwan, CTi News, TVBS Asia, TVBS-NEWS, Fox News Channel, Sky News International, CNN Headline News, CCTV News, BBC World News and CNN International Asia Pacific) are available on StarHub TV based in cable television and SingTel's mio TV based in IPTV services.

Language

The issue of language used in broadcasting has caused many controversies in the short but significant history of local broadcasting. Tight censorship and control over the language used have resulted in programmes which have been severely edited and dubbed in the name of protecting national interests.

In accordance with the state policy of promoting Mandarin Chinese local television channels have been banned from showing programmes in Hong Kong Cantonese dialect for years. These programs, such as popular television serials from Hong Kong which use Hong Kong Cantonese have to be dubbed into Singapore Mandarin; local television series or programmes may not use any form of dialect and are subjected to tight censorship. Similarly, local newspapers were not allowed to carry listings for Malaysia's TV3 is a broadcasted Hong Kong Cantonese programmes a member of Sistem Televisyen Malaysia Berhad. Ironically, Malaysia state-run Radio Televisyen Malaysia such TV1 and TV2 did broadcast programmes in Cantonese for a period of time. Although these were not meant for viewers in Singapore, Singapore could still receive the television signals. (Since New Year's Day on 2002, TV2 is no longer free-to-air in Singapore a member of Radio Televisyen Malaysia, due to its broadcasting foreign copyrighted programmes) Hong Kong's TVB Jade is a broadcasting in Hong Kong Cantonese a member of Television Broadcasts Limited is now available on cable. As of now, TV1 is now officially free-to-air in Singapore.

See also

Defunct companies

Existing companies

External links