| Ten HD | |
|---|---|
| Ten HD Logo | |
| Launched | 16 December 2007 |
| Closed | 25 March 2009 |
| Network | Network Ten |
| Owned by | Ten Network Holdings Limited |
| Picture format | 1080i (HDTV) |
| Slogan | 'The World is Amazing in HD My Ten HD Seriously Ten |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Broadcast area | Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth |
| Headquarters | Sydney, Australia |
| Replaced | Network Ten (HD simulcast) |
| Replaced by | One HD |
| Sister channel(s) | Network Ten |
| Availability At Time Of Closure | |
| Terrestrial | |
| HD Digital | Channel 1, 11 |
| Cable | |
| Foxtel HD+ | Channel 210 |
Ten HD was an Australian free-to-air television channel that launched on 16 December 2007. The channel was available to high definition digital television viewers through owned-and-operated stations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth. The multichannel broadcast live sport, entertainment, films, documentaries, science fiction and news.[1]
The channel ceased broadcasting on 25 March 2009, and the following day relaunched as One HD.
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Ten HD was officially announced on 14 September 2007, to replace Network Ten's existing high definition service, a simulcast of its standard definition and analogue services, through the use of an amendment to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 in 2006. The Broadcasting Legislation Amendment (Digital Television) Act 2006 permitted television networks to launch digital multichannels, provided that they are broadcast exclusively in high definition.[2]
Although originally expected to be the first free-to-air commercial television channel introduced to metropolitan areas since 1988,[3] the surprise launch of Seven Media Group's HD offering, Seven HD, on 15 October 2007, two months before transmissions were scheduled to begin,[4] meant that Ten HD was launched as the second high-definition multichannel in Australia. PBL Media announced the creation of a similar multichannel, Nine HD, on 27 September,[5] which was launched on 17 March 2008.
Ten's parent company, and shareholder in metropolitan ratings system OzTAM, Ten Network Holdings Limited, began discussions with the ratings system operator to have digital multichannels, such as Ten HD and ABC2, included in television ratings for the first time on 17 September 2007.[6] As well as this, on the same day, it was announced that the national weekend editions of Ten News would be timeshifted from Network Ten onto Ten HD, an hour delayed at 6 pm, in order to directly compete with Seven News and National Nine News. This would have seen Ten News formally broadcast at 6 pm for the first time since 1992,[7] however, the timeslot was later amended to 5.30 pm.
In preparation for the launch of Ten HD, Ten's digital terrestrial channel lineup was updated on 19 November 2007, with changes consisting of LCN1 redirecting Network Ten's current high-definition simulcast.[8] Following this, on 21 November 2007, Ten Network Holdings Limited announced that it would launch the channel on 16 December 2007 at 5.00 pm, with the first program, Totally Wild.[9]
Ten HD officially commenced transmission on 16 December 2007 from the network's five metropolitan owned-and-operated stations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth.[3] Prior to the official launch, at 5.00 pm the first program, Totally Wild, was broadcast. Following this, for the first time since 1992,[7] Ten News and Sports Tonight were broadcast in direct competition with Seven News and National Nine News, timeshifted by thirty minutes to 5.30 pm and 6.00 pm respectively.[10]
The first official program on launch night began at 8.30 pm, the 2001 movie Black Hawk Down.[10] This was followed by Bon Jovi's Lost Highway Tour at 11.30 pm and Video Hits Presents: The Music of Supernatural at 12.25 am. Video Hits Up-Late marked the end of the first night of transmission for Ten HD at 12.50 am.[11]
In the lead-up to the opening night, the channel promised up to eleven hours of time-shifted programming from Network Ten in addition to fifty hours of exclusive programming, which included live sport, entertainment, films, documentaries, science fiction and news.[1][3] This consisted of six movies per week, in addition to National Geographic documentaries in the afternoon, from 3pm to 5pm, music-oriented programming following the Sunday Night Movie, along with a primetime breakaway schedule on Thursdays and from 10.30 pm to 11.30 pm Monday to Wednesday.[11]
From 2009, commercial networks in Australia were allowed to broadcast a standard definition subchannel. Rather than introduce a new digital service, Channel Ten decided to relaunch Ten HD as a sports only channel, to be named ONE, and use its alternate standard definition service to broadcast a standard definition version of ONE HD.[12] Before ONE HD's official launch, most breakaway programming shown on Ten HD ceased from 1 January 2009, and only showed a high-definition broadcast of the existing Channel Ten digital service, along with a few sports-based breakaway programs. Ten HD officially shut down on 25 March 2009, with ONE HD launching the following day.
Ten HD broadcast programming consisting of news, live sporting events, entertainment, films, documentaries and science fiction. In addition to this, themed programming lineups were broadcast on specified days, including Sci-Fi Thursday.[13] The channel provided fifty hours of exclusive content per week including up to eleven hours of time-shifted programming from Network Ten, as well as additional programming from popular Network Ten franchises such as Australian Idol, The Biggest Loser, and So You Think You Can Dance.[3]
Overseas programming on Ten HD included; Psych, Battlestar Galactica, Cane, Conviction, Eureka, Friday Night Lights, Journeyman, One Tree Hill, Over There, Smallville, The 4400, The Bold and the Beautiful, The Shield and Veronica Mars. In addition to this, high-definition documentaries from the National Geographic Channel and Granada Television screened on weekdays from 3 pm to 5 pm.
To compete directly with Seven News and National Nine News, Ten HD broadcast local editions of Ten News, timeshifted by half an hour, on weekdays at 5.30 pm, allowing the second half of the bulletin to compete with the offerings from the other commercial networks.[10] On weekends, the national bulletin was delayed by half an hour at 5.30 pm and Sports Tonight followed at 6.00 pm.
Ten HD simulcast the Early News and Morning News, 6 am and 11 am respectively. It did not simulcast Late News but instead showed exclusive programming from 10.30 pm, with a drama series and then a late movie, followed by repeats of Video Hits Up-Late specials.
Ten Sport broadcasted live or near live exclusive and simulcast sporting events on Ten HD. These included Nascar Sprint Cup Series, Nascar Nationwide Series, Formula One, MotoGP, the NFL, the Indian Premier League,[14] the World Golf Championships, the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, the Mission Hills World Cup and the New Zealand PGA Championship.[15]
In addition to this, the Australian Football League was simulcast on the channel, with all of Ten's games filmed in high definition.[16]
Formula One Grand Prix and MotoGP races were televised on Ten HD, usually on tape delay.
Most of Ten HD's sports content was kept after it was relaunched as ONE HD.
Ten HD was available exclusively in 1080i high definition from the network's five metropolitan owned-and-operated stations, TEN Sydney, ATV Melbourne, TVQ Brisbane, ADS Adelaide, and NEW Perth.[3] The breakaway programming was never available outside of the metropolitan areas, although Southern Cross Ten had planned to rebroadcast the service from mid-2009: it instead launched the ONE HD service.[17]
Foxtel added the channel to its line up for cable customers in June 2008, when the subscription television provider launched its Foxtel HD+ service.[3]
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