Policies

Hunter Television aims to bring a local television service to the Hunter Region, a service which is enjoyed by other regions.

Localism
Local talent, producers, artists, musicians and businesses often voice their concerns about the lack of broadcasters who will showcase their work. Hunter Television is launching with a strong passion for local content. Your new station will give locals the opportunities not available through traditional media. Hunter Television’s limited licence means only local content or content produced by Hunter region locals will be broadcast on the channel.

An important tool for local organisations
Hunter Television will accept direction from local council, government, tourism bodies and business groups to ensure we meet their objectives of promoting the region through our channel.

Online versus television
Hunter Television will blur the lines between television and the internet by making content available across all platforms in both linear and on-demand format.

Monthly Meetings
Hunter Television will invite councils, government, tourism bodies, volunteers, community groups, businesses and individuals to our monthly meeting to discuss any matters relating to Hunter Television.

Financial Stability
In the early stages of our station launch, Hunter Television will not take out loans or lease equipment; Hunter Television wishes to serve the Hunter Region for many years to come and launching debt-free will ensure we stay on air. This means our signal may not reach the entire Hunter region immediately; however, we plan to expand coverage in coming months as we grow the station.

Access For all
Whether you’re someone who uses their mobile phone to make movies or you are a large production company, we encourage everyone to contribute to the channel. If you need help to create your video, let us know and we will be happy to provide training.

Balance
Any current affairs programs which air on the station must be balanced and convey the story from both sides of any point of view.

Technical
Our transmission and filtering equipment is brand-new and supplied and supported by a leading Australian broadcast firm who contracts to major television and radio broadcasters. Its key employees have 40 years’ experience in the television industry. We are in the process of personally contacting all local transmission managers to discuss any technical concerns or questions they may have with regard to our transmission

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. When will you be on air?
A. We are still waiting for the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to issue our licence. They decided not to approve our initial application however will now consider a new application submitted in April 2014. The issue of our licence has been delayed by possible future Government policies.

Q. Will you air my documentary, short film or show?
A. We aim to air ALL programs submitted to us however it must have a connection to the Hunter region (Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Port Stephens, Hunter Valley, Upper Hunter). It must also meet all legal and policy requirements.

Q. I have never made a TV show before, is it easy? What do I need?
A. You need a HD camera, handheld or lapel microphone and computer to edit the show, we can provide advice and training on how to create your program.

Q. How is this station funded?
A. The station is funded privately by Novocastrians who grew up in the region, are living in the region and are passionate about television and passionate about the local community.

Q. What qualifications do the owners have to run a television station?
A. The owners have worked in community television in capital cities and have a background in marketing and project managing large radio communications and IP Telecommunications projects. Programs will be provided by external production companies, community groups and individuals.

Q. Where can the channel be picked up?
A. Initially, inner city Newcastle, east of New Lambton Heights, however we plan to expand the coverage soon after we launch. You also watch us online anywhere in the world.

Q, Why can’t you cover the whole region when you launch?
A. We have chosen to be financially responsible by initially installing a low-powered transmitter. We will use our own revenue to expand our coverage in the coming months.

Q. Is this station being launched “On the cheap”.
A. No, Hunter Television will be purchasing high quality brand-new all-in-one digital television transmitters which will be connected to brand new filtering, coax and antenna systems. Our playout facility is HD-SDI based with redundant playout servers. We have also a backup playout server on Amazon EC2 which can feed an MPEG-2 stream to our transmitter for disaster recovery.

Q. I want to make a TV show, will you produce it for me?
A. Hunter Television will not create programs for anyone however we have had a large number of talented crew who have emailed their details to us and are interested in producing programs for Hunter Television, we will be holding an information night monthly and you will be able to meet up with crew who are interested in making TV shows for our station. We can even teach you how to create your own show using a computer and camera.

Q. Will there be advertising on the channel?
A. Yes, advertising funds will be used to run the station and expand the number of transmission sites to increase coverage within our region.

Q. How much time do you allocate to amateur productions?
A. Our station is limited to Hunter content only, we anticipate there will be enough time to air all programs submitted to us. Most programs (except for sports) will be capped at 30 minutes. We even believe programs will be repeated a second time within the 7-day week.

Q. If I miss a program, can I watch it online?
A. We plan to make all programs available for viewing on our website. You can also watch the live stream and “rewind” to see the last 24-hours of programming.