TV3 (Czech Republic)

TV3
Launched	25 May 2000 (2000-05-25)
Closed	18 December 2001 (2001-12-18)
Owned by	RTV Galaxie
Picture format	576i (SDTV 4:3)
Country	Czech Republic
Availability (at time of closure)
Terrestrial
Analogue	Prague, Hradec Králové (UHF)
Satellite
Eutelsat 28A	12607 H / 27500 / 3/4 (Prague)
Cable
Analogue	throughout the Czech Republic

TV3 was an analogue terrestrial, cable and digital satellite television channel broadcasting in the Czech Republic.^[1] The station used to broadcast in some regions via analogue terrestrial television to 30% of the population in the Czech Republic,^[2] cable television and also via the Czechlink platform on the Eutelsat 28A satellite. TV3 was also planning to become part of the plans for digital terrestrial to increase its reach to 75% of the Czech Republic.^[3] The station closed in December 2001 after its broadcast license was revoked.

Launch

TV3 launched on May 25, 2000 using the regional frequencies of defunct television station Galaxie. The station launched at 1900 CET with a 60-minute regional news programme followed by the film Seductive Beauty.^[2] Programming on TV3 included regional breaking news programming with reporters on motorbikes alongside other general entertainment programming^[4] and the purchase of the rights to show WWE Friday Night SmackDown in 2001.^[5] The station used the tag "television for the new millennium" for its promotion, with its target audience skewed towards a young male audience.^[6] The opening night of TV3 was hit by technical glitches during the launch night news programming.^[7]

Soon after broadcasting, TV3 was ordered to take down all billboard advertising which related to a black boxer on a boxing ring floor being targerted by two white soldiers holding guns and looking at the boxer, alongside the word "Infozabava" ("Infotainment"). The advertisement was considered racist by the Advertising Board but TV3 defended itself stating the advertisement was not racist.^[8]

Terrestrial broadcast reach

TV3 was initially only available in Prague and Hradec Králové from launch day on analogue terrestrial television. TV3 applied for licenses since the launch of the station to broadcast to more parts of the Czech Republic including initially to Karlovy Vary, Ostrava and České Budějovice.^[2] However the Czech Radio and Television Broadcasting Council in 2001 blocked their requests to expand the TV3 service across the Czech Republic via analogue terrestrial television.^[9]

Commercial station merger discussions

In June 2001, Vladimír Železný, a Czech television tycoon and former owner of TV Nova, held discussions with the three main commercial channels in the Czech Republic, TV Nova, TV Prima and TV3 about the suggestion of a merger. However, such a deal would have been considered illegal by the Czech Government.^[10]

Transfer of licence

In September 2001, the Czech Radio and Television Broadcasting Council refused a request from European Media Ventures and Martin Kindernay to transfer TV3's licence to a Luxembourg-based company, KTV, which EMV wanted to own TV3's licence. The council did allow the move of the licence to RTV Galaxie, completely owned by Kindernay. The decision angered EMV investors who were not consulted on the move of the licence and had lost control of TV3.^[11][12]

In October, TV3 announced that 60% of its staff would be made redundant by January 1 as the channel was only attracting 1% of the Czech audience and losing money as a result. Staff to be made redundant received their notices on December 1.^[13] A request to expand the TV3 service across the whole of the Czech Republic by using 47 UHF frequencies were all refused by the council.^[14]

In November, EMV moved equipment from the Hradec Králové studios to TV3's Prague studios after Kidernay told EMV to suspend broadcasting or face immediate action, alongside a request for a thirty-day break in broadcasting. EMV announced that it still had a right to broadcast and that they would still be broadcasting via cable and satellite, though terrestrial broadcasts went off the air on November 7, 2001.^{[15][16][17][18]} Kindernay lodged a complaint with the council stating that EMV were operating TV3 illegally.^[13]

TV3 went off the air for four days on all platforms on December 2, 2001 under guidance from the Czech Radio and Television Broadcasting Council whilst they decided whether TV3's broadcasts were legal. Text was displayed on screen during the time off air stating that the closedown was due to a decision made on November 20, 2001 by the council and that the station would definitely close by December 6.^[13] The council allowed Kindernay to resume broadcasting as the legal licence holder for TV3 under the control of RTV Galaxie using only material from TV3 on December 6.^[19] The station did resume broadcasting as TV3 Hradec Králové and TV3 Prague.^[20]

Closedown

On December 18, 2001, TV3's licence was revoked. The decision to revoke the licence was made because TV3 had been showing non-TV3 programming.^[21]

In January 2002, TV3 was given a temporary licence by the council for 60 days.^[22] At the same time approval was given for defunct TV3 to be renamed to Galaxie Praha and Galaxie Hradec Králové. The two Galaxie stations remained broadcasting and was sold a year later to GES Holding, the owner of TV Prima who changed the name of the two stations to TV Praha and TV Hradec Králové.^[11]

TV3 remained broadcasting on the Eutelsat 28A satellite until August 2002, when the station was replaced with a channel using the identification of Stanice O (Óčko).^[23][24]

In 2005, the stations investor, EMV issued an arbitration to seek €33.4 million in damages from the Czech Radio and Television Broadcasting Council, because of the changes made back in 2001 to TV3's licence.^[11][25] The arbitration case, being held in London^[26][27] eventually ruled in July 2009 in favour of the Czech Republic in a ruling that cost EMV €77 million.^[28]

References

External links

• TV3 website (Wayback Archive)