Freeview is New Zealand's free-to-air television platform. It is operated by a joint venture between the country's major free-to-air broadcasters – government-owned Television New Zealand and Radio New Zealand, government-subsidised Whakaata Māori, and the American-owned Warner Bros. Discovery (operators of Three, Bravo, Eden and Rush).
It consists of a HD-capable digital terrestrial television service to around 86% of the population in the major urban and provincial centres of New Zealand, and a standard-definition satellite television service, covering the whole of mainland New Zealand and the major offshore islands. Freeview uses the DVB-S and DVB-T standards on government-provided spectrum.
Additionally, an IPTV service is provided via the Freeview Streaming TV app, available on a range of smart TVs and Android TV devices.
Freeview was launched in May 2007, preparing for analogue switch-off, which began on 30 September 2012 and was completed on 1 December 2013. In 2014, it was estimated that Freeview made up approximately 61.7% of the television share in New Zealand.
Freeview-certified set-top boxes and IDTVs, as well as PVRs, are available at most major retailers. Uncertified equipment can also be used to receive the service, which may have advantages (cheaper, extra features, international channels) and disadvantages (no/limited EPG, no auto-retuning) over certified equipment.
History
On 15 June 2006, New Zealand's Minister of Broadcasting, Steve Maharey announced that Freeview's digital television would broadcast via satellite (DVB-S) from mid-2007 and via terrestrial transmissions (DVB-T) from mid-2008. Freeview's marketing campaign began on 23 April 2007 through a website and through four television advertisements shown on Freeview's shareholders' TV channels, using the slogan "Make bad reception a thing of the past", and showing people using proverbial substitutes for rabbit ears for receiving TV reception. Since 2012, Māori comedian Pio Terei has been the advertising face of Freeview.
It was announced the satellite service (up-linked from the Avalon studios in Lower Hutt), would have up to 18 channels available, with six each assigned to TVNZ and Mediaworks frequencies, and the balance to other networks.
Freeview's satellite service began on 2 May 2007 with five television channels: TV One, TV2, TV3, C4, and Māori Television. Freeview's first digital-only channel, TVNZ Sport Extra temporary channel from TVNZ, began on 18 May 2007, providing coverage of the V8 Supercar racing. The channel has since ceased broadcasting.
The Freeview terrestrial service, originally named "Freeview|HD", officially launched on 14 April 2008. The service initially operated only from Kordia sites for areas surrounding Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Napier-Hastings, Palmerston North, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. JDA sites were upgraded later with DVB-T QAM modulating multiplexers for non-metro areas.
An IPTV streaming app, Freeview Streaming TV was launched in 2019 by Dish TV. This app was originally locked to devices sold by Dish TV only. From 12 December 2022, the app was made available for many smart TVs running the Android TV operating system, as well as some LG, Samsung and Panasonic TV's running a proprietary operating system.
Services
Virtual channels
The Freeview ordering groups broadcasters by how much they pay for government owned Kordia transmission services.
Higher viewership nationwide
original nationwide (that were analogue simulcast): TVNZ 1 (4 regions, selected HD, timeshifted, government-owned) TVNZ 2 (selected HD, timeshifted, government-owned) Three (selected HD, timeshifted) Bravo (timeshifted and Sky transponder on satellite) Whakaata Māori (government subsidised, selected HD) Sky Open (selected HD, timeshifted and Sky transponder on satellite)
Digital only: TVNZ Duke (selected HD, timeshifted) Eden (selected HD, timeshifted) Te Reo (government subsidised) Rush (selected HD) Al Jazeera HGTV
Lower viewership nationwide
JDA local terrestrial site only: Shine TV (satellite and Nelson Takaka/Observatory Hill sites) All Kordia and JDA national sites: Firstlight TV (terrestrial only) CH200 (terrestrial only)
Kordia metro terrestrial sites: Parliament TV (with satellite coverage and government subsidised) TV28 Channel 33
Locally inserted terrestrial only
Kordia local terrestrial site only: Apna Television (Auckland) Channel 39 (Dunedin)
JDA local terrestrial site only: Television Hawke's Bay (Hawke's Bay) Wairarapa TV (Wairarapa)