New Zealand media company
Warner Bros. Discovery New Zealand
is a subsidiary of
Warner Bros. Discovery
that operates several television channels in New Zealand. It operates five national free-to-air television channels, eight pay-TV channels on
Sky
, and the
Newshub
service.
It was formerly known as
MediaWorks TV
and operated as a subsidiary of
MediaWorks New Zealand
between 2004 and 2020. In 2019, MediaWorks announced that they were selling their television operations. In September 2020,
Discovery, Inc.
purchased MediaWorks TV with the acquisition being finalized on 1 December 2020.
[3]
[4]
The subsidiary was subsequently rebranded as
Discovery New Zealand
.
[5]
History
[
edit
]
Three
was founded as TV3 in 1989 after the
Fourth Labour government
allowed for a private television broadcaster. CanWest obtained TV3 between 1991 and 1997 after the
National government
loosened rules on foreign ownership. Under CanWest control, TV3 relaunched in March 1998 with a new brand and a
3 News
bulletin hosted by
John Campbell
and
Carol Hirschfeld
.
[
citation needed
]
MediaWorks New Zealand (2004?2020)
[
edit
]
MediaWorks
TV was created in 2004, and owned TV3 and
C4
. In 2005,
Hilary Barry
&
Mike McRoberts
became the station's news anchors. TV3 staff also launched youth station TV4 in 1997, and replaced it with C4 on October 3, 2003.
[6]
In 2009 the timeshift channel
TV3 Plus 1
was launched. C4 2 was launched in 2010, then, when TV4 returned as
FOUR
taking over C4's Channel 4 position in early 2011, C4 converted C4 2 into a music show as it was moved to Freeview Channel 9. In 2014, timeshift channel
Four Plus 1
was launched, and
The Edge TV
replaced C4.
[
citation needed
]
In May 2016, MediaWorks and
NBCUniversal Television Distribution
entered into a joint venture and revamped FOUR as the new reality television channel Bravo.
[7]
[8]
In August 2016, Michael Anderson was appointed as CEO of MediaWorks.
[9]
In 2017, TV3 was rebranded as Three. On 15 April 2018, MediaWorks launched
ThreeLife
, a lifestyle channel.
[10]
On 1 July 2019, The Edge TV moved exclusively online, and was replaced on TV by
ThreeLife + 1
.
[11]
On 18 October 2019, it was announced that MediaWorks was intending to sell off their television division including Three, ThreeLife, and Bravo. MediaWorks also intends to sell its Flower Street head office and studios in Auckland's
Eden Terrace
. Several Three television programs and shows have also been canceled. Media commentator Bill Ralston has claimed that hundreds of jobs could be lost if a buyer is not found.
[12]
[13]
[14]
ThreeLife and ThreeLife + 1 went off air on 26 March 2020. ThreeLife was replaced by The Edge TV. ThreeLife + 1 was replaced by a simulcast of
The Breeze
, then
The Breeze TV
on 16 April.
[15]
On 25 May 2020, MediaWorks CEO Michael Anderson announced that the company would be eliminating 130 jobs in its sales, out-of-home, and radio divisions as a result of the economic effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand
.
[16]
[17]
[18]
Discovery, Inc. (2020?2022)
[
edit
]
On 7 September 2020, MediaWorks confirmed that it would be selling its entire television arm including
Three
,
Bravo
,
The Edge TV
,
The Breeze TV
, streaming service ThreeNow, and current affairs service
Newshub
to
Discovery, Inc
.
[3]
[4]
[19]
[14]
The acquisition of MediaWorks was finalised on 1 December 2020, with the subsidiary being rebranded as Discovery NZ Limited.
[5]
On 27 April 2021, Discovery Inc. confirmed that it would be restructuring its business operations in Australia and New Zealand with the goal of incorporating Three, Bravo and Newshub into a single trans-Tasman organisation. Earlier in the month, Discovery announced that this new trans-Tasman organisation would be headed by two general managers, the
Sydney
–based
Rebecca Kent
and
Glen Kyne
in Auckland. Discovery had also separately acquired New Zealand's TopTV operations in 2019.
[20]
On 13 May 2021, Newshub closed its
Dunedin
office as part of a restructuring of Discovery's business operations in Australia and New Zealand. Following the closure of the Dunedin newsroom, the network's South Island operations will consist of its
Christchurch
–based bureau as well as freelancers.
[21]
[22]
On 10 November 2021, it was announced that Choice TV would be rebranded as Gusto in March 2022.
[23]
However, shortly before launch the name Gusto was scrapped and changed to "eden"
[24]
in order to avoid confusion with the former
TVNZ OnDemand
food channel of the same name. The rebranded channel will retain most of Choice's programming, with the major additions of
Newshub Live at 8pm
, an extension of Discovery New Zealand's news brand
Newshub
, and more drama programming.
[25]
[26]
[27]
The channel will host British drama, game shows, and "intelligent" movies including
Changing Rooms
,
Big Family Farm
,
Finding Alice
, and a new local show called
Great Southern Truckers
.
A second channel called
Rush
will host "high energy shows" within the survival and adventure genres including
Wheeler Dealers
,
Man vs. Wild
,
Street Outlaws
and
Treehouse Masters
. Discovery also confirmed that its working on several local productions including
MasterChef New Zealand
,
The Masked Singer NZ
,
Dancing with the Stars
,
Match Fit
,
Patrick Gower: On series
,
David Lomas Investigates
, and
7 Days
.
[26]
[27]
In addition, Discovery also announced plans to launch a new Newshub Live at 8pm bulletin and AM Early show in 2022.
[28]
Warner Bros. Discovery (2022–present)
[
edit
]
On 8 April 2022, Discovery, Inc. acquired
WarnerMedia
from
AT&T
, with the two companies being merged into a new entity called
Warner Bros. Discovery
.
[29]
As a result, Discovery New Zealand and its assets
Newshub
and channel Three became part of the new media company.
[30]
As a result, Discovery New Zealand was rebranded as Warner Bros. Discovery New Zealand. On 20 April 2022,
World Rugby
and
Spark Sport
announced that Warner Bros. Discovery NZ's channel Three would be the free-to-air broadcaster for the delayed
Rugby World Cup 2021
, held in New Zealand from 8 October to 12 November 2022.
[31]
[32]
On 28 February 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery announced a proposal to shutter the news division of Three,
Newshub
, permanently beginning 1 July.
[33]
300 staff are expected to lose their jobs. The head of Warner Bros. Discovery Asia Pacific cited a significant decline in TV ad revenues as the key motivator for the decision.
[34]
Initial reactions of shock have been compounded by concerns over the effects this could have on
media concentration
in New Zealand, leaving the country with only two television news broadcasters, the state-owned
1 News
and
Whakaata M?ori
.
[35]
On 10 April 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed that Newshub would air its final bulletin on 5 July 2024, resulting in about 300 job losses. The company rejected a staff proposal for a pared down news bulletin service.
[36]
[37]
On 16 April 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery and newspaper company
Stuff
jointly confirmed that Stuff would produce 6pm news bulletins for
Three
, commencing 6 July.
[38]
Stuff publisher
Sinead Boucher
also confirmed that Stuff would hire several former Newshub staff (less than 40-50) to produce the 6pm bulletins.
[39]
Ownership and brands
[
edit
]
Services
[
edit
]
Television
[
edit
]
Three, Bravo, Eden and Rush are operated out of
Auckland
. Television advertising was sold by the MediaWorks offices in
Auckland
,
Wellington
,
Christchurch
,
Melbourne
,
Sydney
and
Hamilton
. There were
Newshub
bureaus in the Three Headquarters in
Auckland
and MediaWorks offices in
Wellington
,
Christchurch
and
Dunedin
, with news staff working out of other offices as needed.
[
citation needed
]
Three provided mature content,
Newshub
bulletins, current affairs and sport. The Edge TV launched in 2014 and broadcasts music videos and entertainment news.
[
citation needed
]
All are available via all digital platforms such as terrestrial, satellite and cable. TV3 and Four were the only ones previously available via analogue terrestrial on the VHF band before the 2013 switch-off. The Edge TV was added in 2018. Bravo and Bravo Plus 1 replaced Four and Four Plus 1 in 2016.
[40]
ThreeLife was added in 2018, and ThreeLife + 1 replaced The Edge TV on terrestrial in 2019. On 25 March 2020, ThreeLife went off air, and was replaced by The Edge TV, and its timeshift channel by Breeze TV.
[15]
In 2022, The Edge TV and Breeze TV went off air to make way for the new Rush, Eden and Eden+1 (timeshift) channels.
[41]
Free-to-air television brands
[
edit
]
Name
|
Freeview Channel
|
Sky Channel
|
Launched
|
Notes
|
Three
|
3
(13 - Plus1)
|
3
(503 - Plus1)
|
1989
|
|
Bravo
|
4
(9 - Plus 1)
|
12
(512 - Plus 1)
|
2016
|
Co-owned with
NBCUniversal
.
|
Eden
|
8
(18 - Plus 1)
|
13
(505 - Plus 1)
|
2012
|
Acquired by Discovery, Inc. in 2019.
Known as Choice TV until 2022.
|
Rush
|
14
|
24
|
2022
|
|
HGTV
|
19
|
21
|
2016
|
Acquired by Discovery, Inc. in 2019.
|
Former free-to-air television brands
[
edit
]
Name
|
Launched
|
Closed
|
Notes
|
Four
|
1997
|
2016
|
Formerly TV4. Replaced by C4 in October 2003. Relaunched as Four in February 2011.
|
C4
|
2003
|
2014
|
Replaced by The Edge TV. The first and final ever music video to air on C4 was
The D4
-
Exit To The City
.
|
C42
|
2010
|
2011
|
Replaced by Four and converted to a music show for C4.
|
The Edge TV
|
2014
|
2022
|
Extension of the MediaWorks-owned radio brand, The Edge.
|
ThreeLife
|
2018
|
2020
|
ThreeLife and ThreeLife + 1 replaced by The Edge TV and Breeze TV respectively.
|
Breeze TV
|
2020
|
2022
|
Extension of MediaWorks-owned radio brand, The Breeze.
|
Current pay television brands
[
edit
]
Name
|
Sky Channel
|
Launched
|
Notes
|
TLC
|
16
|
2015
|
|
Living
|
17
|
2001
|
Acquired by Discovery, Inc. in 2014.
|
ID
|
18
|
2021
|
|
Discovery
|
70
|
1994
|
|
Discovery Turbo
|
75
|
2015
|
|
Animal Planet
|
76
|
2003
|
|
CNN
|
87
|
1990
|
Acquired from the merger of Discovery, Inc and WarnerMedia in 2022.
|
Cartoon Network
|
102
|
1997
|
Acquired from the merger of Discovery, Inc and WarnerMedia in 2022.
|
Former pay television brands
[
edit
]
Name
|
Launched
|
Closed
|
Notes
|
Food Network
|
2005
|
2021
|
Acquired by Discovery, Inc. in 2014.
|
Newshub
[
edit
]
Newshub is a New Zealand news service that airs on TV channel Three and has articles on their website and app. The Newshub brand replaced 3 News service on the TV3 network and the
Radio Live
news service heard on MediaWorks Radio stations on 1 February 2016.
[42]
[43]
Websites
[
edit
]
Website Name
|
Primary purpose
|
discoverycorporate.co.nz
|
Corporate website for various TV channels
|
Threenow.co.nz
|
On-demand service for
Three
,
Bravo
,
Eden
,
Rush
and
HGTV
|
newshub.co.nz
|
Global and New Zealand news content
|
Defunct websites
[
edit
]
Website Name
|
Primary purpose
|
choicetv.co.nz
|
On-demand service for
Choice TV
|
hgtv.co.nz
|
On-demand service for
HGTV
|
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Middleton, Richard (21 April 2022).
"Warner Bros. Discovery names int'l team, as Priya Dogra, James Gibbons & Anil Jhingan take new roles"
. TBI Vision
. Retrieved
29 May
2022
.
- ^
"Our Brands"
. MediaWorks
. Retrieved
12 January
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"MediaWorks TV arm sold to Discovery channel owner"
.
Stuff
. 7 September 2020.
Archived
from the original on 7 September 2020
. Retrieved
7 September
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"MediaWorks confirms sale of TV operations to Discovery Inc"
.
Newshub
. 7 September 2020.
Archived
from the original on 7 September 2020
. Retrieved
7 September
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"Discovery, Inc. completes acquisition of MediaWorks TV"
.
Discovery New Zealand
. 1 December 2020
. Retrieved
1 December
2020
.
- ^
"Mediaworks Corporate"
.
[MediaWorks
.
Archived
from the original on 20 April 2017
. Retrieved
14 May
2021
.
- ^
"MediaWorks partners with NBC to turn channel Four into Bravo"
.
Newshub
. 2 May 2016
. Retrieved
18 October
2019
.
- ^
Black, Eleanor (3 May 2016).
"Mediaworks dumps FOUR for new reality channel Bravo"
.
Stuff
. Retrieved
18 October
2019
.
- ^
Pullar-strecker, Tom (2 August 2016).
"MediaWorks names new CEO ? lobby group says he should fill 'gaps left' by TVNZ"
.
Stuff
. Retrieved
18 October
2019
.
- ^
"MediaWorks announces new channel ThreeLife"
.
Newshub
. 15 February 2015
. Retrieved
15 February
2018
.
- ^
"Hot Off the Press Release: Edge TV to Go HD"
.
ScreenScribe
. 14 June 2019
. Retrieved
14 June
2019
.
- ^
"Live: Mediaworks' TV business has been put up for sale"
.
Stuff.co.nz
. 18 October 2019
. Retrieved
18 October
2019
.
- ^
"MediaWorks staff reeling at plan to sell off TV network, Auckland headquarters"
.
New Zealand Herald
. 18 October 2019
. Retrieved
18 October
2019
.
- ^
a
b
Greive, Duncan (18 October 2019).
"MediaWorks quits television: Three will be sold ? or closed"
.
The Spinoff
. Retrieved
18 October
2019
.
- ^
a
b
"ThreeLife"
.
ThreeNow
. 10 February 2020
. Retrieved
10 February
2020
.
- ^
"MediaWorks announces 130 job losses"
.
Radio New Zealand
. 25 May 2020. Archived from
the original
on 25 May 2020
. Retrieved
25 May
2020
.
- ^
Edmunds, Susan; Pullar-Strecker, Tom (25 May 2020).
"MediaWorks planning to cut 130 roles in restructure"
.
Stuff
. Archived from
the original
on 25 May 2020
. Retrieved
25 May
2020
.
- ^
Dreive, Duncan (25 May 2020).
"Stuff bought by its CEO, MediaWorks announces mass layoffs in historic day for NZ media"
.
The Spinoff
. Archived from
the original
on 25 May 2020
. Retrieved
25 May
2020
.
- ^
Peacock, Colin (7 September 2020).
"Global media giant set to be NZ's biggest private TV broadcaster"
.
Radio New Zealand
.
Archived
from the original on 7 September 2020
. Retrieved
7 September
2020
.
- ^
Pullar-Strecker, Tom (27 April 2021).
"Discovery restructures operations as it beds down purchase of TV3"
.
Stuff
.
Archived
from the original on 27 April 2021
. Retrieved
14 May
2021
.
- ^
Lewis, John (13 May 2021).
"Newshub to close Dunedin office"
.
Otago Daily Times
.
Archived
from the original on 13 May 2021
. Retrieved
14 May
2021
.
- ^
McConnell, George; McNeilly, Hamish (13 May 2021).
"Newshub to close its Dunedin newsroom"
.
Stuff
.
Archived
from the original on 13 May 2021
. Retrieved
14 May
2021
.
- ^
"What are the new TV channels Eden and Rush launching in New Zealand?"
.
Stuff.co.nz
. 10 March 2022
. Retrieved
10 March
2022
.
- ^
Nealon, Sarah (10 March 2022).
"What are the new TV channels Eden and Rush launching in New Zealand?"
. Stuff.
- ^
"Discovery NZ launching new channels Gusto and Rush, Newshub Live at 8pm and AM Early shows in 2022"
.
Newshub
. 10 November 2021.
Archived
from the original on 10 November 2021
. Retrieved
10 November
2021
.
- ^
a
b
Pullar-Strecker, Tom (10 November 2021).
"Discovery announces two new TV channels and 'record' volume of NZ shows"
.
Stuff
.
Archived
from the original on 10 November 2021
. Retrieved
11 November
2021
.
- ^
a
b
"Discovery NZ makes big play for TV viewers"
.
Radio New Zealand
. 10 November 2021.
Archived
from the original on 10 November 2021
. Retrieved
11 November
2021
.
- ^
"Discovery NZ launching new channels Gusto and Rush, Newshub Live at 8pm and AM Early shows in 2022"
.
Newshub
. 10 November 2021.
Archived
from the original on 10 November 2021
. Retrieved
10 November
2021
.
- ^
Maas, Jennifer (8 April 2022).
"Discovery Closes Acquisition of AT&T's WarnerMedia"
.
Variety
.
Archived
from the original on 3 May 2022
. Retrieved
8 April
2022
.
- ^
"Discovery and Warner Media join forces to form new entertainment company"
.
Newshub
. 18 May 2022.
Archived
from the original on 13 June 2021
. Retrieved
6 May
2022
.
- ^
"World Rugby and Spark Sport confirm Warner Bros. Discovery NZ as free-to-air broadcast partner for Rugby World Cup 2021"
.
World Rugby
. 20 April 2022.
Archived
from the original on 29 April 2022
. Retrieved
6 May
2022
.
- ^
"Spark Sport and World Rugby confirm Warner Bros. Discovery as free-to-air broadcast partner for Rugby World Cup 2021"
.
Rugby Heartland
. 21 April 2022.
Archived
from the original on 20 April 2022
. Retrieved
6 May
2022
.
- ^
"
'Heartbreaking': Samantha Hayes shares reaction to Newshub closure announcement"
.
Newshub
. Retrieved
28 February
2024
.
- ^
Du Plessis-Allan, Heather (29 February 2024).
"
'The best way forward': Warner Bros. Discovery boss on Newshub closure"
.
Newstalk ZB
.
Archived
from the original on 28 February 2024
. Retrieved
29 February
2024
.
- ^
Treadwell, Greg (28 February 2024).
"The end of Newshub: Slippery slope gets steeper for NZ journalism and democracy"
.
Radio New Zealand
.
Archived
from the original on 28 February 2024
. Retrieved
28 February
2024
.
- ^
Currie, Shayne; Harris, Katie (10 April 2024).
"Newshub closure live updates: Staff emotional after meeting - TVNZ's Sunday team"
. Media Insider.
The New Zealand Herald
. Auckland:
NZME
. Retrieved
10 April
2024
.
- ^
Donnell, Hayden (10 April 2024).
"Newshub shutdown confirmed, jobs cut"
.
Radio New Zealand
.
Archived
from the original on 10 April 2024
. Retrieved
11 April
2024
.
- ^
Currie, Shayne (16 April 2024).
"Newshub closure: TV3 news saved - Stuff to provide new-look news bulletin under deal with Warner Bros Discovery"
. Media Insider.
The New Zealand Herald
. Auckland:
NZME
. Retrieved
16 April
2024
.
- ^
Peacock, Colin (16 April 2024).
"Stuff to provide news bulletins to replace Newshub"
.
Radio New Zealand
. Archived from
the original
on 16 April 2024
. Retrieved
16 April
2024
.
- ^
"Bravo to launch on July 3"
.
Newshub
. 22 June 2016
. Retrieved
6 June
2016
.
- ^
"Freeview announces major changes to its channel line-up"
.
Freeview
. Retrieved
20 March
2022
.
- ^
"Multi-platform news service Newshub to launch February 1"
.
Newshub
. 21 January 2016.
Archived
from the original on 23 May 2018
. Retrieved
8 September
2020
.
- ^
Edmunds, Susan (21 January 2016).
"Viewers might not welcome NewsHub, commentator says"
.
Stuff
.
Archived
from the original on 3 July 2018
. Retrieved
23 January
2016
.
External links
[
edit
]
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