By Eugene Boisvert
Channel 7 programming has returned to free-to-air television in parts of South Australia and New South Wales after the media regulator stepped into a dispute between Seven and WIN TV that led to a multi-day shutdown.
Politicians in both states claimed credit for the return of programs including Seven News, The Chase and AFL matches returning to televisions yesterday.
On Tuesday, Seven Network channels were replaced with red screens in the Riverland, South Australia’s South East and around Griffith in NSW, when Seven West Media and WIN TV failed to agree on how much Seven would pay WIN to broadcast its programming.
After two weeks of blaming each other for the impasse, Seven and WIN issued a joint statement last night saying they had struck a deal.
“Both Seven and WIN acknowledge the significant impact of free-to-air television in regional communities and the importance of providing news, sport, entertainment and a voice to regional Australians,” the statement said.
“We thank the people of the Riverland, Mount Gambier and Griffith communities for their patience while we worked through this matter.”
On Wednesday, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) said it was “seeking further information to understand any regulatory implications” around the dispute after a request from federal Communications Minister Anika Wells to look into the matter.
Independent NSW state MP for Murray Helen Dalton said she was behind the resolution.
“I managed to broker a deal between WIN TV and Channel 7, returning programming to air last night,” she told ABC Riverina this morning.
“I met with the executives from WIN TV and Seven West Media to help resolve the dispute.”
Federal Member for Barker Tony Pasin said pressure from him through an online petition, along with the government and sporting bodies such as the AFL and Cricket Australia, had helped get Seven back on the airwaves.
“It was an attempt principally by WIN to improve the terms of their agreement with Channel 7, which I can tell you is a generous arrangement from WIN’s perspective, and I think the pressure and the risk of losing the licence meant that this just couldn’t continue.”
Mr Pasin said the agreement was for another three years with an option to extend.
“In my view, there ought to be even stronger penalties to encourage the parties to come to terms,” he said.
Happy news for fans
During the three days Channel 7 was off air, the network directed viewers to instead watch its content through the 7plus app, which is free to access but requires the internet.
Channel 7 came back on air just before the first AFL match of the weekend.
Mount Gambier-based Carlton fan Paul Halligan said he was able to watch Channel 7 online but it was lower quality and more laggy than regular TV.
However, he said his in-laws had decided to not watch Seven at all.
“For them it would have been a bit of an effort and they don’t watch it enough, so they decided not to do it, so they’ll be very happy [there is a deal],” he said.
An ABC South East SA listener said a friend had bought a new smart TV on Thursday before Channel 7 returned.
“An elderly friend went out yesterday and bought a smart TV not understanding that you needed the internet to stream programs — expenses he couldn’t really afford,” the listener said.