Wikipedia:WikiProject Australia/Seven Network/draft

The Seven Network is an Australian television network. Their flagship television channel, Seven, is broadcast across Australia. The Seven Network is owned by Seven Media Group, a joint operation between Seven Network Limited and US private equity firm KKR.

The network's studio headquarters are in a converted warehouse at Jones Bay Wharf in Pyrmont, Sydney. Its news headquarters is in Martin Place, Sydney and its major production facility is at Epping in Sydney's northern suburbs. In 2009, Seven will move their production facilities from Epping to a purpose built site at the Australian Technology Park in Redfern. The broadcast signal for the network arises from the digital broadcast centre in the Melbourne Docklands.

History
The network originated as an alliance of stations owned and operated by Fairfax (in Sydney) and The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd (in Melbourne).

The Melbourne station was sold to Fairfax following Rupert Murdoch's takeover of H&WT; Fairfax in turn relinquished ownership of the Sydney and Melbourne flagships through the disastrous privatisation by Warwick Fairfax Jr.

The buyer was the Qintex group, controlled by colourful entrepreneur Christopher Skase, a former Australian Financial Review journalist who had leveraged ownership of a small mining company to acquire specialist retail assets (e.g. the upmarket jeweller Hardy Bros) and then move into property development, notably the three Mirage resorts in Queensland and Hawaii.

Qintex had a station in Brisbane, which was sold in order to acquire the Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane stations. After that, it purchased the stations in Adelaide & Perth.

Qintex collapsed ingloriously after an unsuccessful takeover of MGM/UA, the Hollywood studio that has been recurrently bought and sold by Kirk Kerkorian.

The network was convicted for broadcasting an inflammatory story on its Today Tonight and Sunrise programs which breached the law by identifying a minor engaged in legal proceedings. It was placed on a two-year good behaviour bond and ordered to donate $50,000 to charities for homeless people. Seven indicated it would appeal the conviction.

On November 20, 2006, Seven Network Limited announced that its media assets would be placed in a new entity, Seven Media Group, of 50% will be acquired by KKR for AU$4 billion. The new entity will hold its television (Seven Network) and print (Pacific Magazines) assets, as well as Seven's 50% share of Yahoo!7. Seven Network Limited will retain the other 50%, as well as various real estate and other interests.

Programming
In 2005 Seven has had a ratings resurgence after a disastrous 2004 with assistance from many American programs. For the 2007 season, Seven renewed many of the same shows from 2006, but also brought in some new ones. The bulk of programming on Seven consists of American television shows that originally air on various US broadcasters, although Seven maintains the highest level of Australian programming of any free-to-air television channel.

Seven's current Australian programming lineup consists of television shows including; All Saints, Better Homes and Gardens, Home and Away, Border Security: Australia's Front Line, Dancing with the Stars, Deal or No Deal, Medical Emergency, The Great Outdoors, True Stories, The Real Seachange, and You've Got The Job. Early in 2007, Seven will debut Australia's Got Talent, an Australian adaptation of US program America's Got Talent. It will be hosted by Grant Denyer and will feature Danni Minogue as well as two other unnamed judges.

Seven has programming output deals with a number of American production studios, including NBC Studios, Disney (including Touchstone Television) and 20th Century Fox (concluding mid-2007). American programming on Seven includes; 24, The Amazing Race, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, Lost, Prison Break and My Name Is Earl. New programs in Seven's 2007 lineup include; 30 Rock, Brothers & Sisters, Heroes, Shark, Six Degrees, Ugly Betty and What About Brian.

Sport
Seven is a major player in Australian sports broadcasting. However, In 2001 the channel's parent network ended its famous 40-year run as AFL football broadcaster when the Nine Network and Network Ten, along with pay TV provider Foxtel, jointly won the television rights. On January 5, 2006 the Australian Football League accepted a bid from Seven and Ten to broadcast AFL games from 2007 - 2011 at a cost of AU$780 million.

Seven's most popular recurring sporting events include the AFL Premiership Season, the Australian Open Golf, the Australian Open Tennis, Bledisloe Cup Rugby, Melbourne Cup Carnival, Mt Buller World Aerials, the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, the Tri-Nations Rugby, and the V8 Supercars.

News
Seven's news service is called Seven News. After trailing for many years, to Channel Nine's news service, Seven rebounded in 2005, and claimed to be number 1 in news and current affairs. The Seven Network produces several news bulletins and programs including; Sunrise, Weekend Sunrise, Seven Morning News, Seven's 4.30pm News, Seven News, and Seven's Late News Updates.

Availability
The Seven Network operates a single television channel, branded as "Seven", which is simulcast in analogue, standard definition, and high definition. Channel Seven is broadcast in metropolitan areas and regional Queensland by the Seven Network, and is carried into other areas of regional Australia by affiliate networks. Seven also provides a Video Program Guide in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth.

Owned and operated
The following stations are owned and operated by the Seven Network:
 * ATN-7 Sydney
 * BTQ-7 Brisbane
 * HSV-7 Melbourne
 * SAS-7 Adelaide
 * TVW-7 Perth

The Seven Network also owns Seven Queensland, which covers the Regional Queensland market. This market covers the east coast of the state, except for South East Queensland.

Affiliates
Seven Network programming is also carried by the following affiliate networks:


 * Southern Cross Broadcasting
 * Seven Central - Remote central and eastern Australia
 * Southern Cross GTS/BKN - Spencer Gulf and Broken Hill (non-exclusive)
 * Southern Cross - Darwin
 * Southern Cross - Tasmania (non-exclusive)


 * Prime Television
 * GWN - Western Australia
 * Prime - Northern New South Wales
 * Prime - Southern New South Wales
 * Prime - Victoria


 * WIN Television
 * Prime - Griffith

Defunct channels
The Seven Network previously operated pay TV channel "C7 Sport". The service was carried on the Austar and Optus Vision pay-TV networks between 1995 and 2002, when it was removed in controversial circumstances. The closure of C7 is currently the subject of a law suit.