The Aotearoa Television Network (ATN) was the first, yet unsuccessful television station operating in the

Māori language Māori (; endonym: 'the Māori language', commonly shortened to ) is an Eastern Polynesian languages, Eastern Polynesian language and the language of the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. The southernmost membe ...

. What would eventually become ATN started out in early 1996, when

Te Māngai Pāho Te Māngai Pāho (the Māori Broadcast Funding Agency) is the New Zealand Crown entity responsible for the promotion of the Māori language and Māori culture by providing funding for Māori-language programming on radio and television. In 19 ...

started looking for tenders for a trial service operating on a UHF licence in Auckland. The winner of the TMP contract, led by Puhi Rangiaho, Tawini Rangahau, Morehu McDonald, Robert Pouwhare and Tukuroirangi Morgan, was announced on March 7 and broadcasting commenced on May 1. The pilot service became regular in October, becoming a normal regional station. TMP's budget only allowed a 500-watt transmitter which resulted in weak or no signal in the ATN catchment area. ATN was also the owner of Max TV for a short period in 1996, when Reston Griffiths sold production company Vidcom to the new network. Insufficient funding and related uncertainties resulted in the closure of this pilot service in early 1997. One of the main examples was Tuku Morgan spending NZ$89 of the station's budget on a pair of underwear.

References

Māori language Māori organisations Indigenous television Television channels and stations established in 1996 Television channels and stations disestablished in 1997 Māori mass media Defunct television channels in New Zealand {{NewZealand-tv-station-stub

See also

References