TNT9 (Examiner-Northern Television Limited) was a commercial television broadcaster, based in the
Tasmanian city of Launceston, that
serviced Launceston and other northern Tasmanian towns independently from 1962 to 1982. The primary
transmitter, its repeaters and the Launceston studios continued to be controlled (from 1982 to
1988) by ENT (as part of a Tasmanian network that came to be known on-air as
TasTV from 1985) - these
were then sold to
Southern Cross
(then Tricom Corporation) in 1988 - the studios, to this day, remain as Southern Cross' base for
its Tasmanian operations. TNT9 began broadcasting on May 26, 1962 at 6:00pm, with the opening
address made (at 7:00pm) by the Governor of Tasmania, Thomas Corbett (the 2nd Baron Rowallan). This article is divided into the following sections:
HistoryIt used versions of the Nine Network and GTV9's logos (not surprising since it was on Channel 9).
It was owned by Edmund Rouse, who later merged Northern TV (TNT9's parent company) with the
Examiner newspaper, forming ENT Limited (Examiner-Northern TV). Late in 1981, ENT
made a bid for the acquisition of all shares in Tasmanian Television Limited (TTL) from all of
TTL's shareholders, thereby taking
over the company - the initial bid made by ENT was $4.32 a share. This offer, however, did not
prove generous enough for TTL's shareholders so the chairman of ENT, Edmund Rouse, penned an
open letter announcing the increase in the purchase offer (up to $4.65 a share) and further
arguing that the acquisition of TTL would create a more viable Tasmanian media company that would
remain fully Tasmanian and would better serve Tasmanians. Eric McRae (chairman of TTL) countered
with another open letter, pleading with his shareholders, saying that it was not in the public
interest if the company was sold, and remaining adamant in the belief that TTL would remain
independent. One by one, however, the shareholders capitulated and sold their shares in TTL to ENT. As a
result, TVT6, as an independent station, ceased to exist, with its delisting on the stock market
on March 17, 1982. Programming
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Last updated on 24 May 2006 at 13:51:07 UTC |
