Six TV
Encyclopedia
Six TV was the sixth free to air terrestrial
television channel
in the UK
, broadcast in Oxford
, Southampton
, Reading
and Portsmouth
. It operated under a set of Restricted Service Licence
s and broadcast on UHF
channel 47 (vision carrier = 679.25 MHz) in Oxford and UHF
channel 29 (vision carrier = 535.25 MHz) in Southampton. It was owned by the Milestone Group
who closed all operations by April 2009.
, who both had worked at the award-winning Oxford-based video production company Undercurrents
. They applied for a local television license and were successful. They raised the capital to launch the station, set up the broadcast studio in an old nuclear bunker on Woodstock Road, and hired over 60 staff. From the very beginning the channel focused on local stories, particularly sports, business, arts and politics.
The station was launched on 6 June 1999. Within a few months the programming had built a considerable following: over 25% of the potential audience of 500,000 watched each week, a higher audience rating than the local newspaper which had been around for over a hundred years.
Advertising for the station was produced by Tom, Dick and Debbie Productions, founded by Debora Harding, Thomas Harding and Richard Lewis.
The station became known as a training ground for new broadcast journalists. Over one hundred young people learnt the business at the Oxford Channel, and many of them are active in the industry today. The training programme became formalized in 2000 through the Local Television Training company that attracted government money to train unemployed young people from Oxford and taught them the skills of broadcast television. This scheme had a high success rate of placing trainees within the television industry.
In 2001, the board of Oxford Channel voted to raise additional funds for the station. This led to the sale of the business to Aroma, a subsidiary of the Milestone Group. During this transition, most of the staff were laid off by the new owners, including the founders Debora and Thomas Harding, though some of the staff remained in what became known as Six TV.
The Milestone Group company gained further licences to broadcast in Southampton, Fawley, Reading and Portsmouth in 2003 after the re-advertising of the four-year contracts and successfully renewed its contract to broadcast to Oxford. It re-branded as Six TV for the launch of these services.
The channel broadcast a 24-hour service, seven days a week and featured numerous local programmes including the highly popular motoring show 'V6' presented by Kathryn Swain.
Six TV's licences to broadcast in Reading and Portsmouth were activated. Despite the channel not launching in these areas, the words "Reading" and "Portsmouth" could be seen under the heading on the company's website.
confirmed that all RSL licences would be extended until the 2012 digital switchover but gave no undertaking that a digital licence would be granted. Milestone concluded that the lack of digital licences rendered the stations non-viable and all channels had ceased broadcasting by April 2009, including the original Oxford channel.
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
television channel
Television channel
A television channel is a physical or virtual channel over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the broadcast or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with carrier frequencies of 55.25 MHz for NTSC analog video and...
in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, broadcast in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
and Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
. It operated under a set of Restricted Service Licence
Restricted Service Licence
A UK Restricted Service Licence , is typically granted to radio stations and television stations broadcasting within the UK to serve a local community or a special event...
s and broadcast on UHF
Ultra high frequency
Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres...
channel 47 (vision carrier = 679.25 MHz) in Oxford and UHF
Ultra high frequency
Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres...
channel 29 (vision carrier = 535.25 MHz) in Southampton. It was owned by the Milestone Group
Milestone Group
The Milestone Group is a British Technology company. Originally a cross media proprietor who had holdings in radio, publishing and television, it now focuses on digital solutions and creates websites and mobile applications...
who closed all operations by April 2009.
Launch and expansion
Oxford Broadcasting was founded in 1998 by Debora and Thomas HardingThomas Harding (publisher)
Thomas Harding is a British journalist, videographer and publisher who is known for running media organizations that cover stories that other news outlets will not cover....
, who both had worked at the award-winning Oxford-based video production company Undercurrents
Undercurrents (news)
Undercurrents is an alternative video news network which began with the UK distribution of videotapes shot by volunteers. It has since expanded to include a web presence, media training for volunteers, and a film festival, BeyondTV.-History:...
. They applied for a local television license and were successful. They raised the capital to launch the station, set up the broadcast studio in an old nuclear bunker on Woodstock Road, and hired over 60 staff. From the very beginning the channel focused on local stories, particularly sports, business, arts and politics.
The station was launched on 6 June 1999. Within a few months the programming had built a considerable following: over 25% of the potential audience of 500,000 watched each week, a higher audience rating than the local newspaper which had been around for over a hundred years.
Advertising for the station was produced by Tom, Dick and Debbie Productions, founded by Debora Harding, Thomas Harding and Richard Lewis.
The station became known as a training ground for new broadcast journalists. Over one hundred young people learnt the business at the Oxford Channel, and many of them are active in the industry today. The training programme became formalized in 2000 through the Local Television Training company that attracted government money to train unemployed young people from Oxford and taught them the skills of broadcast television. This scheme had a high success rate of placing trainees within the television industry.
In 2001, the board of Oxford Channel voted to raise additional funds for the station. This led to the sale of the business to Aroma, a subsidiary of the Milestone Group. During this transition, most of the staff were laid off by the new owners, including the founders Debora and Thomas Harding, though some of the staff remained in what became known as Six TV.
The Milestone Group company gained further licences to broadcast in Southampton, Fawley, Reading and Portsmouth in 2003 after the re-advertising of the four-year contracts and successfully renewed its contract to broadcast to Oxford. It re-branded as Six TV for the launch of these services.
The channel broadcast a 24-hour service, seven days a week and featured numerous local programmes including the highly popular motoring show 'V6' presented by Kathryn Swain.
Six TV's licences to broadcast in Reading and Portsmouth were activated. Despite the channel not launching in these areas, the words "Reading" and "Portsmouth" could be seen under the heading on the company's website.
Future
The channel's contract to broadcast was set to expire on 30 June 2007; however OfcomOfcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
confirmed that all RSL licences would be extended until the 2012 digital switchover but gave no undertaking that a digital licence would be granted. Milestone concluded that the lack of digital licences rendered the stations non-viable and all channels had ceased broadcasting by April 2009, including the original Oxford channel.