• Local content programming on New Zealand television
• Māori language speakers
• Language retention

Local content programming on New Zealand television

Relevance

Television is the dominant cultural medium for most New Zealanders. The 1998/1999 Time Use Survey indicated that New Zealanders spend almost two hours a day watching television or videos.⁷³ Ninety-eight percent of New Zealand households have at least one television set.⁷⁴ For many people, television is a major source of news, information and entertainment and strongly influences their sense of local and national identity. A local content measure reflects the extent to which we see our culture reflected through this medium.

Current level and trends

In 2006, local content on six national free-to-air television channels made up 43 percent of the prime-time schedule – higher than at any time over the period from 1988 to 2006. The proportion of local content on the three main free-to-air channels rose from 24 percent in 1988 to a peak of 42 percent in 1994, before dropping to 35 percent in 1995. It reached 42 percent again in 2003 and 2004. The fall to 38 percent in 2005 was mainly attributable to the inclusion of Prime Television which had a low level of local content. The subsequent addition of more local sport to Prime’s schedule and to those of other free-to-air channels, along with the inclusion of C4’s local entertainment programming, have been important factors behind the measured increase of local content programming in 2006.

Figure Cl1.1 Proportion of local content on prime-time television, 1988–2006

Source: NZ On Air
Notes: (1) Up to 2004, the figures are for prime-time (6pm-10pm) local content on TV One, TV2 and TV3 only (2) 2005 includes Prime Television and Māori Television (Māori Television figure derived by the Ministry of Social Development) (3) 2006 includes C4

The percentage of local content in prime-time transmission hours in 2006 differs across the channels: TV One 60 percent, TV2 22 percent, TV3 42 percent, Prime 15 percent, Māori 62 percent, and C4 58 percent.

Four programme types accounted for over three-quarters of the local content hours in 2006: news and current affairs (27 percent), sports and entertainment (both 17 percent) and information programmes (15 percent). The figures for 2005 and 2006 include data from new channels. This must be taken into account when comparing recent results with earlier years.

Table CI1.1 Percentage share of total hours of local content by programme type, selected years, 1988–2006

Source: NZ On Air
Notes: (1) Information on types of local programmes in prime-time hours was not published before 2005 (2) These figures relate to a 24-hours period up to 2002; from 2003 onwards, figures relate to 18 hours (6am to midnight) (3) Up to 2004, the figures are for TV One, TV2 and TV3 only; 2005 includes Prime Television and Maori Television (Maori Television figure derived from the Ministry of Social Development); 2006 includes C4

International comparison

International comparisons are difficult due to inconsistencies in measurement approaches by different countries. However, in 1999, local content accounted for 24 percent of total transmission time in New Zealand, a smaller proportion than in 10 other surveyed countries. This was compared to the United States (90 percent), the United Kingdom (BBC only, 78 percent), Canada (60 percent), Norway (56 percent), Finland (55 percent), Australia (which mandates a local content transmission quota of 55 percent on all free-to-air commercial networks) and Ireland (RTE only, 41 percent).⁷⁵ Note this is a measure of total air-time programming, rather than prime-time programming, which is the measure this indicator is based on.