 Final logo used from 2007 to 2010 | |
| Country | Wales |
|---|---|
| Ownership | |
| Owner | S4C |
| Sister channels | S4C |
| History | |
| Launched | 15 September 1999; 26 years ago (1999-09-15) |
| Closed | 6 December 2010; 15 years ago (2010-12-06) |
| Former names | S4C2 (15 September 1999 – 18 January 2007) |
| Availability (Prior to closure) | |
| Terrestrial | |
| Freeview | Channel 86 (Wales only) |
S4C Dau (Welsh:Sianel Pedwar Cymru Dau, meaningChannel Four Wales Two, formerly brandedS4C2) was afree-to-air British television station owned byS4C which, until 2010, broadcast coverage of theSenedd at theSenedd building. It was also used for extended coverage of events shown on the main S4C service, such as theNational Eisteddfod of Wales andRoyal Welsh Show.
When the UK government was planningdigital terrestrial television in the late 1990s, each of the existing analogue broadcasters were allocated half amultiplex of capacity each. Each multiplex has capacity to carry multiple television stations. As one of the existing analogue broadcasters, S4C were allocated half ofmultiplex A and decided to use their gifted capacity to broadcast two stations in Wales;S4C Digidol, a partial simulcast of their analogue television station andS4C2, a new service. Outside of Wales, they opted to sell their capacity to pay-TV broadcasterONdigital to use for their service, meaning that S4C2 was only broadcast from transmitters located within Wales.
The channel launched on 15 September 1999[1] as a free-to-air channel on theONdigital platform using S4C's gifted capacity on multiplex A, and laterSky andNTL. It formed part of the Freeview service andcable throughout Wales, but was available throughout the United Kingdom onFreesat and Sky.
The channel initially broadcast all proceedings from the National Assembly for Wales, live and uninterrupted. As the Assembly is bilingual, with members allowed to speak in either English or Welsh, the service carried two audio feeds onFreeview and satellite; an untranslated feed that broadcast proceedings in their original language (be it English or Welsh) and an English feed where any Welsh speech wasvoiced-over live into English.[2] The channel was described by S4C as a 'unique partnership' between themselves as the broadcaster andBBC Cymru Wales as the service provider.[2] As such, the costs of producing the Assembly output were funded by BBC Wales, while the costs of distribution were met by S4C.[3] S4C did not receive additional funding from the government to cover the costs of running the service, and couldn't divert public money intended to fund content for its main channel, as S4C2 was neither classed as a public service channel, nor was there any obligation for S4C to run such a service. As such, S4C's costs for the channel was funded from commercial revenues and the channel itself was operated through a commercial subsidiary of S4C, S4C2 Ltd., who held the broadcast licence.[4]
S4C2 was also used for interactive programming and alternate programming that couldn't be aired on the main S4C channel, such as uninterrupted coverage of competitions from theNational Eisteddfod of Wales, the Urdd National Eisteddfod, theRoyal Welsh Show andGoreuon Can i Gymru's sing-along feature (Best of Song for Wales, a yearly Welsh music competition).
On 18 January 2007, as part of a rebrand of S4C's services, S4C2's logo was changed, with the channel now identified asS4C Dau/S4C Two.
As part a consultation into provision of a new children's service in 2007, S4C identified that there was a large amount of capacity being unused by the S4C2 service when the Assembly was not in session. They suggested two proposals they considered viable, one of which would see the children's service operate in the downtime around the Assembly coverage, while the other would see the Assembly coverage removed altogether and S4C2 changed into a full-time children's channel.[5]
From January 2010, coverage of the National Assembly for Wales proceedings ceased on the channel.[6] This programming was produced by the BBC and was made available online via theDemocracy Live section of the BBC's website.[7]
In March 2010, the broadcaster announced it would resume broadcasts of the Assembly's full sessions and some committees in a new thrice-weekly overnight programme entitledY Dydd yn Y Cynulliad (The Day in the Assembly) on its main S4C service from Tuesday 20 April 2010.[8][9]
On 16 September 2010, S4C2 was removed fromSky channel 507. It was also removed fromVirgin Media channel 168 during October andFreeview channel 86 on 30 November 2010, in both cases the channel was only available in Wales. The channel finally ceased broadcasting on 6 December 2010, when it was removed fromFreesat.[10] S4C confirmed the channel's closure in January 2011, where they said its live coverage from the National Eisteddfod and Royal Welsh show would be more heavily featured on the main S4C channel, whilst recorded coverage of the Assembly would continue to be broadcast on the main channel in its late night slot.[6] S4C cited budget cuts from theDepartment for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) as the reason for closing the service.[11] As part of the UK Government spending review announced in October 2010, S4C's budget was to be cut by 25% by 2015.[12]
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