 Logo used since 1999 | |
| Type | Free-to-air television network |
|---|---|
| Country | Australia |
| Broadcast area | |
| Affiliates | |
| Headquarters | 8 Central Avenue Eveleigh,New South Wales |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Picture format | 1080iHDTV[a] (downscaled to576i for theSDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Seven West Media |
| Sister channels | 7HD 7two 7mate 7flix 7Bravo TVSN Racing.com |
| History | |
| Launched | 4 November 1956; 69 years ago (1956-11-04) |
| Former names | Australian Television Network (1963–1970, 1987–1991) Network 7 (1970–1984) |
| Links | |
| Website | 7plus.com.au |
| Availability | |
| Terrestrial | |
| ATN Sydney (DVB-T64-QAM) | 1312 @ 6 (177.5 MHz)[1] |
| HSV Melbourne (DVB-T64-QAM) | 1328 @ 6 (177.5 MHz) |
| BTQ Brisbane/Gold Coast (DVB-T64-QAM) | 1344 @ 6 (177.5 MHz) |
| SAS Adelaide (DVB-T64-QAM) | 1360 @ 6 (177.5 MHz) |
| TVW Perth/Mandurah (DVB-T64-QAM) | 1376 @ 6 (177.5 MHz) |
| Freeview Seven metro, QLD, Tasmania, Darwin & remote (virtual) | 7/71 |
| Freeview Seven regional (virtual) | 6/61 |
| Freeview7HD (virtual) | 70/60 |
| Streaming media | |
| 7plus(Only in Australia) | |
Seven Network (stylised7Network, and commonly known asChannel Seven or simplySeven) is an Australian commercialfree-to-airtelevision network. It is owned bySeven West Media Limited,[2] and is one of the five mainfree-to-air television networks in Australia. The network's headquarters are located inSydney.
As of 2014, it was the second-largest network in the country in terms of population reach. Seven Network shows various nonfiction shows—such as news broadcasts (Seven News) and sports programming—as well as fiction shows.[3] In 2011, the network won all 40 out of 40 weeks of the ratings season for total viewers,[4] being the first to achieve this since the introduction of theOzTAM ratings system in 2001.[5]
As of 2024, Seven Network is the highest-rated television network nationally, in Australia, ahead of theNine Network,ABC TV,Network 10 andSBS.[6]
Seven's administration headquarters are inEveleigh, Sydney, which was completed in 2003.[7] National news and current affairs programming are based between flagship stationATN-7 in Sydney andHSV-7 in Melbourne. In 2009, Seven moved its Sydney-based production operations fromEpping to a purpose-built high-definition television production facility at theAustralian Technology Park inEveleigh.[8]
The present Seven Network began as a group of independent stations inSydney,Melbourne,Brisbane,Adelaide andPerth.[9][10]HSV-7 Melbourne, licensed toThe Herald and Weekly Times Ltd (owners of two local papers at the time,The Herald andThe Sun), was launched on 4 November 1956, as Melbourne's first television station in the country to use theVHF7 frequency.[10]ATN-7 Sydney, licensed to Amalgamated Television Services, a subsidiary ofFairfax, was launched on 2 December 1956, as Sydney's third television station.[10][11] The two stations did not immediately share resources, and instead formed content-sharing partnerships with theirVHF9 counterparts by 1957:ATN-7 partnered with Melbourne'sGTV-9, whileHSV-7 paired up with Sydney'sTCN-9.[10][11]TVW-7 Perth, licensed to TVW Limited, a subsidiary ofWest Australian Newspapers, publisher ofThe West Australian, began broadcasting almost two years later, on 16 October 1959, as Perth's first television station.[10]BTQ-7 Brisbane followed on 1 November 1959, as Brisbane's second television station.[10][11]ADS-7 Adelaide was launched on 24 October 1959 as the final capital city VHF7 station.[12] The station later swapped frequencies withSAS-10 on 27 December 1987 asADS-10 andSAS-7.[12]
HSV-7 began its relationship with the Victorian Football League (now theAustralian Football League) in April 1957, when the station broadcast the first liveAustralian rules football match. Throughout this time, the stations operated independently of each other, with schedules made up of various simple, and relatively inexpensive, programs, such asPick a Box and spinoffs of popular radio shows.[10] In the early 1960s, coaxial cable links, formed initially between Sydney and Melbourne, allowed the sharing of programmes and simultaneous broadcasts of live shows.[11]
In 1960,Frank Packer, the owner of Sydney'sTCN-9, bought a controlling share of Melbourne'sGTV-9, in the process creating the country's first television network[11] (unofficially called "theNational Nine Network") and dissolving theATN-7/GTV-9 and theHSV-7/TCN-9 partnerships. Left without their original partners,ATN-7 andHSV-7 joined to form theAustralian Television Network in 1963.[12] The new grouping was soon joined by other capital-city channel 7 stations, ADS-7 Adelaide and BTQ-7 Brisbane. The new network began to produce and screen higher-budget programs to attract viewers, most notablyHomicide, a series which would continue for another 12 years to become the nation's longest running drama series.[12] However, it was not until 1970, after the network adopted theNetwork 7 name, that a national network logo was adopted, albeit still with independently owned and operated stations with local advertising campaigns.[13]
Colour television was introduced across the network in 1975, when a new colour logo was adopted.Rupert Murdoch made an unsuccessful bid for theHerald and Weekly Times, owners ofHSV-7, in 1979, later going on to gain control of rivalATV-10. Fairfax, however, successfully bought a 14.9% share of the company later in the same year.[11]
The 1980s saw the introduction of stereo sound, as well as a number of successful shows, most notablyA Country Practice in 1981, andSons and Daughters, which began in 1982.[14]Wheel of Fortune began its 25-year run in July 1981, produced fromADS-7's studios inAdelaide. The1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow were shown live on the network the year before.[14]Neighbours began on Seven in 1985, but low ratings in Sydney led to the cancellation of the new series at the end of the year, which later moved toNetwork Ten and went on to achieve international success.[14]
Perth based businessmanRobert Holmes à Court, through his business the Bell Group, boughtTVW-7 from its original owners,West Australian Newspapers in 1982.[11] It was in 1984 that the network proceeded to drop the "Network 7" branding.The Herald and Weekly Times, owner ofHSV-7 andADS-7, was sold toRupert Murdoch in December 1986 for an estimatedA$1.8 billion.[11] Murdoch's company,News Limited, sold offHSV-7 toFairfax soon afterwards, for $320 million.[11]Fairfax went on to axe a number of locally produced shows in favour of networked content from its Sydney counterpart,ATN-7 (also owned byFairfax at the time).[14]
Cross-media ownership laws introduced in 1987 forcedFairfax to choose between its print and television operations – it chose the former, and later sold off its stations toQintex Ltd., owned by businessmanChristopher Skase.[14] Qintex had previously bought, and subsequently sold off, stations in Brisbane and regional Queensland before taking control of the network.[11] It was also in 1987 that the network returned to the "Australian Television Network" branding. The next year, another new logo was introduced along with evening soapHome and Away and a relaunchedSeven National News, now known asSeven News. The network became truly national in 1988 when Skase boughtTVW-7 for $130 million.[14] In 1991, the network changed its name once again toSeven Network, though it had been unofficially using that name for some time before then.
Despite the network's successes, a failed $1.5 billion bid forMGM Studios in the same year sentQintex into receivership.[11] Christopher Skase fled Australia in 1990 to escape extradition.[14] The business' assets were bundled together by receivers and made into a new company,Seven Network Limited, in 1991.[11]
Real Life, a national current-affairs programme hosted byStan Grant, similar in format to theNine Network'sA Current Affair, was launched in 1992 but was later replaced by the more successfulToday Tonight.[15]
The network was listed on the stock exchange in 1993, soon after the entry ofsubscription television providerAustralis. One of Seven's most popular series,A Country Practice, ended in 1993 after 1058 episodes. 1993 saw the introduction ofBlue Heelers, which after a number of timeslot changes, was moved in 1998 to Wednesdays. This was to make room for a new series, medical dramaAll Saints. Both dramas rated quite highly, and along with new lifestyle showsBetter Homes and Gardens andThe Great Outdoors, resulted in a stronger ratings position for the network.[16]
In 1995,Sunshine Television, a Seven Network affiliate in regional Queensland, was purchased by the network's parent company,Seven Network Limited.Sunshine Television's regional stations effectively became a part of Seven Network, identical in appearance and programming to the rest of the business' stations.Australian Gladiators Series 1 and Series 2 in 1995-1996 filmed in Brisbane, and Series 3 filmed in Sydney[17] proved popular.Seven Queensland won the annual audience ratings for the first time in 1998.[18]
Between 1995 and April 2001,Alan Jackson ofNylex was the non-executive director of Seven, after being asked by Stokes to lead the company.[19][20]
A successful $1.3 billion bid forUnited Artists was made in conjunction withKirk Kerkorian in 1996; the network sold its stake two years later for $US389 million. Seven took control ofAustralia Television, theAustralian Broadcasting Corporation's Asian satellite channel, in 1997. TheAustralian Broadcasting Corporation still maintained a share in the network, and continued to produce news and current affairs programming for it.[21]
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, a state-of-the-arthigh definition national broadcast facility was constructed inDocklands, Melbourne, replacing the previous facility inEpping, Sydney. This new facility would also houseHSV-7'sMelbourne offices and studios.
The year 2000 saw former Nine executiveDavid Leckie appointed as head of television operations, re-launching the network with an updated logo, and a new advertising campaign timed expressly for the network's coverage of the2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The opening ceremony was one of the highest-ever rating television programmes in the country, with 6.5 million viewers, contributing to the network winning the ratings year for the first time in twenty-two years.[22]
Digital television was introduced to most of the network's coverage area on 1 January 2001. This was soon followed by the gradual introduction of wide screen and high definition programming.[23]
In January 2006, Seven Network,Pacific Magazines and online portalYahoo! Australia and New Zealand combined in a joint venture to formYahoo!7, representing all three companies' online assets.[24]
7HD was officially announced on 15 September 2007, with theSeven Media Group announcing their intention to start ahigh definition multichannel, that was initially expected to launch in December 2007.[25] However, 7HD became the first free-to-air commercial television channel introduced to metropolitan areas since 1988, when it launched prior on 15 October 2007, with25th Hour being the first programme broadcast at 10:30 pm.[26]
On 14 February 2008, theSeven Media Group andFoxtel officially signed an agreement allowing Seven's digital signal to be transmitted viaFoxtel's cable and satellite services. Seven became available on Foxtel in early 2009.[27]
On 25 September 2009, Seven announced its new digital channel,7two, which officially launched on 1 November 2009.[28]
On 18 January 2010, Seven launched the online catch-up TV website calledPLUS7.[29]
On 25 September 2010, in conjunction with the 2010 AFL Grand Final, Seven launched its second multi-digital channel7mate.
In January 2011, the big red 7 logos were expanded toGWN7 andPrime7's rebranding respectively.[30] The news bulletins were renamed asGWN7 News andPrime7 News.[30]GWN andPrime relaunched on 16 January 2011 at 6:00 pm,[30] digital channels are branded as7two and7mate.
Seven announced its intention to expand into digital datacasting known as4ME, a digital channel owned by thePrime Media Group, in December 2011 on channel 64 inPrime7 and regional areas and channel 74 in other areas.[31]
In September 2011, Seven broadcast a report featuring journalist Tim Noonan and writer and adventurer Paul Raffaele visiting Brazil'sSuruwaha tribe and describing them as child murderers, "Stone Age" relics, and "one of the worst human rights violators in the world".[32]Survival International, the global movement for tribal people's rights, sent a complaint to Seven outlining the many errors and distortions in the report. After the channel refused to correct the inaccuracies in the program, Survival filed a complaint at theAustralian Communications and Media Authority, who opened a formal investigation.[33] In September 2012, the network was found guilty by the press regulator of serious violations of the broadcasting code. The ACMA ruled that the Channel was guilty of breaking its racism clause – having "provoked or perpetuated intense dislike, serious contempt or severe ridicule against the Suruwaha people on the grounds of ... national or ethnic origin ... race [or] religion". It also ruled that the Channel was guilty of broadcasting inaccurate material.[34] Seven sought judicial review, but in June 2014 the Federal Court upheld the ruling.[35]
In October 2012, Seven began cost cutting shedding a number of behind the scenes technical positions and reducing theirSNG transponder link capacity onOptus D1 from three (at 12.661,12.671&12.681 GHz) to two (at 12.644&12.653 GHz) which are used byATN Sydney for Sunrise and national news location uplinks as well as for other local station location uplinks.
In November 2012, Seven changed its on-air theme. This included a new look for programme advisory ratings, programme listings and programme advertisements and promos.
As of 10 December 2013, Seven no longer broadcasts on analogue TV and is now only available through digital TV or digital set-top box.
On 26 June 2015,Racing.com began broadcasting on channel 78 as a joint venture betweenSeven West Media andRacing Victoria following a blackout of Victorian horse racing bySky Racing. Initially broadcasting an interim live feed from the Racing.com website, the channel was officially launched on 29 August 2015.[36]
In January 2016, Seven changed its on-air theme. This included a new look for program listings, program advertisements and promos.
On 7 February 2016, during the ad-break ofMolly, after months of speculation, Seven officially announced their new channel as7flix on channel 76.[37] 7flix was launched at 6 am on 28 February 2016.[38]
7HD returned as a high definition simulcast on channel 70 on 10 May 2016. Initially, the Melbourne and Adelaide markets received 7HD as a HD simulcast of Seven's primary channel, while the Sydney, Brisbane and Perth markets received 7HD as a HD simulcast of 7mate; this was to allowAustralian Football League (AFL) matches to be broadcast in HD in those markets.[39][40] Sydney, Brisbane and Perth temporarily received 7HD as a simulcast of the primary channel for the duration of the2016 Summer Olympics before the change was made permanent during and after the2017 Australian Open tennis.[41][42] Up until 16 January 2020, breakaway programming was used to show further AFL matches and Australian cricket matches in HD.[43]
In June 2017, following the acquisition ofYahoo! byVerizon Communications, Seven announced plans to launch a wholly owned standalone service to replacePLUS7. In September 2017, Seven announced the new service would be known as7plus and would launch in November 2017. As of September 2017, Seven's live streaming service, now named 7Live, is no longer accessible from within thePLUS7 and theYahoo7 portal.
Seven announced7food network, a new digital channel, which launched on Channel 74 on 1 December 2018. The announcement with Discovery network followsSBS Food Network losing its deal with Discovery-ownedScripps Network.[44] The channel ceased broadcast on 28 December 2019, just over a year since it launched, though Seven continues to utilise theFood Network branding elsewhere[45]
In June 2020,Big Brother Australia made a return on Seven Network with a rebooted program. Hosted bySonia Kruger,[46] the series was pre-recorded and not live as in previous series, with the new version of Big Brother described like a "Survivor in a warehouse", with producers opting to film at a warehouse in Sydney. The exact location is North Head Sanctuary, also known as The Barracks.[47] On the night Big Brother premiered, Seven also changed their on air theme.
On 19 June 2020, it was announced thatThe Daily Edition had been cancelled by Seven Network after 7 years with hosts Sally Obermeder and Ryan Phelan leaving the network. The final episode aired on 26 June 2020.[48]
In July 2020, Seven Network unveiled new logos, for its multichannels, beginning with7mate then7two and7flix respectively. The change in logos also included their on demand platform7plus now stylised as ″7+″ as part of a major branding overhaul of its multi channel stations.
In March 2021, it was announced that Seven Network would move out of Martin Place toEveleigh from 2022 after almost two decades.[49]
On 1 November 2021,Seven West Media announced that it would acquire all the shares and subsidiaries ofPrime Media Group. This was Seven West Media's second attempt at purchasing Prime, after its previous attempt in 2019 was thwarted byAustralian Community Media boss Antony Catalano and rivalWIN Corporation ownerBruce Gordon, who cited Seven's debt problems at the time and its poor ratings performance as their reason for their refusal. This development would mark an end to the Prime branding after 33 years in favour of Seven Network's branding, and would see all news bulletins carry the Seven News brand. Prior to this,Prime7 (and sisterGWN7 in regional and remote Western Australia) was the only network not to fully use its metro affiliate branding despite carrying Seven branded promos, since WIN Television (except for WIN News) and Southern Cross Austereo use fullNine andTen network branding on their stations. It was also announced that Seven would look to expand its investment in local news following the merger.[50] Majority of Prime's shareholders voted in favour of the deal on 23 December, with the sale completed on 31 December.[51][52]
Commencing June 2022, Seven moved to a national brand in time for the2022 Commonwealth Games across all of its regions. Introduced to regional audiences on 6 June 2022, viewers in those markets began to see the Prime7 and GWN7 logos transition into the national Seven branding.[53]
Seven announced in October 2022 it would launch a new free-to-air channel,7Bravo on 15 January 2023, on LCN 75 in metropolitan areas and LCN 65 in regional areas. As a resultishop TV moved from LCN 65 to LCN 67 in the former Prime7 areas. 7Bravo shows reality shows andtrue crime. The launch is a partnership between Seven Network andNBCUniversal International Networks & Direct-to-Consumer.[54]
On 30 November 2022, various channel changes on Seven Network happened to accommodate for the new 7Bravo channel, including a 7mate SD (Channel 73) switch-off. On the same day, 7Bravo on channel 75 appeared on the Seven multiplex, and ishop TV moving to channel 67 placeholder in Seven regional areas.[55]
In June 2023, 7NEWS moved their operations fromMartin Place to their new purpose-built studios inEveleigh. In July 2023, Sunrise hosted its first broadcast at its new studios. The first edition went to air live at 5.30am on 24 July 2023, with hostsNatalie Barr andMatt Shirvington, news presenterEdwina Bartholomew and sports presenterMark Beretta, followed byThe Morning Show'sLarry Emdur andKylie Gillies.[56] For the first time in more than 40 years, the whole Seven Sydney operation, including all staff, were under one roof. The new space offers space five times larger than the previous Martin Place location, with permanent sets for all programs.[57]
In July–August 2023 when the2023 FIFA Women's World Cup was hosted by Australia and New Zealand, there was some controversy worldwide aboutbroadcasting rights to it,[58] when broadcasters' offers were very low, and FIFA's handling of the rights was also criticised.[59][60] Seven Network won the rights to broadcast 15 of the matches.[61] These included four round of 16 games, two quarter-finals, the semi-finals, and the final, along with all of theMatildas games. The pay channelOptus Sport has rights for every game in the tournament. This raised public criticism, with many arguing that the entire tournament should be free-to-air, as was the2022 (men's) World Cup inQatar, onSBS Television.[62]
In September 2023, a female Queensland contestant in an upcoming Seven Network reality show was charged with multiple counts of indecent treatment of children aged under 16, multiple counts of rape, sexual assault, torture and assaults over a 15-year period. Her partner was also charged with a number of assaults. Seven refused to confirm whether it will cancel or alter the program.[63][64]
On 22 January 2024,TVSN and Seven West Media signed a new broadcast deal, which means the channel will be on Seven from 1 July 2024, shifting from10 andWIN Television. TVSN will be on channel 77 in metropolitan areas and regional Queensland, channel 67 in other regional areas and on7plus nationally.[65][66]
On 14 April 2024, the network was under fire for misidentification of Jewish student named Ben Cohen as the perpetrator of2024 Bondi Junction stabbings.[67][68]
In May 2025, Seven West Media announced its intention to purchaseSouthern Cross Austereo’s regionalSeven Network affiliate stations in Tasmania, Darwin, Spencer Gulf, Broken Hill, Mount Isa and Remote Central and Eastern Australia for $3.75 Million. The sale was completed in July 2025.[69]
Following a failure in negotiating a new affiliate deal with WIN Television, the Seven Network temporarily ceased broadcasting in Riverland, Griffith, and Mount Gambier from 1 July to 3 July 2025.[69][70]
Always Greener, launched in 2001, received two million viewers in its Sunday timeslot, however, it was axed after its second season due to declining audience numbers.[71]
In 2004, Seven launched the internationally well-known game showDeal or No Deal hosted byAndrew O'Keefe, to the 5.30 pm weekday timeslot as a lead-in to the networks' struggling flagship news bulletin replacing the network's long-running and ever-popularWheel Of Fortune as the show moves to 5pm weekdays, and later in the yearDancing with the Stars, based on the BBC'sStrictly Come Dancing, was also launched. The following year, a number of new programmes premiered, from the United States networkABC, includingDesperate Housewives andLost. At the same time, Seven's news and public affairs ratings began to increase in viewers, withToday Tonight beginning to challenge rivalA Current Affair, with the new format ofSunrise leading to increased competition with its rival, theNine Network'sToday. Seven's eveningnews bulletins also started to take the lead with successes in most cities.[72]
The network launched a number of new series in 2006, includingHeroes,Prison Break,Dancing with the Stars spin-offIt Takes Two,How I Met Your Mother, andMy Name Is Earl, and saw long-running seriesBlue Heelers ending its 13th season run after declining ratings since late 2003. Despite the ongoing success of these programmes, Seven still finished second behind theNine Network for the fifth time in six years,[73] primarily due to Nine's coverage of the2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, but the year after, defeated Nine by a significant margin, winning 38 weeks compared to Nine's 2, to become the number one network in Australia.[74]
In 2008, Seven launched new local dramaPacked to the Rafters which became the year's top rating show with an average of 1.938 million viewers.[75]
In 2009, a new weekly public affairs showSunday Night launched in the Sunday 6:30 position to a shaky start but by the end of the year was easily winning its slot and rating up to 250,000 more than rivalNine Network's long-running60 Minutes.[76]
In 2010, Seven launched new AFL- and NRL-based entertainment shows in an effort to take on Nine'sThe AFL Footy Show andThe NRL Footy Show and provide a bargaining chip in negotiations for AFL and NRL broadcast rights. The AFL-based series was calledThe Bounce, hosted byPeter Helliar,[77] however, was pulled from the air after just five episodes.[78] An NRL-based series calledThe Matty Johns Show, hosted by formerFooty Show host Matthew Johns,[79] lasted one season.
In 2011, Seven putPacked to the Rafters on hiatus and put new Melbourne dramaWinners and Losers in its place, the show won the highest ratings for the night.
In 2013, Seven Network launched its fifth new dramaA Place to Call Home, it also achieved high ratings.
In September 2015, the network beganThe Chase Australia which is a spinoff of the British series,The Chase, with ChasersAnne Hegerty (from the British series), Brydon Coverdale (winner of $307,000 onMillion Dollar Minute), Matt Parkinson and Issa Schultz, In 2016,Mark Labbett made his debut as one of the Chasers, joining fellow UK Chaser, Anne Hegerty and in 2018,Shaun Wallace made his debut as its sixth chaser, joining fellow UK chasers Anne Hegerty and Mark Labbett. Seven also launched800 Words starringErik Thomson to high ratings, making it the highest rating drama of 2015.
In June 2020,Big Brother Australia made a return on Seven Network with a rebooted pre-recorded program. It was also announced in 2020, that Seven had acquired the reality seriesThe Voice Australia in 2021 as well as a reboot ofAustralian Idol.[80]
Seven confirmed in December 2020 it had commissioned a return to a new "all stars" event version ofDancing With The Stars.[81]
TheAustralian Idol reboot returned to the screens of Seven in 2023.[82]
New programs introduced in 2005 led to a ratings increase, following a relatively poor 2004.[83]
From 2010, Seven Network began to implement the tactic of creating a five to 20-minute delay in the scheduled start time of non-live programming after 7:30 pm in an attempt to minimise viewer channel surfing between prime-time shows. This is done by increasing the duration of the commercial breaks and then decreasing them once the prime-time period is over. This tactic not only disrupts viewer recordings of the shows, but has a dramatic effect on their regional affiliates such as Prime and Southern Cross who must adapt their inserted commercials breaks as the live play-out from Seven's Melbourne facility occurs which can cause either both the regionalstation identification and the Seven identification being displayed with a possible black screen between them or the start of a program being missed entirely by the regional break overlapping.
Australian programming shown on the network includes dramasRFDS, soapHome and Away, lifestyle shows;Better Homes and Gardens, gameshows;The Chase Australia,The 1% Club; entertainment;Sunrise,The Front Bar,The Morning Show,TV Week Logie Awards, reality;Australian Idol,My Kitchen Rules,The Farmer Wants a Wife,SAS Australia,The Voice Australia,Dancing with the Stars Australia,Dream Home,Made in Bondi,First Dates,Stranded on Honeymoon Island, factuals;The Force,Border Security,Highway Patrol,Crime Investigation Australia,Beach Cops,Surveillance Oz andGold Coast Medical.
Most American programs that air on Seven and its digital multichannels are sourced from Seven's deals with20th Century Studios andDisney Television Studios /20th Television,Universal Studios, Inc. /NBCUniversal Global Distribution andIllumination,DreamWorks /DreamWorks Animation,StudioCanal,Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group /Sony Pictures Television,CBS Studios andIcon Films.
In late 2016, Seven created a new acquired programming deal with Warner Bros, granting the network programming rights.
On 15 January 2023, Seven created a new acquired programming deal with NBCUniversal, granting the network programming rights.
Shared American programming that airs on Seven andNine and their digital multichannels are sourced from Seven and Nine's deals withDisney Platform Distribution /20th Century Studios,20th Television,Warner Bros. International Television Distribution /Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc,DreamWorks andDreamWorks Animation,NBCUniversal Global Distribution /Illumination,StudioCanal andSony Pictures Television.
Shared American programming that airs on Seven and10 and their digital multichannels are sourced from Seven and 10's deals withCBS Studios,DreamWorks /DreamWorks Animation andWarner Bros. International Television Distribution /Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Shared American programming that airs on Seven andABC and their digital multichannels are sourced from Seven and ABC's deals withNBCUniversal Global Distribution,StudioCanal andSony Pictures Television.
The network formerly broadcast catalogue movie and television titles fromMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer produced in the 1990s prior to 2011,Disney from 1980s to 2023,Miramax from 2007 to 2012,Paramount from the 1990s to 2022 andWarner Bros. from 1990 to 2024.
On 7two, in the early 2010s, they aired classic and silver-screen movies from theSony Pictures (Columbia &TriStar) catalog.
In 2018 it was reported that Seven had formed an agreement with20th Century Fox to air selected Fox programming.[84]
Previously, the network had output deals withSony Pictures Television andNBCUniversal, however changed its deals with both in mid-2013. Seven renegotiated its NBCUniversal deal to continue rights to air existing popularNBC co-produced programs includingDownton Abbey andMrs Brown's Boys, as well asNBC News content. Commiserate with the American network's own slump, Seven has not found huge success with an NBC primetime series since 2007. With Sony, Seven has signed a three-year minimum quota deal, where by Seven will agree to purchase a set number of Sony produced US primetime series and selected films each year.[85]
Seven Network's news service is calledSeven News (formerlyAustralian Television News (ATVN) andSeven National News). After trailing for many decades toNine News (previouslyNational Nine News) and10 News (previouslyTen Eyewitness News and10 News First) in most markets, Seven rebounded effective from February 2005 onwards, and claimed to be Australia's number one television news and current affairs service.[72]Seven News producesSunrise,The Morning Show,Weekend Sunrise,Seven's National News at Noon,Seven Afternoon News,Seven News (the flagship locally produced 6 pm bulletins) andSeven News: Spotlight. During the early hours of 4 am to 6 am, Seven rebroadcasts some of American television networkNBC's news and current affairs programming, includingToday andMeet the Press. Since 1988, Seven also adopted NBC News' main theme,The Mission, as the theme for Seven's news programming.
Exclusive contracts withNBC News,ITN andThree (New Zealand) for international news coverage.[citation needed]
In recent years, under the guidance of former long-timeNine News chief Peter Meakin, Seven's news and current affairs division has produced more locally focused content, which has been lifting ratings for key markets such as Sydney andMelbourne.[72] Since February 2005, the ratings ofDeal or No Deal,Seven News andToday Tonight have gradually increased.Seven News was the highest-rating news service nationally in both the 2005 and 2006 ratings seasons.[74][83] A key aspect of Seven's recent ratings dominance in news and current affairs has been attributed toDeal or No Deal's (and, since late 2015,The Chase Australia) top rating audience, which providesSeven News with a large lead-in audience.[86] Between 2007 and 2010 inclusive,Seven News completed a clean sweep across the five capital cities in terms of being the most watched 6 pm news bulletin. On 5 July 2008, Seven introduced a watermark on news and current affairs programmes.
Seven is a major purchaser of Australian sports broadcasting rights. Seven's most popular recurring sporting events include theOlympic Games,Commonwealth Games,Big Bash League,Women's Big Bash League,Australian Test Cricket,World Rally Championship,Australian Rally Championship,Australian Off Road Championship,AFL Premiership Season, theAustralian PGA Championship golf, theAustralian Open Golf, the Australian Open Tennis until Seven lost the rights in 2018,Bledisloe Cup Rugby,Mount Buller World Aerials, theSydney to Hobart Yacht Race, theTri-Nations Rugby, andhorse racing events including theMelbourne Cup Carnival until Seven lost the rights in 2018, and Queensland's annualMagic Millions race day.[87]
The network had the exclusive coverage of the2000 Sydney Olympics, which attracted a TV audience of over 6.5 million Australians for the opening and closing ceremonies. The broadcast also ran on the short-livedC7 Sport subscription channel.
On 25 January 2001,Network Ten,Nine Network, and pay TV provider Foxtel won the rights from Seven to televise AFL games from 2002 to 2006. This ended Seven's famous 45-year run as the exclusive AFL football broadcaster. On 5 January 2006 theAustralian Football League accepted a bid from Seven andTen to broadcastAFL games from 2007 to 2011 at a cost ofA$780 million. Since 2011, Seven has been the exclusive free-to-air broadcaster of theAFL Premiership Season to at least 2031.[88]
Seven had exclusive Australian free-to-air, pay television,online andmobile telephony broadcast rights to the2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The live telecast of the XXIX Olympiad was shared by both Seven Network andSBS Television. Seven broadcast the opening and closing ceremonies and mainstream sports including swimming, athletics, rowing, cycling and gymnastics. In stark contrast,SBS TV provided complementary coverage focused on long-form events such as soccer, road cycling, volleyball, and table tennis.[89]
From 2016, Seven became the home of theSummer Olympic Games,Winter Olympic Games and theSummer Paralympic Games. The Network secured the Australian broadcast rights to the Olympic Games.[90] In October 2020, it was named as the Australian broadcast service for the2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.[91]
In 2016, Seven Network won the broadcasting rights deal to be the main broadcaster of the2017 Rugby League World Cup in Australia, beating the other regular rugby league broadcasting channels of Fox League and the Nine Network to secure the deal.[92]
Seven Network also screened the2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast in April 2018,[93] and the2022 Commonwealth Games from Birmingham.[94]
In 2018, Seven Network, in conjunction withFoxtel, acquired free-to-air broadcasting rights to cricket in Australia. This ended Nine's famous 45-year run as the exclusive cricket broadcaster and Ten's five-year run as the exclusive Big Bash League broadcaster. The network will televise all men's international tests matches, 43Big Bash League Matches, all women's Internationals (T20Is, ODIs and Tests) and 23Women's Big Bash League Matches. The six-year deal starts in 2018/19 and runs until 2023/24.[95] In 2023, Seven announced that it reached an agreement with Cricket Australia to extend its media rights from the 2024–25 season to the 2030–31 season. The new, seven-year agreement between Seven and Cricket Australia includes two Ashes Tests Series as well as two Indian tours of Australia. In addition, Cricket Australia will revamp the BBL to create a shorter tournament that will run for five to six weeks to screen on the Seven network.[96]
In 2020, Seven regained the TV rights to the Supercars Championship, sharing the rights with Foxtel in a deal worth $200 million for 5 years (2021–2025). The new deal has Seven Sport show seven rounds of the Supercars Championship live and showing highlights of the rounds it is not able to televise[97]
In 2025, Seven Network announced it will broadcastGlasgow 2026 and2030 Commonwealth Games live and free across Australia on TV, digital and7plus Sport.[98]
Seven is a standard definition channel through digital TV. There was a1080i high definition version until it was replaced by the youth orientated7mate channel, before this change on 18 March 2007, test simulcasts for1080i commenced in theSydney andMelbourne markets,Adelaide andPerth followed on 24 June 2007, withBrisbane following on 25 June 2007, andregional Queensland on 26 June 2007. Prior to this, Seven Network provided a576penhanced-definition service.
On 1 April 2008,ATN Sydney began broadcasting a digital signal to Foxtel andAustar's satellite and cable subscribers.
On 5 February 2025, Seven Network will discontinue standard definition signal and becoming high-definition (HD) only across Australia as it phases out older MPEG2 technology in favor of the newer MPEG4 standard, Adelaide became first on 5 February then in Perth on 30 April and in Brisbane on 9 July with the Sydney market scheduled to transition on 7 October 2025, and Melbourne being the final metropolitan area to switch at the end of 2025. The transition affects Channels 7, 70, and 71, and 7two will become HD only, while other channels like 7mate and 7Bravo already operate in MPEG4 HD. Viewers with older TVs may need to perform a channel re-scan or purchase a new TV or an HD-compatible set-top box to continue watching.
Seven's core programming is fibre fed out ofHSV Melbourne to its sister stations and regional affiliates withATN Sydney providing national news and current affairs programming. The receiving stations and affiliates then insert their own localised news and advertising, which is then broadcast in metropolitan areas and regional areas of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia through owned-and-operated stations:ATN Sydney,HSV Melbourne,BTQ Brisbane,SAS Adelaide andTVW Perth; as well as its owned-and-operated regional stations:NEN Northern NSW & Gold Coast,CBN Southern NSW & ACT,AMV regional Victoria,PTV Mildura,STQ regional Queensland,Seven Regional WA,TNT Tasmania,GTS/BKN Spencer Gulf and Broken Hill,TND Darwin andQQQ remote central and eastern Australia.
Seven Network programming is also carried by third-party affiliateWIN Television inMount Gambier, the Riverland of South Australia and theMurrumbridgee Irrigation Area of New South Wales.[70]
The 7HD multichannel was launched in October 2007 until 25 September 2010 and later revived on 10 May 2016. The revival version initially broadcast split services: identical main channel programming for Melbourne and Adelaide & continuous programming from7mate for other metropolitan cities, but in1080iMPEG-4HD viaFreeview. The split was implemented to allow broadcast of AFL matches in HD. By 16 December 2016, it quietly shifted to the main channel programming on a long-term basis for Sydney, Brisbane and Perth.
7plus is avideo on demand and catch up TV service wholly owned and run by Seven Network. It launched on 27 November 2017 as a replacement forPLUS7, a catch-up TV service jointly owned by Seven Network andYahoo! which closed on 31 March 2018.[99] It offers on demand episodes of television series and a live streaming service providing live access to Seven,7two,7mate,7flix,7Bravo andRacing.com.[100]
Following the acquisition ofYahoo! byVerizon Communications in June 2017, Seven announced plans to launch a wholly owned standalone service to replace PLUS7 within the following six months.[101][102] In September 2017, Seven announced the new service would be known as 7plus and would launch in November 2017.[103]
The service is available in HD, and there are plans to addChromecast andApple Airplay support at a later date.[99]
AFL Premiership Season andCricket matches are not accessible through the 7plus live streaming service due to thedigital broadcast rights being owned byTelstra Media andKayo Sports respectively.Border Security International repeats play on the channel's live stream in the event's place until the match is over and then returns to normal programming.[citation needed]
On 23 July 2020, 7plus introduced a new logo styled as7+.
PLUS7 was acatch up TV service run by Seven Network through itsYahoo7 joint venture withYahoo!.[104] The service became available on 18 January 2010. Following the introduction of 7plus, PLUS7 was shut down, becoming unavailable on most platforms from 12 December 2017, and on remaining devices on 31 March 2018.[99]
Some titles were exclusively available in Australia on PLUS7, includingOther Space andSin City Saints, as well as the British version ofMy Kitchen Rules, which were not broadcast on Seven Network.[100][105] In 2014, PLUS7 became the first commercial television catch-up service to provide optionalclosed captioning on most of its programming.[106]
PLUS7 was available across several platforms including iOS mobile operating systems (e.g. iPhone, iPad & iPod Touch),[107]Apple TV,[108]Xbox 360,Xbox One,[109]PlayStation 3,PlayStation 4,[110][111]Windows 10,Sony internet-enabled TVs & Blu-ray players, LG internet-enabled TVs, Samsung internet-enabled TVs & Blu-ray players, Panasonic internet-enabled TVs, Hisense internet-enabled TVs, Humax set top boxes, Windows Mobile 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Samsung devices running Android OS 4.0+ and above.
7food network was a short-lived Australian free-to-air television channel owned by Seven Network which launched on 1 December 2018.[112] The channel marked the start of Seven's new deal withDiscovery, Inc., immediately after the end ofSBS's previous deal with Discovery which saw the creation ofSBS Food (formerly SBS Food Network) in 2015. The channel featured shows about food and cooking from around the world. The channel ceased broadcasting on 28 December 2019 after garnering lower than expected ratings and was replaced by a HD simulcast of7mate from 16 January 2020.[45]
The network's first logo produced and used across the metropolitan stations in the early 1970s featured the numeral seven inside a ring (similar to theCircle 7 logo used mostly by theAmerican Broadcasting Company for itsowned-and-operated stations whichATN-7 used from 1968 to 1969). However, in some states from as early back as 1967 the "Seven eye" appeared and continued right through to 1975. Colour television was introduced across the network and the country on 1 March 1975, along with a new logo incorporating a bright ring of the colours of the visual light spectrum. This logo was used nationally until 5 September 1988, when the Seven Network introduced a new red logo with the circle modified to incorporate the "7" (similar to the logo then used byWJLA-TV in Washington). The new logo was rolled out along with evening soapHome and Away and a relaunchedSeven Nightly News (later to becomeSeven News).[14]
The current ribbon logo designed by Cato Brand Partners was launched looking forward to the new millennium celebration on 1 November 1999 and the2000 Summer Olympics held in Sydney. The ribbon logo was used between 1999 and 2003 in five colour variants: red, orange, yellow, green and blue, to symbolisepassion,involving,fun,life andenergy respectively and represents the five stations of the network. The logo was simplified in 2003, effectively becoming simply two angled trapezoids, losing its gradient, shadows and colour-coded usages to become solid red but first it was used in solid white as an on-screen bug from 1999. In 2012, the Seven logo was slightly modified with the shape of it remaining the same, the upper right corner was lighter red than the remaining logo. On 1 February 2016, it reverted to red trapezoids.
![1 November 1999 – 1 September 2003[113]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aSeven_Network_logo_2000.svg){kind=logo}
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Seven Network's TV ad campaigns tended to followNBC (mostly due to Seven's semi-close ties with the American network)[citation needed], but at times also used some imaging from fellow US networksABC andFOX.
Each state has from time to time had their own specific slogans, but the following were the network's national identities:
Due to Seven's coverage of the2008 Summer Olympics, theInternational Olympic Committee awarded Seven the 'Golden Rings' award for "Best Olympic Programme". The award is given for the best overall Olympic coverage.[114]
At the 2018 Sport Australia media awards, Seven won the "Best coverage of a sporting event" award for the coverage of the2018 Commonwealth Games inGold Coast.[115]
Seven Network's ground-breaking coverage of the Tokyo2020 Summer Olympic Games saw them win three awards (gold, silver and bronze) at theInternational Olympic Committee's coveted Golden Rings Awards.[116]
