Digital Forty Four
{{Short description|Sydney television datacasting service}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Use Australian English|date=May 2016}}
{{Infobox television channel
| name = Digital Forty Four
| logo = D44logo.png
| logo_size = 150px
| logo_caption =
| launch_date = {{start date and age|2004|03|17|df=y}}
| closed_date = {{end date and age|2010|04|30|df=y}}
| picture_format =
| owner = Broadcast Australia
| country = Australia
| language = English
| website =
| area = Sydney
| terr_chan_1 = 4; 40-49; 401-407
}}
Digital Forty Four was a Sydney-only trial datacasting service that was licensed by the Australian Broadcasting Authority (now the Australian Communications and Media Authority) beginning on 17 March 2004 for an initial two-year run until 31 December 2006.{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/03/17/1079199265649.html |title=First full datacasting service launched |date=17 March 2004 |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=1 May 2016}}{{Cite news |last=Washington |first=Stuart |date=25 November 2004 |title=Macquarie on a TV mission |url=https://www.afr.com/companies/macquarie-on-a-tv-mission-20041125-ka93h |access-date=20 August 2023 |newspaper=The Australian Financial Review |language=en}} The license was extended on several occasions past 2006,{{Cite journal |date=February 2007 |title=Possible extension of Sydney datacasting trial |url=http://kirra.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/AUCMAsphereNlr/2007/15.pdf |journal=ACMAsphere |via=the Australasian Legal Information Institute}} however on 29 January 2010 it was announced that Broadcast Australia's datacasting licence for Digital Forty Four would not be extended past 30 April 2010.{{cite web|title=Sydney datacasting trial to end |publisher=ACMA media release 16/2010 – 29 January |url=http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD..PC/pc=PC_312032 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121130150945/http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD..PC/pc=PC_312032 |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 November 2012 |accessdate=1 February 2009 }} At midnight on 30 April 2010, all services from Digital Forty Four ceased broadcasting.{{Cite web |last=Gonzalez |first=Miguel |date=30 April 2010 |title=Digital Forty Four TV services go off the air |url=https://mumbrella.com.au/digital-forty-four-tv-services-go-off-the-air-2458 |access-date=20 August 2023 |website=Mumbrella |language=en-AU}}
The services provided at various times during its six years of operation have included a television guide for free-to-air television, a community service channel providing information on road, weather and surf conditions, with live broadcasts every fifteen minutes, the Australian Christian Channel, Expo shopping channel, NITV, Teachers TV information channel and live broadcasts of the meetings of the Australian Parliament, with audio-video coverage of the House of Representatives and Senate.
Channels
Under conditions associated with the datacasting licence, channels on the Digital Forty Four service had to be either text based or narrowcast services. Entertainment programming was not allowed on the service, however some programming on the Australian Christian Channel was shown in a reduced screen format with text content around it, as that satisfied the datacast requirement.
| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! width="17%"| DVB name ! width="6%" | LCN ! width="10%"| Launch date ! width="10%"| Discontinued date ! width="57%"| Notes |
| Channel 4
|4 |2008 |30 Apr 2010 |Video program guide for free-to-air and D44 channels. |
| NITV
|40 |30 Apr 2010 |Existing subscription channel added to D44 service. Remains available on subscription satellite and cable television. Available free-to-air on LCN 34 via SBS since 12 December 2012. |
| ABC News, Sport and Weather
|41 |30 Apr 2010 |Text only. |
| D44 Homepage
|42 |17 Mar 2004 |30 Apr 2010 |{{small|Broadcast on LCN 44 prior to addition of TVS in March 2010. Simulcast on LCN 40 prior to addition of NITV on 27 Oct 2008.}} |
| Television Sydney
|44 |Mar 2010 |30 Apr 2010 |Existing digital community television channel added to D44 service. |
| Teachers TV
|45 |30 Apr 2010 |{{small|Broadcast on LCN 47 (shared with House of Representatives channel) until 30 June 2009.}} |
| Australian Christian Channel
|46 |30 Apr 2010 |Existing subscription channel added to D44 service. Remains available on subscription satellite and cable television. |
| Federal Parliament House of Representatives
|47 |17 Mar 2004 |30 Apr 2010 |Live video/audio feed of House of Representatives sessions. |
| Federal Parliament Senate
|48 |17 Mar 2004 |30 Apr 2010 |Live video/audio feed of Senate sessions. |
| Expo
|49 |2006 |30 Apr 2010 |Existing shopping channel added to D44 service. Still available on Foxtel subscription television. |
=Former Channels=
As it was a long term trial, many channels that started on the service did not continue until the cessation of broadcasts.
| class="wikitable" width="100%"
! width="17%"| DVB name ! width="6%" | LCN ! width="10%"| Launch date ! width="10%"| Discontinued date ! width="57%"| Notes |
| Channel NSW
|45 |17 Mar 2004 |1 Jul 2009 |Community channel broadcasting real time traffic, coast watch information and government announcements owned by the Government of New South Wales. Channel space replaced by Teachers TV. |
| Macquarie Digital
|47 |11 Jun 2007 |Broadcast financial information. Owned by Macquarie Group. |
| SportsTAB
|48 |17 Mar 2004 |
| House of Representatives Main Committee |403 |17 Mar 2004 |3 Nov 2008 |Live video/audio feed of House of Representatives Main Committee sessions. |
| House of Representatives Committee Room 1
|404 |17 Mar 2004 |3 Nov 2008 |Live video/audio feed of House of Representatives Room 1 sessions. |
| House of Representatives Committee Room 2
|405 |17 Mar 2004 |3 Nov 2008 |Live video/audio feed of House of Representatives Room 2 sessions. |
| House of Representatives Committee Room 3
|406 |17 Mar 2004 |3 Nov 2008 |Live video/audio feed of House of Representatives Room 3 sessions. |
| House of Representatives Committee Room 4
|407 |17 Mar 2004 |3 Nov 2008 |Live video/audio feed of House of Representatives Room 4 sessions. |
Legacy
The ACMA decided in closing the service that it was unlikely that datacast services would come to auction in the near future, and decided continuing the trial was unnecessary for that reason. NITV, which gained coverage on the service, considered the closure of the service a blow to its chances of gaining permanent spectrum for the service, and put the long term viability of the service into question.
Most of the other channels on Digital Forty Four are available unencrypted on satellite or via online streaming.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Digital Forty Four}}
{{Australian free-to-air television networks}}
Category:Television stations in Sydney
Category:Digital terrestrial television in Australia
Category:Defunct television channels in Australia
Category:English-language television stations in Australia
Category:Television channels and stations established in 2004
Category:Television channels and stations disestablished in 2010
Category:2004 establishments in Australia