TVN (Australian TV channel)

TVN (Thoroughbred Vision)

Company type	Private
Industry	Television broadcasting, Horse racing media
Predecessor	Sky Racing (partial rights predecessor)
Founded	May 2005 (2005-05)
Defunct	March 15, 2015 (2015-03-15)
Fate	Ceased operations
Headquarters	Australia
Area served	Australia
Products	Thoroughbred horse racing television channel
Owner	Melbourne Racing Club, Victoria Racing Club, Moonee Valley Racing Club, Country Racing Victoria, Australian Turf Club (equal ownership)

TVN (Thoroughbred Vision) was an Australian television channel dedicated to thoroughbred horse racing, accessible via Foxtel, Austar, and Optus TV. Founded by Victorian thoroughbred racing bodies alongside Sydney metropolitan clubs, TVN sought to provide a competitive alternative to Sky Racing and to utilize racing media rights for the advantage of the industry.

The channel's ownership was equally divided between Victorian organisations—including the Melbourne Racing Club, Victoria Racing Club, Moonee Valley Racing Club, and Country Racing Victoria—and the Sydney-based Australian Turf Club. TVN commenced broadcasting in May 2005 and discontinued operations in March 2015.

History

Prior to TVN's establishment, Sky Channel controlled the broadcast rights for the majority of Australian race meetings and sublicensed these to racecourses and subscribers. TVN was created after TabCorp, which owns Sky Racing, withdrew from a collaborative initiative with Racing Victoria Limited aimed at launching a dedicated thoroughbred racing channel. The CEO of Sky Channel publicly criticized TVN as a high-risk project unlikely to fully represent thoroughbred racing.

Despite this, Victorian clubs advanced with the creation of TVN, receiving backing from the Australian Jockey Club and Sydney Turf Club, both of which chose not to renew their agreements with Sky Channel in 2005. Existing contracts in Victoria were transferred from Sky Channel to TVN at its launch.

Initially available only on Foxtel, TVN encountered legal disputes initiated by Sky Channel concerning broadcast rights, resulting in a court injunction that prevented Austar from airing TVN content. Eventually, broadcasting arrangements were extended to include Austar and Optus platforms.

In January 2015, after negotiations with Tabcorp reached an impasse, Racing NSW withdrew its support for TVN and entered into an exclusive agreement with Sky Racing for its race meetings. This development left TVN holding rights solely for Victorian events. Subsequently, TVN announced its closure and ceased transmissions on 15 March 2015. Shortly thereafter, on 21 March 2015, Sky Racing launched Sky Thoroughbred Central, which featured New South Wales races as well as international racing coverage. On 29 August 2015, TVN’s slot on Foxtel was taken over by Racing.com.

Programming

TVN’s primary shows included Raceday Live and Racenight Live. Raceday Live concentrated on major thoroughbred race meetings mainly across Victoria and New South Wales. Meanwhile, Racenight Live showcased thoroughbred events from Singapore and Hong Kong, along with night meetings at Canterbury (Sydney) and Moonee Valley (Melbourne) during spring and summer seasons, as well as coverage of Royal Ascot meetings each June.