TVB

TVB Limited, often just called TVB, is a television network in Hong Kong that began broadcasting on November 19, 1967. It has five free-to-air terrestrial television channels. TVB Jade is its main Cantonese channel, and TVB Pearl is its main English channel. Since 2003, TVB has been based at TVB City in the Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate.

TVB has played a big role in Chinese culture. It is well-known for its television dramas, the Miss Hong Kong and Miss Chinese International pageants, and for helping many Hong Kong actors and artists begin their careers.

History

Origins

In the early 1960s, the Hong Kong government wanted to create a second television station. At that time, there was only one station, called Rediffusion Television. People debated how to run the new station. Some thought it should be like the BBC, while others wanted it to be a business. A big challenge was making enough shows, especially in Chinese, since most shows would need to be made in Hong Kong.

In 1965, the government asked companies to apply for a license to run the new station. A company called TVB, started by Sir Run Run Shaw, Sir Douglas Clague, and Harold Lee Hsiao-wo of the Lee Hysan family, won the license in 1966.

Opening

The new TVB station opened on 19 November 1967 by Governor David Trench. The first broadcast showed a race from Macau, followed by the opening ceremony. That day, TVB began two channels: TVB Jade for Cantonese speakers at 4:30 pm, and TVB Pearl for English speakers at 6:00 pm. The first shows included a variety show called Enjoy Yourself Tonight and a news program called Meet The Press.

Infrastructure development

Hong Kong's hilly landscape made it hard for TVB to send signals everywhere. TVB built transmitters on mountains to cover the area. The main transmitter was on Temple Hill. Two more stations opened in 1968: one on Lamma Island and another at Castle Peak. A third station on Cloudy Hill started later that year, helping more people watch TV.

Development

TVB is known for its popular shows, including dramas like War and Beauty. It also creates many soap operas and variety shows.

The company has sometimes been criticized for making exclusive deals with local celebrities, which some people think is unfair. But many artists can still work with other TV stations.

TVB holds big award ceremonies for music and has been recognized for its community efforts. In 2005, it helped raise money for people affected by a tsunami in South-East Asia. TVB has also expanded into Australia and Europe, providing many channels for viewers there.

Location

TVB began on Broadcast Drive in Kowloon Tong, near RTHK and ATV. In the late 1980s, they needed more room, so they built a new studio called T.V. City in November 1988 at 220 Clear Water Bay Road. This was an old movie studio used by Shaw Brothers since 1958. The old Broadcast Drive place later became apartments, and the first TVB City was used by Celestial Pictures.

In 1998, TVB planned an even bigger headquarters. In October 2003, the new TVB City opened in the Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate. This big building has lots of space for making TV shows, including a large studio that can fit over six hundred people. It is the largest TV studio in Asia for commercial TV stations.

News operation

TVB shows news programs like News at 6:30 on Jade and News at 7:30 on Pearl. It also has two news channels: TVBN and TVBN2. These channels are part of TVB Network Vision.

Subsidiaries

77 Atelier Limited is a Hong Kong television drama studio owned by TVB. It makes stories with smaller teams and works with outside creators. It also works with Chinese streaming services like Youku and Tencent.

TVB Music Group Limited is a record label owned by TVB. It makes music for TV shows and manages singers from TVB competitions. The label started as Stars Shine International, founded by Herman Ho. It was later renamed TVB Music Group after TVB bought part of it. It also has a sublabel called All About Music to support artists from the Stars Academy competition.

Notable shows from TVB

Main article: List of television programmes broadcast by TVB

TVB has made many famous shows over the years. One of the first was Enjoy Yourself Tonight, a fun variety show that ran for a long time. It was like Saturday Night Live. Another well-known show was The Bund, a drama that became popular across Asia.

There have been many loved dramas, like The Legend of the Condor Heroes. This show was based on a famous book and was very popular in Hong Kong. Other hits include Looking Back in Anger, a very popular drama, and War of the Genders, which many think is one of TVB's best comedies. Shows like Triumph in the Skies and A Fist Within Four Walls have also won awards and been very popular.

Corruption probe

Main article: 2010 TVB corruption scandal

In March 2010, the general manager of TVB and four others were arrested for unfair actions. TVB said three of their workers were part of this and could not work while more information was gathered. In September 2010, the general manager was accused, but TVB did not share more details. In September 2011, the court decided that the general manager and the others were not guilty.

Controversy and criticism

Since 2009, some people have said that TVB shows too much support for China in its programs. During big events in 2014 and 2019-2020, TVB was also accused of not reporting news fairly. Because of this, some companies stopped advertising with TVB.

In 2023, some people who own parts of TVB wrote a letter saying that TVB did not tell them the truth about important company matters. They also said that TVB lost a lot of money on some investments and that its online shopping site needed more work.

Decline

In 2018, TVB made some changes. They cut down staff and ended a few shows and channels. A popular sports show stopped, and some online services ended too. More staff left in later years.

In 2020, TVB worked with Chinese companies to grow its business. By 2023, some viewers thought TVB's shows looked too much alike and wanted more creative content. In 2024, TVB combined two channels to save money on costs.

Board of Directors

Senior Management

TVB has a team of leaders who help guide the station. These leaders make big decisions to keep TVB running smoothly.

Channel list

Hong Kong Free-to-air

• TVB Jade
• TVB Plus (formerly TVB J2 & TVB Finance, Sports & Information Channel)
• TVB News Channel
• TVB Pearl

MyTV Super

Main article: MyTV Super

TVB Network Vision stopped its service in 2017, and MyTV Super took its place to offer paid television services. The company name changed to "Big Big Channel". In 2024, Big Big Channel stopped operating.

• Channel 18 (Horse Racing)
• Asian Drama
• Chinese Drama
• Chinese Opera Channel
• Entertainment News
• SUPER Kids Channel
• TVB Classic (Aired Dramas at 2000s to now)
• Super FREE
• Golden Classic (Aired Programming from 1967 to 1999)
• Golden Chinese Drama
• Golden Jade

International

• Asian Action Channel
• Hub Cantonese on Demand (Co-owned with Starhub; Singapore only)
• Hub Drama First (Starhub, Singapore only)
• Fairchild TV (20% ownership; co-owned with Fairchild Group)
• Jadeworld (USA)
• TVB Chinese Opera Channel (International version)
• TVB Entertainment News (International version)
• TVB Jade (International version)
• TVB Korea Channel
• TVB Lifestyle
• TVB News Channel (International version)
• TVB Finance, Sports & Information Channel (International version)
• TVB Vietnam (localised feed licensed for a domestic cable channel)
• TVB Xing He (Asia version only)
• TVB-Europe
• TVB Jade Southeast Asia (Malaysia & Singapore)
• Hub VV Drama (Starhub, Singapore only; Selected TVB Drama in Mandarin dubbed)
• TVB Queen (International version)
• TVB Comedy (International version)

Malaysia

Co-owned with Astro:

• Astro AOD HD
• Astro Wah Lai Toi On Demand
• TVB Classic Malaysia
• TVB Jade Southeast Asia
• TVB Xing He
• TVBS-Asia

Thailand

• TVB Drama Thai Channel (V2H8)
• TVB Thai Treat

Cambodia

• TVB Cambodia Drama
• TVB Cambodia - Romance & Comedy