Magyar Televízió
Encyclopedia
Magyar Televízió is the Hungarian
national public service television company, with three TV channels, called m1
(m1 HD), m2
(m2 HD) and m3
.
Until July 2002, when the MSZP-SZDSZ government took over the payment of licence fees from members of the public, MTV was funded by the levying of a television licence
on all households with a television
set. As a result of the governments move, funding became dependent on from government grants and television commercials, greatly lessening the independence of MTV. MTV is a member of the EBU
. Since 2011 MTV is more closely integrated with other publicly funded Hungarian media outlets such as Magyar Rádió and Duna Televízió.
Test transmissions commenced in 1954, however these were generally with stills or short clips of motion pictures, merely for experimental purposes. Regular test transmissions could be received from February 23, 1957. Transmissions began officially on 1 May 1957, when the May Day ceremonies were brought to the viewers for the first time. Daily news programmes began on July 2, 1957. The television service began its career as part of Hungarian Radio, which was re-named to Hungarian Radio and Television on August 18, 1957. MTV suggested the establishment of an international organisation for exchanging television material, which was to be named Intervision. The first four members of the organisation were Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Hungary and Poland.
By 1959, Hungarian Television had over 50,000 subscribers. In 1960, the Corporation decided to establish an archive, where its programmes are stored even today. In less than ten years of operation, MTV had some 2.7 million viewers by 1964. Studies showed that there were about 3-5 viewers per television set. Another study revealed that by 1965, 46% of the inhabitants of rural areas named television as their choice of entertainment, instead of reading (25%) or radio (10%).
Theatrical transmissions were popular at this time: in 1966 23 plays were broadcast from Budapest
, 20 from other cities. Also, 25 television movies and five musicals were transmitted this year.
1969 brought the one millionth subscriber, which meant about 4 million viewers. The first colour recording was made this year: it was Bartók
's The Miraculous Mandarin. Although the Orion company
presented its first colour television set, transmissions continued to be in black-and-white until 1971.
, and cable television began in Székesfehérvár
the same year. RTV, a programme guide similar to BBC
's Radio Times
was bought by 1.4 million viewers weekly. MTV's gradual decline began in 1985, this was the final year when MTV was self-sufficient.
The first broadcast of a telenovela on Hungarian television happened in the mid-1980s with the premier of the Brazilian Escrava Isaura (Hungarian title: Rabszolgasors - "Slave Destiny" in English). The first Hungarian soap opera Szomszédok
(Hungarian for "Neighbors") also started its 12-year-run in 7 May 1987 and was broadcasted every second Thursday.
By the late 1980s, experimental digital television recordings were made, but at the time only in studios. From 1988 seniors of 70 years were exempted from payment of the licence fee. Minority programmes in other languages began too: these programmes were recorded generally in regional studios, primarily in Pécs
and Szeged
. The second programme of MTV was given some independence from the first, and just like at the BBC
, they were given separate controllers.
By 1989 the service began broadcasting five days per week to prepare the seven days, as previously Monday only. Some exceptions were made from this practice, for example when the first Hungarian cosmonaut, Bertalan Farkas
entered space. Nap-kelte
(Daybreak), a daily television magazine programme began in 1989, the first programme to be made by an independent Hungarian television company, namely Nap-TV
.
MTV was admitted as a full active member of the European Broadcasting Union
on January 1, 1993. In 1994, a new public service television station was started, and was named Duna TV
. This was completely independent from MTV, although some collaboration exists between the two. Commercial channels became available to cable
viewers in Budapest
the same year.
In 1997, TV2
, a commercial channel was to be launched on the frequency where m2
used to be. However, MTV argued that by doing this, its audience would be given to the new channel as a present, which would mean severe disadvantage to both MTV and RTL Klub
, the other debutee commercial channel. The authorities decided to leave the frequency empty, and allocate a new frequency to TV2. m2, however, was still moved to satellite and cable reception only, which, at the time was quite rare. The programming available on MTV-2 was aimed at audiences which were most unlikely to receive the channel, so this meant a severe handicap for the company. Currently the company is recuperating from the decline earlier.
During the nineties the MTV gradually lost its independence and became the voice of the all-time government, often accused of biased on commenting news . Currently it is one of the most popular sources of news, and its background news programmes such as Az Este (The Evening) are both liked and internationally recognised. Its line-up of programmes feature long-running shows, such as the science news programme Delta, whilst other programmes like A Hét (The Week), a weekly review programme and Ablak (Window), an afternoon-long umbrella programme featuring general interest programmes, were both axed in recent years.
Whilst remaining entirely state-owned, the company was re-organised as a Closely Held Corporation. Its funding has changed significantly too when TV licencing stopped in 2002. This meant that the company is entirely relying on the government grants, and since it is a Closely Held Corporation, it isn't allowed to go public. The lack of funding has a strong influence on both the quality and quantity of programming.
The 2006 protests
didn't leave the headquarters unscatched; in fact, it was occupied by the rioters for a short time.
In 1997, m1 was a 24 hours TV station with m2. But in 2000 they follow the suggestion from the government so they let m1 close again. But m2 still being 24 hours.
network for trademark infringement when MTV Music Television launched a Hungarian-language channel
in 2007. The suit is still ongoing.
on Szabadság tér (Freedom Square), across the Hungarian National Bank (Magyar Nemzeti Bank), the U.S. Embassy, and near to the Parliament
. The building gave room to the Stock Exchange before the war. It is sold now and MTV has moved to the outskirts of Budapest to a purpose-built modern building. The old headquarters can be reached by a 5 minutes walk from Kossuth tér where Metro
line 2 stops.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
national public service television company, with three TV channels, called m1
M1 (TV channel)
m1 is a Hungarian television channel own and operated by Magyar Televízió. It is also transmitted in high definition.It was 24 hours in 2000 along with m2...
(m1 HD), m2
M2 (TV channel)
m2 is a Hungarian television channel own and operated by Magyar Televízió. It is also transmitted in high definition.-Transmission Hours throughout the years:...
(m2 HD) and m3
M3 (TV channel)
m3 is a Hungarian television channel own and operated by Magyar Televízió.It can only be watched online, at .-External links:** at TVARK...
.
Until July 2002, when the MSZP-SZDSZ government took over the payment of licence fees from members of the public, MTV was funded by the levying of a television licence
Television licence
A television licence is an official licence required in many countries for the reception of television broadcasts...
on all households with a television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
set. As a result of the governments move, funding became dependent on from government grants and television commercials, greatly lessening the independence of MTV. MTV is a member of the EBU
European Broadcasting Union
The European Broadcasting Union is a confederation of 74 broadcasting organisations from 56 countries, and 49 associate broadcasters from a further 25...
. Since 2011 MTV is more closely integrated with other publicly funded Hungarian media outlets such as Magyar Rádió and Duna Televízió.
The Early Years (1954-1969)
First pioneer transmissions were in Hotel Gellért in 1936.Test transmissions commenced in 1954, however these were generally with stills or short clips of motion pictures, merely for experimental purposes. Regular test transmissions could be received from February 23, 1957. Transmissions began officially on 1 May 1957, when the May Day ceremonies were brought to the viewers for the first time. Daily news programmes began on July 2, 1957. The television service began its career as part of Hungarian Radio, which was re-named to Hungarian Radio and Television on August 18, 1957. MTV suggested the establishment of an international organisation for exchanging television material, which was to be named Intervision. The first four members of the organisation were Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Hungary and Poland.
By 1959, Hungarian Television had over 50,000 subscribers. In 1960, the Corporation decided to establish an archive, where its programmes are stored even today. In less than ten years of operation, MTV had some 2.7 million viewers by 1964. Studies showed that there were about 3-5 viewers per television set. Another study revealed that by 1965, 46% of the inhabitants of rural areas named television as their choice of entertainment, instead of reading (25%) or radio (10%).
Theatrical transmissions were popular at this time: in 1966 23 plays were broadcast from Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, 20 from other cities. Also, 25 television movies and five musicals were transmitted this year.
1969 brought the one millionth subscriber, which meant about 4 million viewers. The first colour recording was made this year: it was Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
's The Miraculous Mandarin. Although the Orion company
Orion (company)
Orion Electronics Ltd was established in 1913 in Hungary. Started as a manufacturer of electrical bulbs, Orion has been producing electronic goods since the 1920s.Radio production started in 1920s and televisions in 1956...
presented its first colour television set, transmissions continued to be in black-and-white until 1971.
The 1970s
1971 brought the first regular transmission in colour, and the test transmissions of a second channel were begun as well. This decade was probably the most proliferous in the history of the whole company, with thousands of hours of programming made.The 1980s
Annual programming time reached 4.300 hours, equalling to 83 hours a week. Teletext services commenced in 1981, called Képújság (Picture Newspaper), and television manufacturers started including teletext decoders in their sets. Long-running programmes were started in this decade, including Ablak (Window) and Panoráma (a foreign affairs programme). Regional programming began in 1984 in PécsPécs
Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county...
, and cable television began in Székesfehérvár
Székesfehérvár
Székesfehérvár is a city in central Hungary and is the 9th largest in the country. Located around southwest of Budapest. It is inhabited by 101,973 people , with 136,995 in the Székesfehérvár Subregion. The city is the centre of Fejér county and the regional centre of Central Transdanubia...
the same year. RTV, a programme guide similar to BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Radio Times
Radio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
was bought by 1.4 million viewers weekly. MTV's gradual decline began in 1985, this was the final year when MTV was self-sufficient.
The first broadcast of a telenovela on Hungarian television happened in the mid-1980s with the premier of the Brazilian Escrava Isaura (Hungarian title: Rabszolgasors - "Slave Destiny" in English). The first Hungarian soap opera Szomszédok
Szomszédok
Szomszédok was a Hungarian TV series, occasionally called the Hungarian Dallas, that ran from 1987–1999 and produced 331 episodes, airing its grand finale on December 30, 1999....
(Hungarian for "Neighbors") also started its 12-year-run in 7 May 1987 and was broadcasted every second Thursday.
By the late 1980s, experimental digital television recordings were made, but at the time only in studios. From 1988 seniors of 70 years were exempted from payment of the licence fee. Minority programmes in other languages began too: these programmes were recorded generally in regional studios, primarily in Pécs
Pécs
Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county...
and Szeged
Szeged
' is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county town of Csongrád county. The University of Szeged is one of the most distinguished universities in Hungary....
. The second programme of MTV was given some independence from the first, and just like at the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, they were given separate controllers.
By 1989 the service began broadcasting five days per week to prepare the seven days, as previously Monday only. Some exceptions were made from this practice, for example when the first Hungarian cosmonaut, Bertalan Farkas
Bertalan Farkas
Bertalan Farkas was the first Hungarian cosmonaut and the first Esperantist in space. He is currently the president of Airlines Service and Trade...
entered space. Nap-kelte
Nap-kelte
Nap-kelte is the long-running daily morning programme on m1, the first channel of Magyar Televízió . It is the flagship programme of its producer, Nap TV, a privately-owned producer of television programmes from Hungary. It has been on-air since 1989...
(Daybreak), a daily television magazine programme began in 1989, the first programme to be made by an independent Hungarian television company, namely Nap-TV
Nap TV
Nap Televízió is a privately-owned producer of television programmes. It makes daily television programmes for Hungarian Television, called Nap-kelte . The company's first programmes appeared on-screen in 1989, and have run continuously ever since. Between 1999 and 2002 its programmes were...
.
The 1990s
With the changeover from socialism, MTV was completely re-structured, some posts were abolished while others were created. Some programmes were axed from both channels, and new ones were started. This decade was a very hectic time in the life of the Company, as TV-presidents seemed to come and go, and so did the programmes.MTV was admitted as a full active member of the European Broadcasting Union
European Broadcasting Union
The European Broadcasting Union is a confederation of 74 broadcasting organisations from 56 countries, and 49 associate broadcasters from a further 25...
on January 1, 1993. In 1994, a new public service television station was started, and was named Duna TV
Duna TV
Duna TV or Duna Televízió is one of two public television services in Hungary. "Duna" is the Hungarian name for the Danube. Duna TV operates two channels: Channel 1 and Channel 2-Autonómia....
. This was completely independent from MTV, although some collaboration exists between the two. Commercial channels became available to cable
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
viewers in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
the same year.
In 1997, TV2
TV2 (Hungary)
TV2 is a Hungarian commercial television channel operating since 1997, providing a large variety of programming. It is owned by ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG...
, a commercial channel was to be launched on the frequency where m2
M2 (TV channel)
m2 is a Hungarian television channel own and operated by Magyar Televízió. It is also transmitted in high definition.-Transmission Hours throughout the years:...
used to be. However, MTV argued that by doing this, its audience would be given to the new channel as a present, which would mean severe disadvantage to both MTV and RTL Klub
RTL Klub
RTL Klub is a television station owned by RTL Group and broadcast in Hungary. It was one of Hungary's first commercial TV channels and was only two days after the main rival TV2 to begin broadcasting.-About RTL Klub:...
, the other debutee commercial channel. The authorities decided to leave the frequency empty, and allocate a new frequency to TV2. m2, however, was still moved to satellite and cable reception only, which, at the time was quite rare. The programming available on MTV-2 was aimed at audiences which were most unlikely to receive the channel, so this meant a severe handicap for the company. Currently the company is recuperating from the decline earlier.
During the nineties the MTV gradually lost its independence and became the voice of the all-time government, often accused of biased on commenting news . Currently it is one of the most popular sources of news, and its background news programmes such as Az Este (The Evening) are both liked and internationally recognised. Its line-up of programmes feature long-running shows, such as the science news programme Delta, whilst other programmes like A Hét (The Week), a weekly review programme and Ablak (Window), an afternoon-long umbrella programme featuring general interest programmes, were both axed in recent years.
The 2000s
MTV is continuously underfinanced, just like many other public service channels around the globe, and is therefore struggling to produce programmes.Whilst remaining entirely state-owned, the company was re-organised as a Closely Held Corporation. Its funding has changed significantly too when TV licencing stopped in 2002. This meant that the company is entirely relying on the government grants, and since it is a Closely Held Corporation, it isn't allowed to go public. The lack of funding has a strong influence on both the quality and quantity of programming.
The 2006 protests
2006 protests in Hungary
The 2006 protests in Hungary were a series of anti-government protests triggered by the release of Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány's private speech in which he confessed that his Hungarian Socialist Party had lied to win the 2006 election, and had done nothing worth mentioning in the...
didn't leave the headquarters unscatched; in fact, it was occupied by the rioters for a short time.
In 1997, m1 was a 24 hours TV station with m2. But in 2000 they follow the suggestion from the government so they let m1 close again. But m2 still being 24 hours.
The future of MTV
The building where MTV currently resides has been sold, and plans have been made to re-locate the Company in one of the outer districts of Budapest. Although no specific plans have been disclosed so far, it was announced that a purpose-built complex will be erected to house the Hungarian Television.MTV Trademark Suit
Magyar Televízió, who has a trademark on the initials MTV registered with the Hungarian copyright office, sued the American MTV Music TelevisionMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
network for trademark infringement when MTV Music Television launched a Hungarian-language channel
MTV Hungary
MTV Hungary is a television channel broadcasting to Hungary. It started on October 1, 2007. The channel is available on cable/digital television and hosts a number of localised programming and presenters.-Local Shows:* Swung* Alternative Nation...
in 2007. The suit is still ongoing.
Location
The Hungarian Television's central building was located in the heart of BudapestBudapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
on Szabadság tér (Freedom Square), across the Hungarian National Bank (Magyar Nemzeti Bank), the U.S. Embassy, and near to the Parliament
Hungarian Parliament Building
The Hungarian Parliament Building is the seat of the National Assembly of Hungary, one of Europe's oldest legislative buildings, a notable landmark of Hungary and a popular tourist destination of Budapest. It lies in Lajos Kossuth Square, on the bank of the Danube, in Budapest...
. The building gave room to the Stock Exchange before the war. It is sold now and MTV has moved to the outskirts of Budapest to a purpose-built modern building. The old headquarters can be reached by a 5 minutes walk from Kossuth tér where Metro
Budapest Metro
The Budapest Metro is the rapid transit system in the Hungarian capital Budapest. It is the second-oldest underground metro system in the world after the London Underground. Its iconic Line 1, dating from 1896, was declared a World Heritage Site in 2002.-Lines:The Metro consists of three lines,...
line 2 stops.
External links
- MTV Online (in Hungarian)