Bernama TV
Bernama TV is a Malaysian free-to-air news television network. Launched on 28 February 2008, it is owned by Bernama, a government news agency. It airs news programmes that are related to local and international business, lifestyle, sports and entertainment as well as in-house programmes.
Alongside its main focus as a Malay-language news television channel, Bernama TV also produces news and current affairs content in Malaysia's other official languages of English, Chinese, and Tamil across its platforms. It can be viewed nationwide on MYTV Channel 121, Astro Channel 502 and Unifi TV Channel 631.
History
Bernama had wanted to operate its own TV channel in 1996, but was rejected; instead the government recommended to produce video news items similar to Reuters. However, in 2008, Bernama's proposal to have its own channel was tabled on cabinet.Bernama TV was launched in 1998 and began broadcasting on 28 February 2008. Like Radio Televisyen Malaysia's television channels, Bernama TV have some amount of commercial advertising. Its news bulletins were initially aired on Astro Ria, Astro Prima, Astro AEC, Astro Wah Lai Toi and Astro Vaanavil, but they have since been integrated to one Astro network. Its news content is primarily broadcast in Malay. However, there are also news bulletin in English, Mandarin, and Tamil since 2018. Other shows that are broadcast on Bernama TV are flagship talk-shows like Malay-medium Ruang Bicara as well as English-medium The Nation and The Brief.
In the years that followed, Bernama TV established its name through its coverage of key events in Malaysia including the Lahad Datu standoff, the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal and the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple riot.
In 2009, Bernama TV faced financial difficulties when it accumulated losses over RM15 million and would cease broadcasting soon, pending a restructuring plan. This prompted Bernama to look for potential buyers who were interested in buying the channel.
In 2011, Bernama TV's news management were placed under the Information Ministry.
In 2015, the Ministry of Finance granted an allocation to Bernama TV to allowed it resume operations and refurbish its technical equipment.
On 25 May 2016, Bernama TV went into a major rebrand by rebranding itself as Bernama News Channel, only to quietly revert to its original logo and name in October 2019. The staff were offered a contract with Gem Bytes Sdn Bhd on 14th day of the same month and year.
In 2018, Bernama News Channel partnered with iflix where Bernama's news telecast aired on the streaming platform. In 2019, BNC partnered with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to strengthening its communication activities.
In January 2021, Bernama TV became the second television station after RTM, where it began to use sign language interpreter for its news broadcasts.
On 8 October 2021 from 12:00am onwards, Bernama TV switch to broadcasting in HD format.
In 2021, Bernama TV garnered a total of 73 million from viewership on its social media platform. As of May 2022, its viewership increased to 78 million.