Network 10 channels to leave three regional Australian markets

Terrestrial Network 10 channels will disappear from television screens in Mount Gambier, South Australia’s Riverland and Griffith in New South Wales after WIN Network failed to reach a new agreement with Network 10, ABC News Australia reports. WIN said its final broadcasts of 10, 10 Drama and 10 Comedy in the affected markets would be on Friday, October 9. The licensee had earlier warned that its agreement with Network 10 would expire, but viewers received a three-month extension while the parties negotiated.

A WIN spokesperson said providing the services was no longer viable. The company cited high transmission and infrastructure costs in regional markets, alongside continuing digital disruption and declining audiences and advertising revenue. Network 10 said it had worked with WIN to explore ways of maintaining local access to its content.

However, it said WIN had advised that continuing to operate the channels was not commercially viable. Viewers will still be able to access Network 10 content online and through its app, according to the network. WIN holds the broadcast licences in the three affected regions.

The decision follows the loss of Seven Network channels in the same markets after Seven and WIN failed to reach an agreement before a previous deal expired. Those channels were later restored after a shutdown lasting several days. A similar development occurred in Mildura, Victoria, in 2024, when Mildura Digital Television closed.

Seven and WIN, which co-owned the service, said operating it no longer made commercial sense because it had been unprofitable. The ABC said Federal Communications Minister Anika Wells had been contacted for comment. WIN said the decision reflected the broader economics of regional broadcasting and warned that those conditions would continue to make services difficult to maintain.