Indigenous Community Television

Australian television channel

Indigenous Community Television (ICTV) is an Australian free to view digital television channel on the Viewer Access Satellite Television service. It broadcasts television programs produced by, and for, Indigenous Australians in remote communities. The channel is owned by membership based company Indigenous Community Television Limited. Although ICTV is a community television channel by name and content, it broadcasts using an open narrowcast licence instead of a standard community television licence.

In 2001, ICTV Limited was formed and began broadcasting a part time segment on Imparja Info Channel, an open narrowcast community style channel already broadcasting occasional indigenous content from Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Media (PY Media) and Warlpiri Media Association (PAW Media). The channel operated from Imparja's broadcast facility in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, and was available on the Optus Aurora satellite service and via Imparja's analogue terrestrial transmitter network. The segment from ICTV was named 'IRCA in Action' and showcased predominantly local indigenous programs from a range of remote indigenous media organisations, including PAKAM, Ngaanyatjarra Media (NG Media) and organisations such as Bushvision. By 2006, the programming from ICTV grew to encompass the channel 24 hours a day and the satellite channel was renamed to ICTV. Many remote indigenous communities in central and north eastern Australia had analogue terrestrial repeaters for this channel, which utilised community licences and later open narrowcasting licences. Remote communities with analogue terrestrial repeaters had begun to install equipment to automatically switch the NITV channel to Westlink Network every weekend. On 18 April 2013, ICTV officially relaunched and began broadcasting 24 hours a day on virtual channel number 601 in standard definition 576i format. A launch party was held at the PAW Media grounds in Yuendumu, Northern Territory to mark the occasion. ICTV commenced broadcasting in Alice Springs on 5 April 2017, after being awarded a digital terrestrial free to air licence. The channel resides on virtual channel number 41.

ICTV broadcasts a diverse range of indigenous programming, usually in the language of its contributors. Regular contributions are made by Aboriginal Resource and Development Services (ARDS), Pilbara and Kimberley Aboriginal Media (PAKAM), Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Media (PY Media), Warlpiri Media Association (PAW Media), Ngaanyatjarra Media (NG Media) and Broome Aboriginal Media Association (BAMA).