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Channel Nine has again refreshed itself, this time with the tagline ‘Welcome Home’.

There use of the Black Eyed Pea’s track “I Gotta Feeling” comes hot off the heels of CBS doing the same thing, but I guess that’s the price you pay for using overly predictable Top 40 music in your promotions.

For more from the new look check out this.

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One of the great promises of digital multichanneling has always been the ability finally play out series with some regularity and respect to the audience. Channel Nine, the most middle of the road of the Australian networks flicked the switch on its new general entertainment digital channel tonight, with that promise at its core.

And for a broadcaster that hasn’t shown much in the way of innovation lately, its only apt that best name they could come up with was Go! (I’m sure they’re aware of the riotous success the name has had as failed internet portal, and a defunct airline, but third time is a charm I’m sure).

I would’ve loved to have seen the names they rejected..

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Australia’s Funniest Home Videos now has one redeeming feature.. this swish new title sequence and its very cool spaghetti lettering.

- Thanks for the video Alex, and sorry again for.. well you know.

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As part of the massive marketing effort to promote to Baz Luhrmann’s new flick Australia, the Nine Network has been running a series of line-ups and idents themed around the movie. The odd combination of an epic film, and a line up featuring Two and a Half Men doesn’t exactly make sense, but very little does on Nine.

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The occasionally highest rating news service in Australia, the Nine News (formerly National Nine News) got a visual refresh this month.

Unfortunately the new look is huge step down from previous incarnations, with superfluous lines flying everywhere and ever classy solar flares, accompanied by a confusing combination of orange and blue, its less flagship-news-bulletin and more lifestyle-travel-show.

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“You make me want to shout”.. is not a slogan I would associate with a television network, there are just too many ways to turn it around on them.

But then again this hilariously bad promo for Channel Nine is 18 years old, coming to us from 1990. And perhaps back then, times were simpler, and marketing departments didn’t have to worry about what bloggers would say about them.

- Thanks to Sam for digging this up from the archives.

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Last week Channel Nine became the last of the commercial networks to begin broadcasting breakaway programming on their HD channel.

Nine HD joins the heavily promoted Ten HD, and the first on the scene 7HD.

While its very much early days for multichanneling in Australia, the real fun should begin January 1st next year when the networks get the chance to start broadcasting additional SD channels, and finally fulfilling the promise of digital television by hopefully embracing UK style multichanneling… e7, TenTwo, 9b etc.

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Channel Nine rebooted its Wide World of Sports franchise last Sunday and opened its first episode back in a over a decade with a look back at the shows history and various opening sequences.

- Big thanks to Christian for the video, much appreciated.

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…to get to the middle. And thus sums up my opinion of Channel Nine’s relaunch of their on-air look. One day a commercial network in Australia will do something interesting or a touch daring with their appearance, but today is not that day. The screenshot above is just one of the many generic images that litter this video.

To check out some genuinely innovative and creative idents have a look at S4/C from Wales, good od’ BBC One, the always entertaining Channel 4, or how about even MTV South America or Australia’s SBS back when they played idents.

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Slogan’s are tricky things, trying to distill an organisations entire mission into just a few words is a daunting task, but it can completely change a companies image.

Apple’s ‘Think Different‘ slogan is seen as a turning point for the company, ‘Got Milk?‘ turned dairy sales around in the US, and the beautifully meaningless ‘Just Do It‘ from Nike is still doing its job. One slogan you won’t hear people talking about in years to come however is Channel Nine’s new trainwreck of a promise.. “We Heart TV”.

Ah yes, the Nine Network, source of inspiration to poets across the ages.

That is Crikey’s critique of Channel Nine’s laughable new slogan, which honestly couldn’t be more a more inappropriate tag line if they tried, it’s up there with ‘Fair & Balanced‘.

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Update: The ABC explains everything slightly more eloquently here.

The fight for the next Prime Minister of Australia is well underway, and this evening the current PM John Howard faced his rival Kevin Rudd in the first (and possibly only) debate of this election campaign.

The debate was telecast on the ABC, as well as commercial network Channel Nine and news channel Sky. And while the debate was largely an exchange of speeches between the two men, there was some drama behind the scenes. Basically the event was being recorded by the ABC (for the first time since 1993), under an agreement with the organisers of the event, the National Press Club. The ABC agreed to supply a clean feed of the debate to any broadcaster that wanted it, however when Channel Nine included the worm in its broadcasts against the wishes of National Press Club there feed was pulled, forcing Nine to “pirate” a feed from Sky News.

Unfortunately that technical back and fourth (further explained in the videos above) was about the most interesting thing about the evening, for a slightly more interesting, if only fictional election debate, check out The West Wing’s live debate from the shows final season after the jump..

From: Episode “The Debate” Source: blip.tv

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Weeds is a brilliant show, and just like with Big Love you don’t have to be into polygamy (or in this case marijuana) to appreciate it.

Season three has just started in the US, but fans have probably already seen the first four episodes which were leaked pre TX with all but the blessing of the shows creator (don’t you love progressive television folk?).

Channel Nine have started spruiking the September/October return of season two with this promo. Now I don’t know if its just me, but the music choice/volume just seems totally incorrect even for my young ears. When I first saw it, I actually thought iTunes had started playing over it, thats how disconnected it seems from the footage.

Now, if you’re eagerly awaiting the shows return on Nine, firstly let me welcome you to the club of Weeds fans, but for the love of god, just download it, you know Nine is going to end up pissing you off somehow.

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Channel 9 is no longer the one, the dramatic fall, the “spiritual death” if you will of Australia’s once favourite television network is the subject of Gerald Stone’s new book, Who Killed Channel 9? The Death of Kerry Packer’s Dream Machine.

Stone was on this mornings Weekend Sunrise talking about the book, the possible movie adaptation, morale at Nine and why it matters who owns and runs our television broadcasters.

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I feel like I’ve been talking about morning television a lot lately, or maybe just even a little of it is too much for me. Either way, here is the open to this mornings Kerri Anne, and her less then ceremonious entrance to her 1000th episode.

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Alan Jones delivered his final editorial on the Today Show last Friday. I’m surprised he lasted this long, but I’m also surprised about a lot of things that happen at Nine.

Bask in his final words in the video above. Unfortunately he’s not going away for good though, with new videos starting soon on 2GB’s website. I really have no time for Alan Jones, but he’s always fun to laugh at. (Thanks for the video Naomi).

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Tracy, Jessica, Sarah, Kellie.. and now Lisa. A new female host for the Nine Network’s Today show started yesterday, and while the usual first-day-of-a-new-host ratings were up, they weren’t as high as when Mrs Murdoch started her run, and quite frankly Nicole Kidman could host the show, but after the first day curiosities, the ratings would go back to what they are always are.

I have to agree with Crikey, and ask why “is Karl Stefanovic a protected species? After all, he and Richard Wilkins have been tried and found wanting by viewers — so why aren’t they boning candidates?”. They’re rumours that the show will be making the Sunrise-esque move to Park Street to be part of the city bustle, but besides people holding “watch Sunrise” banners in the background I’m not sure what good it will do.

The show needs to relaunch completely, new name, new set, and an actual focus, well, a focus beyond just copying Sunrise. If Sunrise is the friendly breakfast show, why not make Today the serious news breakfast show? Karl’s already dressed for it.

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A Current Affair’s lead story tonight was about the success of The Chaser’s War on Everything, it kind of felt like your grandfather explaining YouTube to you, and expecting you to be impressed.

It was a nothing piece that alluded to the show being offered money to switch to a commercial network. I’m all for it getting more publicity, but I think it can do without the ACA crowd.

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Apple announced the iPhone early yesterday morning Australian time, and like every other Mac toting 21-year-old I obviously want one. The only problem is it won’t be released here until 2008.

That didn’t stop SBS, Seven, Ten and Nine all covering the story in their evening bulletins (what, too good to plug an unreleased product ABC?). I’m unashamedly an Apple fan (heck I own shares), but I just can’t think of another company that makes this big of a positive splash (see videos) a year out from release.

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Sarah Murdoch (née O’Hare) has been filling in for Jessica Rowe while she’s on maternity leave from the Today show, this clip is pretty much the extent of what I’ve watched of it though.

If the Today show does ever improve it will be the greatest second act in breakfast television history. The news department is a reflection of the entire network, its literally the on-air face and voice of the people who work there, and if you don’t like it, I don’t see how you can have a positive opinion of the rest of the channel.

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Caught these while I was in Sydney a few months ago, obviously the Jana Wendt one probably isn’t running anymore, but not sure about the others.

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The Chaser may do a good job putting A Current Affair and Today Tonight in its place, but nothing is quite as fun as the crap these two shows come out with themselves.

So with Naomi Robson being deported from Indonesia while trying to save Wa Wa from cannibals, lets have a look at how the two rival networks covered the event.

And be sure to see the story following the Wa Wa report, its good to see so much diversity.

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Like I’ve said before Canberra only gets the SBS EPG, but on my recent night in Sydney I managed to capture Nine’s new guide, and Seven’s as well. Ten’s remains embarrassingly out of date so I didn’t bother with it.

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All seemed kind of… blah. They’ve taken a unique show and turned it into everything else on television, must miss.

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Jana Wendt’s final seeya on today’s Sunday program. The show is being retooled and the new “chattier”, Weekend Sunrise’d version will be hosted by Ellen Fanning and Ross Greenwood (neither of whom I recall ever being that interesting).

So, has Eddie done anything to help the image of Nine since becoming boss?

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The opening of Canberra’s other full length local news, Win. I don’t know enough about the technical side of things, but they must be filming it with handycams because the quality is just horrible.

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First it was the Chaser that showed us the video of the Today show making a continued fool of itself, well now Media Watch has taken a look at the Tapestry of Seven vs Nine.

This video also includes the famous “Ambulance chaser” promo that Nine ran during the miners interview.

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Its been nearly a year since I last compared the three commercial news opening sequences, and while not much has changed for Seven or Ten (except the Rowe thing), Nine have been tinkering away.

These were all captured last night, so they all compare the same stories, and they are all dominated by the backdown of the Prime Minister over the sale of the Snowy Hydro.

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Like you needed another reason not to watch the Today show, but The Chaser’s War found one…

Jessica, I feel quite safe yes, and not because I’ve got these armed soldiers behind me, who were put there by your stage manager here to make it look good, I don’t need these guys here.

- Brigadier Michael Slater, responding to Jessica Rowe on the Today show asking him about how he feels about his own safety.

In an ominous start to the Australian TV download scene the Nine network is offering this week’s episode of McLeod’s Daughters available for download for free. After that though it will cost $1.95 an episode and you won’t own the video, you’ll just have a license to watch it for five days.

It doesn’t work on a Mac (of course), and I’m still struggling to get it download on my Mum’s Compaq, instead of just letting you download the file they have this tortured flash interface which is still loading.

Several minutes later… It’s all loaded now and after downloading a “download manager” I’ve started to get my 460mb file of a show that hardly seems the most compelling program to launch a service with.

The SMH has reported that Nine apparently gazumped Seven who are also working on a download service, hopefully the Sunrise network will offer something a bit more useful though.

To give it a go yourself (as long as you don’t have a Mac) click here.

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The Nine Network and BBC coverage of the Commonwealth Games. I think I like the BBC music better.