Phoenix Television


Phoenix Television is a partially state-owned television network that offers Mandarin and Cantonese-language channels that serve the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and other markets with substantial Chinese-language viewers. It is operated by Phoenix Satellite Television Holdings Ltd, a television broadcaster with headquarters in Mainland China and Hong Kong. It is also registered in Cayman Islands.
The CEO and founder of Phoenix TV, Liu Changle, was an officer and political instructor in the People's Liberation Army in its 40th Group Army. He later became a journalist for the Communist Party of China-controlled China National Radio after the Cultural Revolution and remains well-connected to the Party's leadership. Liu is a standing member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Phoenix Television calls itself a Hong Kong media and holds a non-domestic television programme services licence in Hong Kong. Most of the company's customers and non-current assets come from Mainland China.
The company's head offices are located in Shenzhen, China and Tai Po, New Territories, Hong Kong and it also has correspondent offices in Beijing and Shanghai. The Shenzhen office is said to produce half its TV output.

History

What eventually became Phoenix Television started as a joint venture between STAR TV in Hong Kong, one private company in China, and China Central Television.
Phoenix Chinese Channel was launched on 31 March 1996. It replaced Star Chinese Channel in Hong Kong and Mainland China; Star Chinese Channel remained available to the viewers in Taiwan and some parts of Mainland China.
Phoenix Chinese Channel, Phoenix Movies Channel and Phoenix InfoNews Channel are broadcast via cable in Hong Kong and via satellite to Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Mainland China and other regions globally.
The Phoenix InfoNews Channel was established on 1 January 2001. It was the first Chinese-language channel to cover news from the regions of Greater China, including mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. It offers 24-hour financial news, stock market information and global news headlines, supported by expert comment and analysis.
In January 2003, the Chinese State Administration of Radio, Films and Television granted landing rights to Phoenix InfoNews Channel.
The Phoenix CNE channel broadcasts in Europe, while the Phoenix North America Chinese Channel goes out in the Americas. In 2005, a California-based broadcast and engineering director for the channel, Tai Wang Mak, was arrested for conspiring with his brother, Chi Mak, to act as an intelligence agent for China. A 10-year prison sentence was announced in 2008.
On 28 March 2011, Phoenix Television launched Phoenix Hong Kong Channel, broadcasting exclusively in Cantonese.
In 2011, Phoenix New Media formed a partnership with the BBC to offer the British broadcaster's programming on Phoenix's digital media platforms. This was followed by a similar partnership with the National Film Board of Canada in 2012, under which 130 NFB animated shorts and documentary films would be offered digitally in China.
In October 2013, the 12.15% of shares in Phoenix Television held by 21st Century Fox were sold to TPG Capital for HK$1.66 billion. This and the 2014 sale of Star China Media marked 21st Century Fox's exit from the Mandarin entertainment television market in mainland China.
In February 2016, Phoenix Television broadcast forced confessions of kidnapped Hong Kong booksellers.
In April 2020, Senator Ted Cruz announced that he would introduce legislation to mandate that the Federal Communications Commission revoke the broadcast license of a radio station, XEWW-AM, linked to Phoenix Television, which he claimed to have used radio towers in Mexico to skirt U.S. prohibitions against foreign propaganda dissemination. In June 2020, the FCC ordered XEWW-AM to cease broadcasting.

Channels

Phoenix TV operates the following channels:
  1. Phoenix Chinese Channel, launched March 1996, in China
  2. * Phoenix Chinese Channel Australia Edition, launched August 1999
  3. * Phoenix Chinese Channel Japan Edition, launched September 2009
  4. Phoenix Movies Channel, launched August 1998. It is now an encrypted pay-television service in China and worldwide.
  5. Phoenix InfoNews Channel, launched January 2001, a 24-hour news channel.
  6. Phoenix North America Chinese Channel, launched January 2001, which now broadcasts on both EchoStar and DirectTV satellite systems and shares programming with "Phoenix Chinese News and Entertainment Channel".
  7. Phoenix Chinese News and Entertainment Channel, launched August 1999, which is now a 24-hour channel based in London and broadcast via satellite Eurobird 1 across Europe.
  8. Phoenix Hong Kong Channel, launched on 28 March 2011, a Cantonese channel.

    Programmes

Phoenix features a mix of programmes, ranging from political and economic news and current affairs through talk shows, film and music reviews to movies, and mini-series of both Chinese and foreign origin.
Since 1 September 2001, Phoenix Television has broadcast a range of United Nations television programming including 57 episodes of "UN in Action", 39 episodes of "World Chronicle", and several award-winning documentaries. Phoenix is co-operating with the United Nations to produce further programmes.
A paid-for Phoenix service uses WAP, which facilitates news messages over mobile technology.

Corporate governance

Ownership

At launch, Star TV and a private sector company in China each owned 45% of the company, and state broadcaster China Central Television owned the remaining 10%.
The original News Corporation's shares in Phoenix Television held through Star were gradually reduced over the years. Finally, 21st Century Fox sold its shares to TPG Capital in October 2013.
According to the company's 2018 annual report, the company is owned by the following entities:
NameSharesPercentageNote
Today's Asia Limited1,854,000,00037.13%A company beneficially owned by Liu Changle.
Extra Step Investments Limited983,000,00019.69%A company owned by China Mobile Hong Kong, which is a part of state-owned China Mobile.
TPG China Media, L.P.607,000,00012.16%Part of TPG Capital and beneficially controlled by David Bonderman and James Coulter.
China Wise International Limited412,000,0008.25%China Wise is owned by Bank of China, which is owned by Central Huijin Investment, a subsidiary of the government's China Investment Corporation sovereign wealth fund, which reports to the State Council of the People's Republic of China.

Management

Liu Changle, CEO and founder of Phoenix TV, was a journalist for the Communist Party of China-controlled China National Radio after the Cultural Revolution and had become one of China's richest men by the 1990s, being well-connected to the Beijing leadership.
Shuang Liu became COO of Phoenix TV on 17 February 2014. He continues to be the CEO of Phoenix New Media Ltd, a new media company in China.
Former director of Phoenix TV news Chung Pong testified under oath that Phoenix TV news’ programing was "subject to the dictates of the leadership of the Central Communist Propaganda Department, Central Communist Overseas Propaganda Office, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

Key staff

Mandarin news anchors

Phoenix Television features many well-known news anchors and talk show hosts. Most are bilingual in Mandarin Chinese and English.
Some of their key news presenters are: