RTL (Hungarian TV channel)
RTL (formerly: RTL Klub and abbreviated as RTL HU) is a Hungarian free-to-air television channel owned by RTL Group.
Country
1222 Budapest, Nagytétényi út 29. (Media Center Campona)
RTL Magyarország
Gabriella Vidus, CEO
Dr. Péter Kolosi, Programming Director
7 October 1997 (as RTL Klub)
RTL Klub (1997–2022)
Channel 7 (SD)
History[edit]
Since its start, RTL Klub has focused to gain viewers from the urban population. The channel airs programs mostly for a younger (18-49) audience.
RTL Klub rebranded again in early September 1999. The idents consists of two elements (fire and water), with the eye motif being introduced for the first time.
On 17 December 2001, RTL Klub adapted another new identity, designed by Dogfish and focuses on people which then zoom into their eyes.
RTL Klub and TV2 aired two similar major reality series simultaneously. While TV2 purchased the rights of Big Brother, RTL Klub produced its own series called Való Világ (Real World). Való Világ had three seasons between 2002 and 2004. Since its second season the show has been much more successful than the rival Big Brother.
RTL Klub is the most watched TV channel in Hungary since 2002, thanks to the daily Hungarian soap opera Barátok közt (Among Friends), which is the most watched TV programme in Hungary with more than 2 million viewers; the tabloid magazine Fókusz (Focus) and the game show Legyen Ön is milliomos (Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?). Millionaire is off the schedule from September 2007 after seven years and has replaced by A Széf (Take It Or Leave It).
Before these idents were introduced, three teasers featuring Naná (the mascot that appeared on most idents itself, usually walking and enclosed in a dark red circle) would air during commercial blocks from late March 2003 until the moment when these idents would be eventually introduced on April 19 that year. These idents sometimes featured short 2D and 3D animations involving Naná itself. This was the last identity package with the "coloured" on screen bug, the next package had it changed into transparent gray.
From the fall-winter season of 2005–2006, RTL Klub has started to broadcast popular American TV shows like Lost. The first episode of Lost had almost 2 million viewers, and a 50% share. This was a record. The next year Prison Break started with almost 1.6 million. Nowadays a TV show at prime time (21:00) can reach 1-1.5 million viewers. In season 2006–2007 Prison Break was the most watched American series in Hungary.
From the fall season of 2007, RTL Klub has launched two new formats with great success. Poker Face ran like a tournament for six weeks with an average 38-42% share. The other new show was Csillag születik, the Hungarian version of the RTL Got Talent format. Poker Face ended with the super final at 18 December and the time slot of it will be occupied by the new game show A Széf (Take It or Leave it).
RTL Klub was the only licensed broadcaster of Formula One in Hungary from 2002 until 2011. After 10 years RTL decided not to renew the license for Formula 1. The reason was that they wanted to concentrate mainly for the prime time programs because of the shrinking advertising market.[1]
RTL Klub changed its graphics package once again, at 19:00 CET of 24 December 2005, just after the end of RTL Híradó that day. For the first time in its history, the logo but stopped being colourful as it became light gray.
RTL Klub has been the only licensed broadcaster of Domino Day in Hungary, for 6 years (2004–2009).
RTL Klub introduced a new graphics package on 1 June 2008 at 16:30 CET, just before a commercial break during a simulcast of a horse race. The package features the FF DIN Condensed typeface. (Its main competitor TV2 used the non-condensed version of FF DIN from 2008 to 2020). The idents were designed by the team of the Argentinian television channel Punga TV. They were consisted of concrete blocks flying across the screen, against a backdrop of Hungarian landmarks or the Hungarian countryside, until they eventually formed the letters RTL (with KLUB in a much smaller font below). On its first day, the 2005–2008 on-screen bug was retained, but it was changed to a lighter but the next day, with the new appearing and disappearing "animations".
From 2010, RTL Klub started with 2 winning formats. First of all the channel after 6 years absence successfully relaunched the Való Világ franchise. VV4 ran with a 40% SHR among 18-49 demographic.[2] Secondly they purchased the rights of television talent show The X Factor. The show ran with a 50% SHR[3] among 18-49 demographic which is really high on the Hungarian television market. The Factor crashed the competitor talent show on TV2 so "Megasztár" left the time slot of The X Factor after a few episodes. Because of the success of both format, RTL Klub renewed both show for the 5th and 2nd season respectively. They started in the fall season of 2011.
To celebrate its 20th anniversary, RTL Klub rebranded for the first time in nine years, on 2 October 2017 at 04:00 CET. This was a major overhaul for the channel as its old graphics package, which was dominated by grey and fluorescent colours, was replaced by a vibrant multicoloured graphics package. This was considered the last image under the name RTL Klub.
It confirmed on 2 September 2022 that all RTL channels will change their names, while RTL Klub will be renamed simply to RTL on 22 October 2022 on the occasion of the channel's 25th anniversary.[4] The channel changed its name and identity on 22 October 2022 at 20:40 CEST during the TV show X-Faktor.[5] Its logo and identity is based on its German counterpart.
Criticism and controversy[edit]
Programming and content[edit]
Being a commercial channel, RTL Klub broadcasts an important number of populist- and tabloid-skewed shows and, specially, a high proportion of light entertainment and reality television shows. As a result, many of its contents have been criticised by some media circles. In 2018, the Hungarian General Court and media regulators NMHH imposed a fine of up to HUF 143 million (€440,000) due to inappropriate content shown on the fourth season of popular show Való Világ, broadcast in 2010, returning after a six-year hiatus.[6] Such unappropiate content included graphic imagery which did not adhere to the rating assigned to the show, as well as undisclosed product placement.
Many of its fiction series have also received criticism, both political and moral. Popular comedy-drama series A mi kis falunk (A Little Village), has received high ratings during its four seasons; however, it has been heavily criticized by many viewers and critics due to its storylines, which reflect the life stereotypes of many rural and popular Hungarian villages. It has also received condemnation from right-wing and far-right nationalists for supposed misbehaviour; for example, MEP Krisztina Morvai openly complained about the show when, during the summer of 2011, when she was on vacation, the show recorded portions of a storyline on the Pilis Mountains, which far-right government members and sympathizants have come to call it a miracle place where "the heart of the Earth beats", as told by Kata Jurák, editor of pro-government newspaper Magyar Idők.[7]
Its informational content has also received heavy criticism. Its newscasts have emphasized crime and human interest stories, sensationalistic reporting, a faster-paced format, heavy use of graphics and visuals, and on-the-scene coverage. Its newsmagazine Fokusz has also received criticism, due to its mix of stories rotated around controversial issues and entertainment news. However, after 2014, the station's informational content, including its main evening news, has been including more political and serious news, improving its reputation over media critics and gaining credibility with viewers.[8]
Editorial stance[edit]
RTL Klub has been critical of the Fidesz-KDNP government since it was sworn in to power in 2010. It is one of a small number of TV stations critical of it, including competitors ATV and N1 TV. The station began to have a serious impasse with the government in 2014, when such coalition announced the proposal of an advertising tax of up to 50% of the advertising revenue of any commercial TV station in Hungary. Many political opponents denounced that such law was targeted directly to the RTL stations, and, specially, RTL Klub.[9] The station reacted by including, in its main news, more political stories, often very critical of Viktor Orbán and the right-wing coalition.[8] RTL Group even threatened to sue the government in front of the International Court of Justice.[10]
This led to an increasing menacing rhetoric between both sides, until such dispute was resolved in early 2015, when the government toned down its rhetoric and cancelled the controversial tax proposal, mainly due to pressure from European Union, German and Luxembourgian politicians and government officials.[11][12] This resulted on the dismissal of longtime group CEO Dirk Gerkens, which was eventually snapped by its biggest competitor (and pro-government station) TV2.[13] In order to protect the station's independence from the Orbán government, RTL Group moved the licenses of its Hungarian pay-TV stations to the Luxembourgian media watchdog, like most of its sister European TV ventures.[14] RTL Klub is still broadcast under a license from the NMHH media council.
Although the station is still critical of the Fidesz-KDNP coalition, it has since toned down its aggressive rhetoric, but, at the same time, it has beefed up its informational programming, by adding more analytic and debate shows, including the debate show Magyarul Balóval (Baló's Hungary), hosted by former MTV political analyst and academic lecturer György Baló, which debuted in February 2015, and aired for four years until suddenly ending in early 2019, in an amicable decision related to György's need to undergo medical treatment for pancreatic cancer, to which he would succumb in March. The show was also accused of being unfavourable towards Orbán and his government,[15] but it has been praised for inviting a diversity of representatives from political parties across the National Assembly. Its daily news broadcast has also received more praise and higher ratings due to its fact-based, but critical reporting on the government actions, alongside balancing the content focus of the station's newscast, often tabloid- and infotainment-skewed,[8] as well as an improved on-air design. The station also made some international headlines when an interview made by the Financial Times to Hungarian-American billionaire investor George Soros, which has been falsely accused of corruption and antisemitism by the coalition government, was translated and portions of it broadcast on an edition of the main evening news in November 2017.[16]