WIN Network has reached a three-month agreement with Paramount-owned Network 10 to continue broadcasting its channels across Griffith, South Australia’s Riverland, and Mount Gambier – averting a signal shutdown that had been scheduled for 1 July 2026.
The short-term deal buys both parties time to negotiate a longer-term arrangement, but WIN was blunt about its limits: the agreement is a pause, not a fix.
READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: NBN News restructure confirmed as state editor resigns and jobs axed
READ MORE: WIN to drop Network 10 services in three regional markets
A reprieve, not a resolution
“We have agreed on three months to attempt to find a path forward and address the structural challenges in parts of regional Australia that have brought us to this point,” WIN said in a statement.
“What is playing out here is not unique to WIN or to these communities; it reflects the commercial realities that every regional broadcaster in Australia is grappling with right now.”
The network framed the problem as systemic, pointing to pressures that extend well beyond its own balance sheet.
“Free-to-air television remains the most trusted and accessible broadcast medium available to regional Australians, and WIN is committed to fighting to protect it,” WIN said.
“Short-term commercial agreements alone will not secure the future of regional broadcasting. Finding a sustainable long-term solution will require the industry and government working together, and WIN will continue to play its part in that conversation.”
WIN said it would continue negotiations with Paramount in good faith and maintain engagement with the government on regulatory reform.
WIN’s broader battle
Monday’s deal lands on the same day the WIN-driven restructure of its NBN News operation formally takes effect.
Mediaweek first revealed the proposal on 11 June 2026, with internal documents showing that journalist numbers in Newcastle alone would fall from 10 to 4, and camera operators in the city from 7 to 3.
Across the broader network, the plan flagged the removal of around 10 journalist positions and nine camera operator roles across newsrooms in NSW and the Northern Territory.
WIN Network General Manager Stevan Djokic confirmed the restructure would proceed via an internal memo on 17 June, with the new structure set to take effect from 29 June 2026.
The confirmation came alongside news that State Editor/Executive Producer Colin Baldwin had resigned during the consultation period, with his role added to the list of available internal vacancies.
Staff described the aftermath in stark terms. A source inside NBN News told Mediaweek: “Sadness, disappointment, loss, despair, anxiety – just a few words to describe how we are feeling.”
The source also alleged that some employees learned of their redundancies through unofficial channels before receiving formal notification.
“There’s also been people who ‘accidentally’ found out their job has been made redundant yet still haven’t received any official comms,” they said.=
WIN cited shifting viewing habits, rising costs, and technological change as the drivers behind the overhaul – the same structural pressures the network pointed to on Monday in calling for industry and government intervention.