Tele7ABC () was a television station in Romania, popular in the mid-1990s. One of the country's first three privately owned networks, it was launched in August 1994 by Mihai Tatulici and other defectors from the state-owned TVR network, with assistance from a group of investors. Though offering substantial pay to its on-air talents, it had a reduced budget for technical matters, and as such was always at risk at being surpassed by other commercial channels. Many of its prime time series were syndicated American shows filmed in previous decades, when Romania was under communism. In its first four years, Tele7 earned most of its dedicated viewership with talk shows (including one hosted by Tatulici until his departure in 1995), investigative journalism, and breakfast shows. Its staff at that time featured many young entertainers and journalists who became household names in Romania, such as Mihaela Rădulescu, Teo Trandafir, and Mircea Badea.
Tele7's editorial stance was initially anti-communist, including by openly discussing crimes committed by the Securitate agency and the latter's alleged continuity with post-communist intelligence. This course was maintained for three more years after Tatulici's departure; during that interval, the station also lost viewers and employees to the rapidly expanding Pro TV. It fought off this pressure by increasing its entertainment package and pioneering infotainment formats that its rivals arguably copied. Its most recognized hosts of the period included Tudor Barbu, Radu Coșarcă, Gabriel Cotabiță, Gabriela Cristea, and Cornel Todea, in addition to Badea and Trandafir. These figures ended their contracts around 1998, as Tele7 was entering a deep financial crisis.
The first revival attempt came in August 1998, when Aristide Buhoiu took over as director of programming. Under his watch, Tele7 became a venue for communist nostalgia and the national-communist synthesis, for instance by consulting Securitate general Nicolae Pleșiță about his political views. By many accounts, the station was experiencing a massive decline in quality and experimenting with controversial practices (including native advertising and a focus on the paranormal), losing much of its traditional audience. As part of his revival strategy, Buhoiu launched Dan Diaconescu into the journalistic mainstream, with sensationalist scoops—including claims about the sex life of the then-President of Romania, Emil Constantinescu; as result, the station found itself monitored by the National Audiovisual Council.
In 2000–2001, after Buhoiu's sacking, the station was largely associated with Diaconescu and national-communist poet Adrian Păunescu, the latter of whom hosted a nighttime show that critics described as abysmal. As part of a debt restructuring, Tele7 was taken over by Israeli businessman Freddy Robinson. Diaconescu went off the air due to his many legal problems, while Păunescu took his format elsewhere; the station also lost its only remaining hit, a variety show headlined by Cătălin Crișan. Robinson worked instead with Florin Călinescu, a consecrated television star, who was given editorial control in December 2001. The infusion of money and new talent failed to win back the public, and the station itself faded into obscurity. In its final two years, Tele7 was primarily noted for its failure to pay wages to its remaining staff, as well as for always being in danger of losing its broadcast license. It stopped airing in April 2005, after filing for bankruptcy.
Creation Sometimes referred to as the first Romanian private television,George Motroc, "Interviu. 'Unde am greșit?' se întreabă Paul Goma. Dialog cu scriitoarea Mariana Sipoș", in Convorbiri Literare, March 2020, p. 16 Tele7 was in fact preceded by the ephemeral SOTI TV (1992) and the more enduring Antena 1 (1993).Stela Giurgeanu, "25 de ani de presă liberă", in Dilema Veche, Vol. XI, Issue 528, March–April 2014, p. 22 Its history began in April 1994, when journalist Mihai Tatulici staged a walkout from the state-owned broadcaster, TVR, accusing his employer of censoring the news; Tatulici was followed by some 40 of his TVR colleagues, including editorial staff, regular journalists, and camera operators.Oana Armeanu, "Actualitate. Va pierde TVR monopolul asupra pieței vizuale?", in Revista 22, Vol. V, Issue 15, April 1994, p. 7 Joining them was Radu Coșarcă, who had to first resign his position at the National Audiovisual Council (CNA), a regulatory agency.Mihai Rădulescu, "Mihai Tatulici își adună oamenii la TELE 7ABC. Radu Coșarcă pleacă de la CNA", in Libertatea, 19 April 1994, p. 2 The new project was nominally owned by Mihai Cârciog Company, with production credits going to Cardinal Multimedia Production Company—itself owned by rock impresario Marcel Avram and journalist Paul Opriș. They promised the defectors a significantly higher pay (said to be four times what they made at TVR) and complete freedom of expression.
Initially, Tele7's offices and studios occupied two floors of a building on Calea Victoriei, No 155.Miruna Olteanu, "La Tele 7abc se reiau reluările", in Evenimentul Zilei, 24 March 2005, p. 22 During 1994, Tele7 announced that it would initially be accessible to viewers in Bucharest and Timișoara—a soft launch that preceded its national debut. Its first pilot (and satellite) broadcast was on 16 June, just before the 1994 FIFA World Cup, with a documentary on how Tele7 was being created, as well as with the pop tune Să fii cel mai bun, which it had successfully imposed as an official anthem of the national football squad. The signal was beamed across the Atlantic through Cheia transmitter and Eutelsat I F-5.Cristian Marin, "Joi, 16 iunie, la ora 14.00, 'Tele 7 abc' va realiza prima transmisie prin satelit", in Evenimentul Zilei, 11 June 1994, p. 8 Formal establishment was delayed to 14 August, by which time viewers were already skeptical that it would ever be launched.Rep., "S-a inaugurat, în sfârșit, postul Tele 7 ABC", in Cotidianul, 15 August 1994, p. 5 Tatulici and Coșarcă emphasized interactivity, offering prizes to their viewers—including a videocassette recorder, presented to a father whose child was born on that same day.Romeo Diaconescu, "Ieri, la ora 9.30, a debutat un nou post de televiziune românesc: 'Tele 7 abc'. Postul poate fi recepționat în București pe canalul 42", in Evenimentul Zilei, 15 August 1994, p. 10 A "baptism" of the new venture was held on 16 September with a cocktail party, hosted by Tatulici at the Palace of the Parliament.Alex. Ștefănescu, "Actualitatea culturală. Botez cu șampanie", in România Literară, Issue 37/1994, p. 10
Tele7's core news program, or Telejurnal, was mainly anchored by Coșarcă and Anca Toader, with Lucian Mîndruță and Laura Luca replacing them on weekends or during unexpected absences; Mîndruță was also news editor for the entire program.Cătălin Striblea, "'Sîntem o națiune de oameni plictisiți, iar instituțiile statului nu gestionează plictiseala'. Interviu cu Lucian Mîndruță, directorul Ziarului Financiar și realizatorul emisiunii 'Profeții despre trecut' de la ProTV", in Opinia Studențească, Vol. XXX, Issue 92, March 2001, pp. 8–9 The station's first-ever grid included old TV series such as Little House on the PrairieCristian Marin, Mona Velcu, Gabi Dumitrescu, "Tele 7 abc. Program valabil în perioada 15–21 august", in Evenimentul Zilei, 12 August 1994, p. 6 and Star Trek: The Original Series.Alexandra Bădicioiu, "Noul Star Trek ar putea fi chiar bun", in Cotidianul, 13 November 2008, p. 24 Early original-programming features were: a breakfast show by Liliana Munteanu, Tatulici's own evening talk show (Chestiunea Zilei), and a Sunday set of comedic "political dialogues", starring Viorel Gaiță. The latter generated irritation among the general public by pranking or otherwise embarrassing his interviewees, including the writer Ana Blandiana.Carmen Dumitrescu, "Moralitatea, o povară?", in Cotidianul, 15 September 1995, p. 2 Gaiță later switched to another formula, which tested the general-knowledge deficiencies of regular men and women, and which he had invented during his earlier period at TVR.Petrișor Obae, "Din nou pe TV. Gaiță, primul 'rege al farselor', revine din exil", in Evenimentul Zilei, 3 July 2008, p. 4
Tele7 was still under technical restrictions: like TVR, it relied on U-matic, a type of analog recording that was already seen as antiquated.Vlad Iorga, "Prigoană contraatacă. Magnatul Rosal are mari planuri de extindere pe piața media", in Evenimentul Zilei, 11 March 2005, p. 18 In its first months, only Bucharest viewers could be sure to receive its broadcasts, through the 42nd slot on their TV sets. The channel was ultimately not available in Timișoara, where only select shows were taped and syndicated by the local channel, called TVT '89,"Probleme prioritare. Apeluri nocturne", in Timișoara, 13 January 1995, p. 10 which was initially controlled by Cârciog and Opriș.Árpád Gazda, "Temesvár. Rendszerváltás a televíziónál", in Erdélyi Napló, Issue 4/1996, p. 5 The same solution was adopted at Iași, where Tele7's programming was aired by a local contractor with a full day's delay.Val Condurache, "Televiziunile particulare și pămîntul nimănui", in Dilema, Vol. IV, Issue 166, March 1996, p. 9 While TVR's stations were supplied by a mandatory television licence, Tele7 pursued economic and editorial independence through commercial spots, which were still relatively unfamiliar to Romanians in the early 1990s. It eased these in by copying Silvio Berlusconi's Mediaset, which apologized before every commercial break; the concept was then borrowed by TVR, when it too began airing commercials.Bogdan Ghiu, "TV (totul de vînzare). Agresiuni...", in Dilema, Vol. III, Issue 116, March–April 1995, p. 4 On Easter 1995, Tele7 also hosted paid-for religious content of Eastern Orthodox inspiration, but of uncertain provenance.Bogdan Ghiu, "TV (totul de vînzare). Un viitor al televiziunii", in Dilema, Vol. III, Issue 121, May 1995, p. 4
Some nine months into its existence, Tele7 was available on cable television packages, but, as reported by Bogdan Ghiu (a TV consumer and critic at Dilema), its transmission was hampered by static. Along with Antena 1, it was also said to be pressuring providers into paying them royalties, "for which there is no legal basis."Dan Constantin, "Masa rotundă a Libertății conectează televiziunea prin cablu. Scurtcircuite care parazitează cel mai ieftin produs cultural", in Libertatea, 28 February 1995, p. 5 In April 1995, the CNA stepped in to prevent any cable company from getting more than 20% of its products from any one station; this move was meant to strike at Tele7 and Antena 1's looming duopoly, protecting TVR interests.Iuliana Păceșilă, "Interviu. Dl Răzvan Theodorescu, membru în CNA: 'Cine luptă pentru locul in Consiliul de Administrație se iluzionează asupra rolului acestuia'", in Jurnalul Național, 7 April 1995, p. 16 By February 1996, 30% of the Romanian population received Tele7, which was encoded using a PAL standard.Information I33-1997. Changes to the terrestrial television systems in Central and East European countries, European Broadcasting Union, 1997, p. 2 In June 1996, the introduction of stricter copyright regulations was applauded by Tele7's managers, since the station was now entitled to a share of its distributors' profits.Bianca Stupu, Genica S. Barb, "Pirații șomează. Până la reorganizarea pieței subterane, adio casete ieftine", in Ziua, 27 June 1996, p. 6
As an anti-communist channel