History
ITN Ltd commenced operations on the 13th of April 1979 with the introduction of the ITN television channel. As the first television broadcasting service of Sri Lanka and South Asia they began transmission of the first terrestrial television channel in the country. It was also the first privately owned television station in a region where government was in control of radio and television. The founding board of directors was composed of Mr. Shan Wickramasinghe, Mr. Anil Wijewardene and Mr. Bob Christie. Initially the ITN Ltd studios and transmission station were based in Pannipitiya. A single Kilo Watt (1K.W) transmitter and 65 ft. transmission tower were used to broadcast the ITN channel within a fifteen (15) mile radius of the city of Colombo. Due to the geographical location of the transmission station, local weather and the transmission equipment used early viewers experienced many disruptions and interference to programmes as a result of voltage fluctuations.
On the 5th of June 1979 ITN Ltd was acquired by the state as a business undertaking under a Competent Authority. The duly appointed authority, the late Mr. D. Thevis L. Guruge (ex-Director General of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation) contributed significantly to the early development of the organisation. ITN Ltd was the pioneer of colour television transmission in Sri Lanka. On the 05th June 1984 ITN Ltd relocated to its current base of operations in Wickramasinhapura. In 1992 ITN was converted to a public company with the state as the major share holder of the company. Subsequently, the revenue, the diversity of programmes, technical services and coverage expanded significantly.
Lakhanda and Vasantham FM are two of the three FM radio stations operated by ITN Ltd. The Lakhanda radio station which originated as a subsidiary of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) was amalgamated with ITN Ltd on 1 April 1997. This radio station broadcasts content in the Sinhala language. Vasantham FM is a FM radio station also operated by ITN Ltd which broadcasts content in the Tamil language. This radio station was launched in June 2009 in order to fulfill the media requirements of the Tamil speaking community within Sri Lanka.
Furthermore, ITN Ltd commenced transmission of a second television channel, Vasantham TV on the 25th of June 2009. This particular television channel broadcasts content in the Tamil language. ITN launched Prime TV and Prime Radio, a television channel and radio station that broadcasts material in English on the 12th of November 2009.
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