Overview
The channel was first launched on 1 August 2001 was financed with a $1 million grant from Japan and is broadcast on the Shin Corp Thaicom 3 satellite. It is the third channel to be launched in Myanmar, after the main MRTV channel (1980) and Myawaddy TV (1995). The state-owned channel was viewable in 156 countries, broadcasting 17 hours a day in Myanmar and 8 hours a day in Europe and America, with coverage increasing to 24 hours a day worldwide on the occasion of the rebranding to Myanmar International.
The service is one of several television channels freely available in Myanmar.
According to Ye Tun, assistant manager of Myanmar International, the purposes of the channel are threefold: "to inform, to educate and to entertain the public and broadcast healthy programs". However, the channel has been criticised for broadcasting propaganda for the junta. A government official said the channel was launched to provide an "objective response" to international media reports about Burma.
A web-based video streaming system was launched in November 2002, and an online newspaper in March 2003. The channel has news exchange agreements with CCTV, NHK, Airang TV and CFI.
Read more about this topic: Myanmar International