Radio New Zealand has indicated there is still a long way to go in its plan to downsize its Wellington headquarters.
RNZ planned to shift up to a further 50 jobs from its Wellington to Auckland office, it said in its briefing to broadcasting minister Clare Curran.
It also signalled a scaling back of the nation's AM radio operations. RNZ owned a large amount of broadcasting technology, but said it wanted to eventually sell and decommission a lot of its infrastructure and land.
Although the state broadcaster had stated these plans in its report, a spokesmen said things could change with the incoming Labour-NZ First Government. The new government said it would give an extra $38 million to share between RNZ and NZ On Air. The budget would not be confirmed until May.
RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson said about 80 staff were in Auckland, compared to about 160 people in Wellington. He wanted each office to be the same size, with both sites being big enough to run RNZ on its own if emergency hit.
The Auckland expansion was also to strengthen the station's reach in the region, Thompson said. It had a relatively small Auckland audience.
"To fully reflect New Zealand in the 21st century, RNZ needs to be as strong in Auckland as it is in Wellington," the report said.
It identified issues with RNZ's engagement with ethnic minorities. Māori, Pasifika and Asian communities were "under represented" in RNZ's audience, the report said. Thompson said the broadcaster needed to increase its ground staff in Auckland to connect with a more diverse audience.
RNZ had been moving jobs to Auckland for some time, and Thompson said it would probably take another five years for the Auckland office to be equal in size with Wellington.
A funding increase could mean fewer jobs left Wellington, he said. Instead, he said RNZ could look to hire more people in Auckland while the Wellington office was left alone.
In the longer term, the report raised RNZ's wish to divest from broadcasting infrastructure.
"RNZ currently owns a significant property portfolio and other related equipment required to support its AM radio services," it said. "While the AM audience is declining, the cost of maintenance and upkeep of the property, buildings and AM equipment is increasing."
The report went on to say RNZ was sitting on potentially lucrative land, that could be used for housing.
"RNZ considers it is now time to work with stakeholders to develop plans to, either partially or completely, exit AM broadcasting over time," the report said.
Thompson said RNZ's plan to sell of its transition sites would likely take more than a decade. It had just invested in a new AM tower in Titahi Bay, Wellington, that he said cost "millions".
Through its network of transmission towers, RNZ was also responsible for broadcasting other radio stations including Newstalk ZB and iwi radio stations.
"We think we're an audience and content organisation, not an infrastructure organisation," Thompson said.
If RNZ was to sell or close its AM towers, he said the Government would need to make the call. The other broadcasters would also need to be consulted.
