New Zealand Television Awards canned

Duncan Garner and Mark Jennings of TV3 at last year's New Zealand Television Awards. Photo / Neville Marriner

New Zealand's television stars won't be getting any gongs this year, with TVNZ pulling the plug on the New Zealand Television Awards.

Bosses for the free-to-air television channels met yesterday to decide the future of the awards for actors, producers, directors and journalists on television, which have run in their present form for five years.

It is understood TV3 tried to maintain them in some form.

But TVNZ spokeswoman Georgie Hills said the state broadcaster decided against support "because the TV awards has fallen short".

"It has run its course and part of the problem was that the awards had become a two-horse race between TVNZ and TV3," Ms Hills said.

She acknowledged there had been a turbulent history, with New Zealand television struggling to maintain a TV awards ceremony.

TVNZ was keen to look at some new way of celebrating success and would be talking to people about what could replace the awards in the future, she said.

"We are all ears."

The TVNZ spokeswoman could not rule internal awards for its own people and projects.

"But in practical terms there will be no NZ Television awards for 2013."

She said the cost of the ceremony, and the work involved for TVNZ each year, had been factors in its decision to withdraw support

"There had also been concern about the lack of public interest and engagement last year, compared to the Vodafone Music Awards," she said

The free-to-air TV industry body Think TV - denominated by TVNZ and TV3 - said the awards had been through turbulent times in the last few years, including the loss of a key sponsor in 2011.