New Zealand on Air is moving to create a single NZ Media Fund

Filthy Rich received nearly $7 million in funding from NZOA. Photo / Supplied

New Zealand's viewing habits have changed so much it's forced our television funding to change with the times, too.

New Zealand On Air is ditching its old funding models for one single strategy, but it's also changing up its staffing.

The funding organisation announced today it is restructuring to "create more efficient and streamlined staff processes" and introducing an online applications process.

It's also streamlining the funds, reworking the multiple funds it currently has - which were beginning to overlap - and moving to create just one: the New Zealand Media Fund.

The new fund will have four streams;

• Factual - funding for informative content like documentaries and journalism
• Scripted - funding for fictional content like TV series and comedy
• Music - funding for new music singles and projects
• Platforms - closed funding for platforms which "provide public media content of particular cultural or social value", like Radio New Zealand.

And while the streams cover a broader range of platforms - TV, radio, telefeatures, stand-up comedy, web content, podcasts and more - the bar has also been raised.

Among other things, it says funding will be determined by cultural or social value, innovation, potential audience size and appeal and co-investment (so the production costs are shared).

NZOA's chief executive Jane Wrightson says it's a move to make sure Kiwi stories and music gets a chance to "foot it with the world's best".

"With intense competition for audiences from international media it is more important than ever ... to maintain a space for local content. It's vital to our cultural identity," she says.

NZOA is currently seeking feedback on the new strategy and its draft strategy can be found here.

The final strategy will be released by early 2017 to take effect from July 2017.