TV: Kiwis in the goldfish bowl

By LOUISA CLEAVE

The internet answer to a new Kiwi soap opera is launched today - but the five flatmates living online appear to have it easy compared to their " big brother" counterparts overseas.

The five stars of kiwiflatmates.com - Sarita Norton, Craig Linn, Clint Sharplin, Paula Watkins and Sasha Lal - moved into a secret Auckland mansion yesterday and will have their day-to-day lives broadcast on the internet 24 hours a day.

Britain's Channel 4 reality television show Big Brother is screened live on the net 24 hours a day and the television show has been attracting an audience of millions.

Highlights from kiwiflatmates.com, an R18 website, will feature on the late-night music television show Space (TV2, 10.30 pm) each week and include chat-room interviews with the flatmates.

While no one knows how many people will log-on to watch the day-to-day life of five ordinary Kiwis broadcast via digital cameras, creator Colin Stephenson promises top entertainment.

"Forget anything from overseas," he says Stephenson.

"It's a fun thing. We've got so many web designs and web pages so you can always see where people are. There's going to be interaction with the public and competitions."

Stephenson said he does not intend kiwiflatmates.com to be an exercise in voyeurism. There would be no cameras in the toilet or bedrooms.

"It comes down to taste and style. I don't think anybody in New Zealand wants to see somebody sitting on a toilet and that's the reason why at this stage we haven't gone for night vision cameras."

He said the flatmates were keen to entertain - "they all want to become actors and actresses, really."

Stephenson compares the idea to a Friends sitcom on the net. It should soon become clear who is the Joey or Monica of the Kiwi flat.

Sarita is described as an "outspoken and extroverted aerobics instructor"; Craig is "a bit of a lad"; Clint is following in the shoes of dad Tom Sharplin as an entertainer; Paul is a model and dancer.

The final flattie, Sasha, is an "adventurous and fun-loving retail assistant."

Viewers will be able to interact with the five 20-somethings through a chatroom.

In a similar system to overseas reality shows, people will be able to vote for their favourite flatmate and the one with the least votes after three weeks will leave.

A new person will join the group and the three-week cycle will start again.

Stephenson said the participants were on a three-month contract to stay but this could be negotiated for longer if they proved popular and wanted to stay.

Each person is allowed out for four hours a week, one at a time, with a curfew of 11pm-6am.

They can also receive visitors, although times must be approved by the organisers.

"These things overseas are nothing short of a prison, basically, and people watch how they react inside a prison," said Stephenson.

"We've moved on from that and New Zealand is showing the world how to do the next step. It's passe locking people away and seeing how they fight each other."