Neutral telluro- and seleno-ether complexes of the form [GaCl3((Bu2E)-Bu-n)] (E = Se, Te) and [(GaCl3)(2){(BuE)-Bu-n(CH2)(n)(EBu)-Bu-n}] (E = Se, n = 2; E = Te, n = 3) have been synthesised via a facile, high yielding reaction. These complexes have been shown to be suitable precursors for the low pressure chemical vapour deposition of Ga2Te3 and Ga2Se3, the first reported example of a telluroether complex being used for the deposition of a metal telluride. The thin films have been characterised by X-ray diffraction, SEM, EDX, Raman and Hall measurements. The films are crystalline, have good, uniform coverage and Raman spectra match literature values. Hall measurements show that the thin films are p-type semiconductors. Competitive deposition of Ga2Te3 onto photolithographically patterned SiO2/TiN substrates shows a preference for deposition onto TiN. (C) 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.