HJMcDuck
03-22-2006, 09:12 PM
MTV, CTV launch makes Canuck history
The biggest multiplatform launch in the history of Canadian television takes place today (March 21) with the debut of the MTV brand across six different platforms.
The platforms, available from 18.00, include conventional and speciality channel platforms, mobile, video on demand (VoD) and, in pioneering fashion, a newly created premium broadband service, MTV Overdrive ? the first of its kind in Canada.
Blocks of programming branded 'MTV on CTV' will air six nights a week across Canada on commercial terrestrial network CTV's free-to-air stations.
The analogue speciality service named MTV will be available immediately in six million Canadian households thanks to new and expanded carriage deals with distribution partners Rogers Cable and Bell ExpressVu, with more cable and DTH carriage agreements to come. Offering a schedule of lifestyle, talk and documentary programming, the channel will be anchored by distinct and interactive Canadian series.
MTV Overdrive, at mtv.ca, is a free premium video service delivering full-length MTV programmes, daily MTV News, custom short-form programming, movie and game reviews, with additional MTV-branded content available on demand. Exclusive MTV music events, artist interviews, live performances and music videos, with an emphasis on Canadian artists, will be available.
MTV Mobile will run exclusively produced MTV mobisodes and made-for-mobile programming for individual carriers and also for cross-carrier mobile distribution. The service will showcase video, soundtrack ring-tones, wallpapers and more, available for download via mobile phones and from the mtv.ca website.
In addition, an extensive line-up of MTV hit shows will be available immediately through VoD, while MTV-branded events, including live concerts throughout Canada, round out the multi-platform launch.
The multiplatform strategy was unveiled by Ivan Fecan, president and CEO of Bell Globemedia and CEO of CTV, together with Susanne Boyce, CTV president of programming and chair of the CTV Media Group, and Brad Schwartz, senior VP and general manager for MTV in Canada. The announcement followed the strategic alliance forged between CTV, part of Bell Globemedia, and MTV Networks last September that is intended to build the MTV brand in Canada.
Bill Roedy, vice chairman of MTV Networks and president of MTV Networks International, said CTV's MTV launch represented the biggest multiplatform launch among all 49 worldwide MTV services in MTV Networks International.
In announcing Canada's multiplatform launch, Fecan said: "A new chapter in Canadian media, employing multiple platforms and interactivity, begins. The future is now."
Roedy added: "MTV in Canada is embarking on the biggest multiplatform launch ever. This is an historic milestone that celebrates Canada's rich diversity and culture while providing breakthrough entertainment to audiences whenever and wherever they want it."
The new MTV Canada initiative is proving a boon for Canadian production, with seven new Canadian series now in production, six of them on the MTV speciality schedule at launch. More than 150 jobs have been created so far. A creative campaign conceived and inspired by Canadian imagery and artists will support the launch.
The biggest multiplatform launch in the history of Canadian television takes place today (March 21) with the debut of the MTV brand across six different platforms.
The platforms, available from 18.00, include conventional and speciality channel platforms, mobile, video on demand (VoD) and, in pioneering fashion, a newly created premium broadband service, MTV Overdrive ? the first of its kind in Canada.
Blocks of programming branded 'MTV on CTV' will air six nights a week across Canada on commercial terrestrial network CTV's free-to-air stations.
The analogue speciality service named MTV will be available immediately in six million Canadian households thanks to new and expanded carriage deals with distribution partners Rogers Cable and Bell ExpressVu, with more cable and DTH carriage agreements to come. Offering a schedule of lifestyle, talk and documentary programming, the channel will be anchored by distinct and interactive Canadian series.
MTV Overdrive, at mtv.ca, is a free premium video service delivering full-length MTV programmes, daily MTV News, custom short-form programming, movie and game reviews, with additional MTV-branded content available on demand. Exclusive MTV music events, artist interviews, live performances and music videos, with an emphasis on Canadian artists, will be available.
MTV Mobile will run exclusively produced MTV mobisodes and made-for-mobile programming for individual carriers and also for cross-carrier mobile distribution. The service will showcase video, soundtrack ring-tones, wallpapers and more, available for download via mobile phones and from the mtv.ca website.
In addition, an extensive line-up of MTV hit shows will be available immediately through VoD, while MTV-branded events, including live concerts throughout Canada, round out the multi-platform launch.
The multiplatform strategy was unveiled by Ivan Fecan, president and CEO of Bell Globemedia and CEO of CTV, together with Susanne Boyce, CTV president of programming and chair of the CTV Media Group, and Brad Schwartz, senior VP and general manager for MTV in Canada. The announcement followed the strategic alliance forged between CTV, part of Bell Globemedia, and MTV Networks last September that is intended to build the MTV brand in Canada.
Bill Roedy, vice chairman of MTV Networks and president of MTV Networks International, said CTV's MTV launch represented the biggest multiplatform launch among all 49 worldwide MTV services in MTV Networks International.
In announcing Canada's multiplatform launch, Fecan said: "A new chapter in Canadian media, employing multiple platforms and interactivity, begins. The future is now."
Roedy added: "MTV in Canada is embarking on the biggest multiplatform launch ever. This is an historic milestone that celebrates Canada's rich diversity and culture while providing breakthrough entertainment to audiences whenever and wherever they want it."
The new MTV Canada initiative is proving a boon for Canadian production, with seven new Canadian series now in production, six of them on the MTV speciality schedule at launch. More than 150 jobs have been created so far. A creative campaign conceived and inspired by Canadian imagery and artists will support the launch.