CMT (Canadian TV channel)

CMT

Country	Canada
Broadcast area	Nationwide
Headquarters	Toronto, Ontario
Programming
Language(s)	English
Picture format	1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
Ownership
Owner	Bell Media [a]
Sister channels	CTV Comedy Channel Much
History
Launched	January 1, 1995; 29 years ago (1995-01-01)
Former names	New Country Network (1995–1996) Country Music Television (1996–2006)
Links
Website	ctv.ca/much

CMT is a Canadian English language premium specialty channel owned by Bell Media. Based the flagship CMT channel in the United States, the channel is devoted to animation, sitcoms and programming aimed at youth raging from preschoolers to young adults. Originally an ad-supported network, it transitioned to premium, non-commercial operation when it was transferred to Bell.

This channel was originally established on January 1, 1995 as the New Country Network under the joint ownership of Shaw Communications, who acquired Maclean-Hunter's stake in 1994, and Rawlco Communications. Later, NCN was relaunched on September 14, 1996 as CMT with CBS Cable acquiring the stake. Prior to its Canadian launch, the American version of CMT was available in Canada from 1984. Shaw's media assets were spun off to form Corus Entertainment in 1999. However, through various acquisitions, on November 13, 2021, CMT was acquired by Bell Media and was relaunched as an ad-supported service.

As with its U.S. counterpart, CMT previously devoted a large amount of its programming to country music, with such programming as music videos and concert specials. Over time, the channel shifted its focus towards family-oriented general entertainment such as sitcoms, to the point where music programming was eventually axed in August 2017.

Paramount previously owned a 10% stake in the service; it would be acquired by Bell Media in 2022 to take full control of it.

It is one of two Paramount-branded channels that are owned by Corus; the companies also partner on Nickelodeon (which is wholly owned by Corus).

CMT consists of 34 high definition services in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Nunavut, Yukon, Quebec, two standard definition feeds in Alberta, and one teletext channel in Western Canada. In addition to TSN, the channel also airs Super Bowl events every February in order to fulfill Canadian content. It primarily broadcasts a commercial-free format; however, some providers may referred CMT to as an ad-supported network.

Online, viewers who visit CMT's website can view All Day Ticket, a series of contests where viewers can watch movies and cast their vote to the "highest score" to win grand prizes (e.g. movies, trips, etc.).

Prior to the launch of CMT Canada, the U.S.-based country television network, Country Music Television, had been available in Canada since 1984, one year after the channel's launch in the United States.^[1]

In June 1994, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) licensed a series of new Canadian specialty television channels; among the ones whose licence was granted was The Country Network, whose programming provisions required it to primarily feature country music videos (a minimum of 90%). The licence was granted to a partnership between Maclean-Hunter (which owned 60% majority control) and Rawlco Communications (which owned the remaining 40%).^[2]

At this time, the CRTC had a policy that if a Canadian specialty service was licensed and that service's format was competitive with a foreign service's format that was licensed to operate in Canada, the foreign service could be dropped from the list of channels eligible for cable carriage in Canada.^[2] Due to Country Music Television's competitive format, the CRTC terminated CMT's eligibility rights in Canada as a foreign service on June 6, 1994.^[3] Television distributors such as cable and satellite television operators could continue distributing Country Music Television until The Country Network began operations.^[2]

In March 1994, one year before the channel's launch, Maclean-Hunter had been purchased by Rogers Communications.^[4]

First and only New Country Network logo, used from 1995 to 1996

First CMT logo, used from 1996 to 2006

On January 1, 1995, the channel launched as New Country Network (NCN). On that date, Canadian pay television service providers were not allowed to offer Country Music Television.^[5] In retaliation for being barred from Canada, the U.S. service launched a complaint under the North American Free Trade Agreement and ceased carriage of videos by Canadian artists without major U.S. record deals.^[6]

Second CMT logo, used from 2006 to 2008

Third CMT logo, used from 2008 to 2010

Fourth CMT logo, used from 2010 to 2015

Fifth CMT logo, 2015 to 2021

After months of negotiations, the matter was settled when it was announced that CBS Cable, then owners of CMT, would purchase a minority stake in the service. NCN was relaunched as CMT on September 14, 1996.^[7][6] The majority interest was acquired by Shaw Communications at the same time; it was later included in the spinoff of the broadcasting assets then owned by Shaw as Corus Entertainment in 1999. The controversy also resulted in an effective change to CRTC policy – if a foreign channel is already available in Canada and a new Canadian equivalent is subsequently licensed, cable providers are no longer required to drop the foreign service.

In 2016, as part of the removal of the genre protection rules, CMT was migrated to the CRTC's new standard conditions of license for discretionary services; these changes removed the requirement for CMT to air any music programming at all. Corus stated in its description of service for CMT that it would be devoted to comedy and reality programming, films, and "one of a kind music programming". Despite the changes, Corus must still invest at least 11% of CMT's annual gross revenue to fund the production of Canadian music videos, but they no longer necessarily have to be for country music videos.^[8]

These programming changes took effect on August 28, 2017, when CMT dropped all country music video programming from its schedule. The change in programming was widely criticized by stakeholders in Canada's country music industry, due to the loss of what had been a major promotional platform for Canadian performers; Corus stated that it would still promote Canadian country music through its other platforms (including its country music radio stations and some Global programming).^[9][10]

Canada wouldn't have another country music-related TV channel until rival broadcaster Stingray Group launched Stingray Country in 2019.^[11][12]

Corus would own the channel for 22 years due to many of Shaw's media assets being spun off in 1999, and that process started on June 10, 2021 with early due diligence with a then-undisclosed sales partner, which led to Corus Entertainment selling CMT to an unknown third party. On July 7, 2021, Bell Media (owner of the CTV Television Network) announced that it had to finalize an agreement to "eject" CMT from Corus Entertainment, while Paramount Global remained interest. The sale was granted on October 29, 2021, and the sale was completed on November 13, 2021, and with it and CRTC approval, it converted from a commercial network to a premium, non-commercial service, while relocating operations from Corus Quay to 299 Queen Street West in Toronto, possibly due to a CTV News Toronto update, that Corus Quay was "too far away" from 299 Queen Street West. In February 2022, in a response to concerns from the CRTC over its near-monopoly on the ownership of its pay television channels in the United States (citing Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, MTV, VH1, MTV Classic, The Movie Channel and Logo), Paramount Networks Americas sold its 10% stake in the service to Bell Media in return for Paramount's stake in the streaming service Crave for $284 million, giving them full ownership.

In June 2022, the CRTC gave Bell Media approval for an amendment to its nature of service, allowing it to operate multiplex feeds; with the amendment, two new licenses were given, named Crave Music 1 and Crave Music 2. The licenses were granted on August 30, 2022. One of the multiplex feeds' licenses was used to launch CMT Music.

In July 2023, the CRTC gave approval to Bell Media, allowing CMT to remove its regional restrictions and allow it to broadcast it normally.

In June 2024, Bell Media announced the launch of CMT LiVE, a "digital-first" news network that showcases country music news, weather, and Calgary and Toronto live traffic camera footage. The app launched on August 24th.

On October 31, 2024, it was announced that sister channel MTV would be ceasing operations on December 31, 2024.

As of August 2023^[update], CMT's programming consists primarily of acquired sitcoms (specifically South Park) and preschool programming, some of which are reruns of Canadian-produced series to fulfill Canadian content obligations. It no longer originates any original programming of its own, nor does it air any original programming emanating from the American CMT channel such as the CMT Music Awards (which remains available to most Canadian cable subscribers through CBS affiliates).

When CMT was launched as New Country Network on January 1, 1995, the CRTC required that 90% of the station's programming consist of music videos.^[13] The CRTC dropped that requirement to 70% on February 28, 2001, and reduced it even further to 50% on February 28, 2006.^[14][15] With the retirement of genre protection rules in 2016, CMT was no longer required to air music videos, leading to the channel dropping music programming altogether the following year in favor of comedy programming—drawn primarily from off-network reruns of sitcoms.

Under its country music format, CMT previously produced its own original Canadian programming, such as Karaoke Star Jr., Tori & Dean: Cabin Fever, and The Wilkinsons, with much of the channel's country music-related programming hosted by Paul McGuire.

• Paul McGuire – host of Chevrolet Top 20 Countdown and CMT's Hottest (now at Stingray Radio)
• Casey Clarke (now at Stingray Radio)
• Cliff Dumas (now host of the Weekly Country Countdown)
• Shannon Gaye
• Gnarley Charley (was at KSKS in Fresno, California)
• Stu Jeffries (now at CHBM-FM in Toronto)
• Nicola Jones (was at CHCH in Hamilton, Ontario) - now deceased (October 2014^[16])
• Ashley Kranz (winner of CMT Canada's "CMT Casting Call 2007" competition)
• Elissa Lansdell (was host of My Rona Home)
• Beverley Mahood (was at Breakfast Television Vancouver)
• Melissa Parrott (winner of CMT Canada's "CMT Casting Call 2009" competition)
• Hal Roberts (now News Director and Anchor with Bridge City News on CJIL-TV)
• Colleen Rusholme (now at CJOT-FM in Ottawa, Ontario)
• Greg Shannon (now at CFCW in Edmonton, Alberta)
• Nancy Sinclair
• Brian "Hurricane" Smith
• Tamara Stanners (was at CKPK-FM in Vancouver, British Columbia)
• Lindsay Stone

• Albert and Junior
• Alva's World
• Bob the Builder
• Big and Small
• Color Crew
• Color Crew Magic
• My Pop-up Book
• Puzzles
• Rainbow Horse
• Harry the Bunny
• Hide and Seek
• Word Party

• American Dad!
• Arrested Development
• Bless the Harts
• Bless This House
• Bob's Burgers
• The Cleveland Show
• Cheers
• Duncanville
• Everybody Hates Chris
• Everybody Loves Raymond
• Gasp!
• HouseBroken
• It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
• King of the Hill
• Malcolm in the Middle
• Napoleon Dynamite
• Pet Squad
• Star Trek: Lower Decks
• Scott Pilgrim Takes Off
• Unhitched

• Adam-12
• Night Court
• Night Gallery
• Quantum Leap
• Happy Days
• Full House
• Frasier
• Seinfeld

• MTV Live
• Mr. Bean
• Cops
• The Price is Right
• Dogs with Jobs
• Zoo Diaries
• Cash Cab (also on Much)

• The Marilyn Denis Show
• The Nanny

• CMT Play Time - This airs during school time (9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time) weekdays and is primarily targeted at preschoolers. It consisted of various animated series and is a Canadian version of AFN Family. It debuted on November 13, 2021, when Bell Media took ownership of the channel and when CMT was changed from an advertiser-supported service to a commercial-free service.
• Country music programming - From its launch in 1995, CMT aired country music programming, but it was removed from its schedule on August 28, 2017, when CMT ceased licensing as a country music channel.
• Non-Stop - This airs from 4:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time, and airs shows like Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Duncanville and Bless the Harts. It debuted on November 15, 2021, two days after the transition of control from Corus Entertainment to Bell Media.
• Power Box - This block airs programming aimed at a male audience and airs from 12:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. Eastern Time.
• Non-Stop Weekends - This block airs the same programming aired on Non-Stop. It debuted on November 20, 2021, and is an offshoot to the latter block. It airs from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m..
• Popcorn Pranks - This block airs Saturdays and airs movies. It airs every evening starting at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
• Mad Dash - This block airs on Saturdays starting from 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time and airs shows like Cops, Mr. Bean and MTV Live.
• Weekend Double Pranks - This block is an offshoot of the Popcorn Pranks block, and airs movies in the genre of action, airing every Sunday at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
• Out to Lunch - This block airs from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. every Saturday and only airs two shows, The Marilyn Denis Show and The Nanny. It was launched on June 1, 2024.

• Twistmas - This block airs holiday specials.
• 31 Nights of Halloween - This block airs Halloween specials.
• Non-Stop Summer Weekendz - This block airs the same programming as Non-Stop Weekends, airing during the summer vacation period (June-August).

• Movie Entertainment - Prior to the acquisition of CMT by Bell Media, the "Movie Entertainment" name was already used by The Movie Network since 1990. This segment shows clips, trailers and interviews of what movies were opening soon. It debuted on November 13, 2021, when the channel's ownership changed hands from Corus Entertainment to Bell Media.
• Fooder, Tooner, Reviewer - This interstitial segment is hosted by Jack Daniels and showcases new releases of the entertainment (e.g. store brands, movies and TV shows).

CMT Music is the multiplex channel of the premium television service CMT. It is wholly owned by Bell Media with a licensing agreement the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. It showcases country music videos, and is broadcast as a 24-hour service. Unlike its U.S. counterpart, the channel operates as a HDTV service.

CMT Music has distributed in 4 different blocks since its launch in 2022:

• Pure Vintage features a mix of classic and vintage country music videos that were filmed and aired prior to 2000, including older performance video clips of songs. The block airs for 30 minutes, twice a day.
• The Edge Bluegrass, neo-traditionalist country, and Americana music videos are featured.
• Studio 330 Sessions Live sessions recorded at CMT's studios in Nashville (330 refers to CMT's Nashville address, 330 Commerce Street). Segments from the sessions continue to air in the channel's current rotation.
• Pure 12 Pack Countdown As with all of MTV's countdown shows, a limited pool of videos was voted on by fans online and sorted by popularity without industry or recording metrics.

CH

Country	Canada
Broadcast area	Nationwide
Headquarters	Toronto, Ontario
Programming
Language(s)	English
Picture format	1080i (HDTV)
Ownership
Owner	Bell Media
Sister channels	CMT CMT Music Crave CTV Comedy Channel MTV MTV2 Much
History
Launched	April 1, 2023; 19 months ago (2023-04-01)

CH is the multiplex network of CMT that primarily focuses on male-targeting reality television series.

An original Canadian incarnation of Teletoon was launched on October 17, 1997 by a consortium of Western International Communications and Astral Media (via its specialty network Family Channel), Shaw Communications (via its specialty network YTV), and the animation studios Cinar and Nelvana. By 2014, Corus had become the sole owner of the network.

On February 21, 2023, Corus announced that Teletoon would be rebranded as Cartoon Network on March 27, 2023.^[17] Later, Bell announced that they would enter their partnership with Cartoon Network, and relaunch Teletoon on April 1. On March 1, 2023, Bell Media was given approval by the CRTC to launch CMT Extreme, described as a "24-hour channel for boys. CMT Extreme will focus on more action and adventure programming." The channel would eventually re-launch on April 1, 2023 at 6:00 A.M. Eastern Time, starting with the Big and Small episode, "The Case of The Missing Dinosaur". Operating under the CMT Extreme license, Teletoon expanded upon CMT's relationship as a licensee of its entertainment programming.

In May of that same year, Teletoon premiered the pilot for Flo Takes Off and, in November, a new show, Teacher's Guide to Break the Rules.

On June 10, 2024, Rogers Sports & Media announced it had reached an agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) for Canadian rights to its lifestyle brands beginning in January 2025. Although not mentioned in Rogers' initial announcement, the company subsequently confirmed that the affected channels include Discovery Channel and other brands of the former Discovery Communications (pre-Scripps Networks Interactive merger) which had been managed by Bell in Canada.^[18][19]

Bell then said in a statement that it would "assert [its] rights", citing non-compete protections it had previously negotiated against the launch of direct competitor channels.^[20] On June 19, Bell filed for an injunction against WBD supplying any Discovery programming to Rogers for at least two years after its own deal expires, claiming it was entitled to a "window to adjust" under its outgoing contract in the event of non-renewal.^[21]

According to Rogers, the injunction requested by Bell would—if granted—prevent the company from operating any linear TV channels under the relevant brands during that timeframe, but would not affect other content rights.^[22] Nevertheless, Rogers subsequently announced plans to launch its own channels under the Discovery and Investigation Discovery (ID) brands on January 1, 2025, along with on-demand distribution of content from other brands of the former Discovery Communications.^[23] On October 8, 2024, Bell settled with WBD, agreeing to a renewal of its separate library deals with HBO and Warner Bros. for its Crave service, as well as co-production and international distribution pacts for Bell Media original programming, allowing Rogers' relaunch of the Discovery brands to proceed.^[24]

In August 2024, Bell Media announced an agreement with Hearst Entertainment, revealing the final name for Teletoon named CH. Its lineup was to feature new seasons of the network's existing original series, in addition to new shows produced by Bell Media subsidiaries and other studios (such as the aforementioned Flo Takes Off), as well as new program supply agreements with Cleo TV, and later in the year, March Entertainment. The re-branding took place on October 9, 2024.

CMT

Country	Canada
Broadcast area	Nationwide
Headquarters	Toronto, Ontario
Programming
Language(s)	English
Picture format	1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
Ownership
Owner	Bell Media (brand licensing from Paramount Networks Americas)
Sister channels	CTV Comedy Channel Much MTV Crave CMT CMT Music Teletoon
History
Launched	November 13, 2021; 3 years ago (2021-11-13)
Links
Website	ctv.ca/cmt

CMT is a Canadian English-language teletext channel owned by Bell Media, which makes it the first teletext channel owned by Bell Media. The channel airs previews related to what movies were opening soon. This is the only CMT channel to operate in Western Canada.

On November 13, 2021, CMT was changed to a commercial-free service and acquired by Bell Media. At 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time, CMT started offering a teletext feed.

CMT Women is a multiplex channel from CMT that primarily airs lifestyle programming aimed at women, as well as the black community.

On June 7, 2024, Corus announced it had been informed by Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) that the latter would be ending its trademark licensing and program output agreements for some WBD-branded channels after December 31, 2024. On June 10, 2024, Rogers Sports & Media announced it had reached an agreement with WBD for Canadian rights to its lifestyle brands beginning in January 2025. Corus later acknowledged that OWN was one of the affected brands.^[25] Prior to that, Corus had previously operated a Canadian version of OWN.

Corus said in its announcement that it would continue operating the affected channels with their existing Canadian programming with alternate imported content.^[26] On June 25, 2024, a notice posted to the service updates page of Rogers Cable stated that "starting September 1, 2024, OWN TV Canada will no longer be aired by the broadcaster."^[27] Corus made no further mentions of any changes to their networks until the announcement of their third quarter earnings on July 15, confirming the affected networks were under review and stated that while some of the affected channels would be considered for closure, sister channels Food Network and HGTV are expected to be respectively rebranded as Flavour Network and Home Network as Corus retains domestic rights to programming originally produced for those channels by it and its forerunners.^[25] On July 12, 2024, the CRTC gave approval to Bell Media to launch CMT OneWORLD, described as "a basic, 24-hour network devoted to lifestyle, DIY hacking, science, STEM and sci-fi."

The channel launched on September 18, 2024, using the CMT OneWORLD license. Fooder, Tooner, Reviewer was the first show to broadcast. On the day of its launch, OWN was shut down and replaced by CMT Women after the last of episode of Love and Marriage: DC ended. Because it is legally a distinct service (unlike some of the CMT networks), subscription television companies had to reach new agreements with Bell in order to carry CMT Women, as OWN operated under a different license. Corus then had OWN's license revoked on October 8, 2024.

• CMT (American TV channel)
• Stingray Country

• Official website