Max (Canadian TV channel)
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Montreal, Quebec |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | V Media Group |
MusiMax is a Canadian French language Category A specialty channel. Established in 1997 by a joint venture between CHUM Limited and Radiomutuel, it is a sister station to MusiquePlus (itself the French equivalent to MuchMusic), focusing primarily on adult contemporary music (making it the French-language equivalent to MuchMusic's sister station, then known as MuchMoreMusic).
History
MusiMax was licensed by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in September 1996 by CHUM Limited and Radiomutuel and launched on September 8, 1997 with each companies holding 50% of the service.
In June 1999, Astral Media announced it would takeover Radiomutuel and gained control of Radiomutuel's assets including MusiMax shortly thereafter. In July 2006, CTVglobemedia announced it would acquire CHUM Limited. While the company initially planned to keep MusiquePlus and MusiMax, it instead elected to sell its stakes in the networks. On April 11, 2007, Astral Media announced that it would be acquiring the remaining 50% in MusiMax and MusiquePlus from CHUM Limited, giving it majority ownership. The sale was completed on June 30, 2007.
On March 4, 2013, following the Competition Bureau's approval of Bell Media's takeover of Astral, Bell announced that it would put MusiMax and five other channels (Family, Disney XD, Disney Junior's English and French services and MusiquePlus) up for sale, in an attempt to relieve CRTC concerns regarding the takeover.[1] On December 4, 2013, Remstar, owners of the French television system V, announced that it would acquire MusiquePlus and MusiMax for an undisclosed amount through its subsidiary V Media Group.[2] On September 11, 2014, the CRTC approved the sale. The acquisition is valued at $15.5 million; to fund the purchase, Remstar will sell 15% stakes in V Media to the Caisse, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and a third unannounced investor, and sell $1.5 million in advertising time across MusiquePlus and MusiMax to Bell. Remstar also successfully applied to have the amount of music-oriented programming the channel must air reduced to 80%.[3][4] The sale closed on September 16, 2014.[5]
MusiMax HD
On August 23, 2010, Astral launched a HD feed of MusiMax called MusiMax HD.[6] It is available on Bell Fibe TV, Cogeco and Vidéotron.
International distribution
- Saint Pierre and Miquelon - distributed on SPM Telecom systems.
See also
- List of French-language Canadian television series
- List of Quebec musicians
- Music of Quebec
- Culture of Quebec
References
- ^ BCE takeover of Astral OK’d by Competition Bureau, The Montreal Gazette (via The Canadian Press), March 4, 2013.
- ^ "Bell Media signs deal to sell MusiquePlus and MusiMax to V Media Group". Canadian Press. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
- ^ Faguy, Steve (13 September 2014). "CRTC approves V's purchase of MusiquePlus/MusiMax". Retrieved 13 September 2014.
- ^ "MusiquePlus and MusiMax - Change in effective control and licence amendments". CRTC. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
- ^ http://vtele.ca/v/communiques/groupe-v-media-acquiert-musiqueplus-et-musimax-et-annonce-l-arrivee-de-nouveaux-partenaires-financiers_459.php
- ^ MusiquePlus et Musimax en HD, enfin! Template:Fr