CFTU-TV
Encyclopedia
CFTU-TV is a Canadian French language
education
al television station
in the province
of Quebec
, owned by a private consortium known as CANAL, consisting primarily of Quebec-based post-secondary institutions. CFTU currently uses the on-air brand, Canal Savoir. It is licensed to and located in the city of Montreal
.
CFTU is available over-the-air on channel 29 in Montreal; on cable through much of Quebec, parts of Ontario
, New Brunswick
, and Western Canada
; and on satellite (Bell TV channel 152 and Shaw Direct channel 720).
CFTU broadcasts at 10 kilowatts
, one of Montreal's weakest television signals, on the same level as most low-powered UHF stations in the United States. As a consequence, the station's over-the-air signal is very poor, even in Montreal.
(the "TU" in the station's callsign) negotiated with Vidéotron
, the local cable provider in Montreal, to take responsibility for running an educational television service in the province. The following year, an agreement between Télé-Université and Vidéotron was reached, subsequently leading to the startup of a publicly-accessible educational cable television service, using Radio-Québec
as its over-the-air gateway for its programming.
In the next three years, thirteen other educational institutions around Quebec, starting with the Université de Montréal, joined up with Télé-Université to provide administrative and technical support for the new television service. The institutions formed a new consortium, known as the Corporation pour l'Avancement des Nouvelles Applications des Langages, or CANAL for short, to co-ordinate the educational television service and prepare it to begin broadcasting over-the-air.
After over a year of test transmissions on channel 62, Télé-Université officially launched its OTA
service, CFTU-TV channel 29, on August 20, 1986. On cable television
in Montreal, it airs on channel 26 on the West Island and 47 in the east, and was the first OTA television station in Canada to be given a cable assignment outside the basic band (channels 2-13) of the dial. CFTU launched under the name of Canal de Télé-enseignement, and changed its name to Canal Savoir in 1997.
Although the analogue television shutdown and digital conversion
took place on August 31, 2011, CFTU-TV was granted a temporary extension for their analogue broadcasts until October 31, 2011. This extension deadline could not be met, so a second extension was granted and CFTU-DT is required to begin broadcasting on its current assigned and analog channel number, 29, effective December 15, 2011.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
al television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
in the province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, owned by a private consortium known as CANAL, consisting primarily of Quebec-based post-secondary institutions. CFTU currently uses the on-air brand, Canal Savoir. It is licensed to and located in the city of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
.
CFTU is available over-the-air on channel 29 in Montreal; on cable through much of Quebec, parts of Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
, and Western Canada
Western Canada
Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces and commonly as the West, is a region of Canada that includes the four provinces west of the province of Ontario.- Provinces :...
; and on satellite (Bell TV channel 152 and Shaw Direct channel 720).
CFTU broadcasts at 10 kilowatts
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
, one of Montreal's weakest television signals, on the same level as most low-powered UHF stations in the United States. As a consequence, the station's over-the-air signal is very poor, even in Montreal.
History
CFTU's history starts in 1981, when a distance learning organization known as Télé-UniversitéTélé-université
Télé-université, or TÉLUQ, is a component of the Université du Québec à Montréal. TÉLUQ became a component of UQAM in June 2005. The enabling legislation is An Act respecting educational institutions at the university level. -Programs:...
(the "TU" in the station's callsign) negotiated with Vidéotron
Vidéotron
Vidéotron GP is a Canadian integrated telecommunications company active in cable television, interactive multimedia development, video on demand, cable telephony, wireless communication and Internet access services. Currently, the company primarily serves Quebec, as well as the francophone...
, the local cable provider in Montreal, to take responsibility for running an educational television service in the province. The following year, an agreement between Télé-Université and Vidéotron was reached, subsequently leading to the startup of a publicly-accessible educational cable television service, using Radio-Québec
Télé-Québec
Télé-Québec is a French language public educational television network in the Canadian province of Quebec. Known legally as Société de télédiffusion du Québec , it is a provincial crown corporation owned by the Government of Quebec...
as its over-the-air gateway for its programming.
In the next three years, thirteen other educational institutions around Quebec, starting with the Université de Montréal, joined up with Télé-Université to provide administrative and technical support for the new television service. The institutions formed a new consortium, known as the Corporation pour l'Avancement des Nouvelles Applications des Langages, or CANAL for short, to co-ordinate the educational television service and prepare it to begin broadcasting over-the-air.
After over a year of test transmissions on channel 62, Télé-Université officially launched its OTA
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
service, CFTU-TV channel 29, on August 20, 1986. On cable television
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
in Montreal, it airs on channel 26 on the West Island and 47 in the east, and was the first OTA television station in Canada to be given a cable assignment outside the basic band (channels 2-13) of the dial. CFTU launched under the name of Canal de Télé-enseignement, and changed its name to Canal Savoir in 1997.
Digital television and high definition
As of September 2011, CFTU-DT has been approved by the CRTC for a digital transmitter, but has not commenced broadcasts.Although the analogue television shutdown and digital conversion
Digital television in Canada
Digital television in Canada is transmitted using the ATSC standards developed for and in use in the United States. Because Canada and the U.S...
took place on August 31, 2011, CFTU-TV was granted a temporary extension for their analogue broadcasts until October 31, 2011. This extension deadline could not be met, so a second extension was granted and CFTU-DT is required to begin broadcasting on its current assigned and analog channel number, 29, effective December 15, 2011.
See also
- List of Canadian television channels
- Television of QuebecTelevision of QuebecTelevision in Quebec is an essential part of the culture of Quebec, as well as the rest of French Canada. With over 99% of households owning a television in Quebec, it has the power to reach every Quebecer...
- Culture of QuebecCulture of QuebecThe Culture of Quebec emerged over the last few hundred years, resulting from the shared history of the French-speaking majority in Quebec. It is unique to the Western World; Quebec is the only region in North America with a French-speaking majority, as well as one of only two provinces in Canada...