G4techTV Canada
Encyclopedia
G4 Canada is a Canadian
English language
Category A specialty channel
owned by Rogers Media
. The name is licensed from NBCUniversal, who formerly owned a stake in the channel. G4 is an entertainment and information channel based on gaming, technology and pop culture programming.
(33.33%) and TechTV
US (33.33%) were granted approval by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to launch TechTV Canada, a service described by its nature of service as "providing programming about computing, technology and the Internet."
The channel launched on September 7, 2001.
After months of speculation, on March 25, 2004, Comcast
announced it would acquire TechTV US from Vulcan Programming Inc., with plans to merge TechTV with its own gaming-related channel, G4
. As part of the purchase, Comcast acquired TechTV's 33.33% interest in TechTV Canada, spinning it off into its subsidiary G4 Media
.
The transaction was completed on May 10, and the American services were merged into G4techTV
on May 28, 2004. TechTV Canada would follow suit and be renamed G4techTV Canada on the same date. On February 15, 2005, less than a year after the merger, the American G4techTV was renamed back to G4.
In June 2006, Shaw Communications sold its interest in the channel to the managing partner, Rogers Media. At an unknown date, Comcast also sold its interest to Rogers, giving it full ownership.
In June 2009, G4techTV Canada was renamed G4 Canada. However, the former brand was not completely phased out from station branding until late 2010.
, The Screen Savers
and TechLive
.
As the channel's name changed from TechTV to G4techTV, so did the channel's programming. Much like the American service, G4techTV Canada would acquire a mixture of the former TechTV and G4 programs, of which a number of those would be the younger-skewing gaming-related series such as Arena
and Cinematech
from the former channel, G4
.
In 2006, the CRTC granted a license amendment allowing G4techTV Canada to broadcast drama and comedy programs, including animated series such as anime
. Less than two months later, G4techTV Canada introduced Anime Current
, a programming block consisting of anime series. It was the channel's first venture into the airing of scripted series. Later, in 2007, G4techTV Canada would begin to introduce more scripted series including Code Monkeys
and The IT Crowd
.
When the channel was finally renamed G4 Canada in June 2009, it marked the shift towards a more entertainment-based schedule with less emphasis on technology, similar to its American counterpart
, instead focusing primarily on gaming and other general entertainment geared towards a younger audience. Much of the technology-based programming was removed or scheduled during off-peak hours. New programming introduced included Adult Digital Distraction
(ADd), a programming block consisting of comedy and animated series, many of which were non-technology based. Along with ADd, the channel would later add outdoor adventure programming including Angry Planet
and Mantracker
in the fall of that year.
television service, it is mandatory for all digital cable
and direct broadcast satellite
providers in Canada that have the capacity to do so to carry the channel in markets where English is the majority language.
G4 Canada, under the name G4techTV Canada, was broadcast internationally in the Barbados
market. The government-owned Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation
in Barbados switched from providing the American
-based feed, in favour of the Canadian channel for its cable television network known as Multi-Choice TV
. For unknown reasons, the channel has since been removed.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
Category A specialty channel
Specialty channel
A specialty channel can be a commercial broadcasting or non-commercial television channel which consists of television programming focused on a single genre, subject or targeted television market at a specific demographic....
owned by Rogers Media
Rogers Media
Rogers Media Inc is a subsidiary of Rogers Communications Inc., which owns Canada's largest publishing company, Rogers Publishing Limited, which has more than 70 consumer and business publications. Rogers Media Inc...
. The name is licensed from NBCUniversal, who formerly owned a stake in the channel. G4 is an entertainment and information channel based on gaming, technology and pop culture programming.
History
On November 24, 2000, through a joint venture, Rogers Media (33.34%), Shaw CommunicationsShaw Communications
Shaw Communications is Canada's largest telecommunications company that provides telephone, Canada's fastest Internet and television services as well as broadcasting and soon Wifi. Shaw is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta...
(33.33%) and TechTV
TechTV
TechTV was a 24-hour cable and satellite channel based in San Francisco featuring news and shows about computers, technology, and the Internet. In 2004, it merged with the G4 gaming channel which ultimately dissolved TechTV programming...
US (33.33%) were granted approval by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to launch TechTV Canada, a service described by its nature of service as "providing programming about computing, technology and the Internet."
The channel launched on September 7, 2001.
After months of speculation, on March 25, 2004, Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
announced it would acquire TechTV US from Vulcan Programming Inc., with plans to merge TechTV with its own gaming-related channel, G4
G4 (TV channel)
G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...
. As part of the purchase, Comcast acquired TechTV's 33.33% interest in TechTV Canada, spinning it off into its subsidiary G4 Media
G4 Media
G4 Media, Inc. is the parent company of G4, a 24-hour cable and satellite channel originally dedicated to video games. NBCUniversal holds a controlling interest in G4 Media, with Dish Network holding a minority interest of approximately 12%...
.
The transaction was completed on May 10, and the American services were merged into G4techTV
G4techTV
G4techTV was a cable and satellite channel resulting from a merger between Comcast-owned G4 and TechTV. The headquarters is based in Los Angeles...
on May 28, 2004. TechTV Canada would follow suit and be renamed G4techTV Canada on the same date. On February 15, 2005, less than a year after the merger, the American G4techTV was renamed back to G4.
In June 2006, Shaw Communications sold its interest in the channel to the managing partner, Rogers Media. At an unknown date, Comcast also sold its interest to Rogers, giving it full ownership.
In June 2009, G4techTV Canada was renamed G4 Canada. However, the former brand was not completely phased out from station branding until late 2010.
Programming
Originally, when the channel launched in 2001 as TechTV Canada, it consisted solely of technology and gaming related programming, mainly originating from its American counterpart, TechTV, along with Canadian programming. Such programming included Call for HelpCall for Help
Call for Help, also known as CFH, was a computer-themed television program that first aired exclusively on TechTV , a cable and satellite television network focused on technology, and then aired on G4techTV Canada and the HOW TO Channel in Australia...
, The Screen Savers
The Screen Savers
The Screen Savers was a live American TV show on TechTV. The show launched concurrently with the channel ZDTV on May 11, 1998. The Screen Savers originally centered around computers, new technologies, and their adaptations in the world...
and TechLive
TechLive
TechLive was a live television program on the former technology-oriented channel TechTVTechLive broadcast technology and entertainment related news, product reviews, and stock market reports. The program was cancelled when TechTV and G4 merged in early 2004....
.
As the channel's name changed from TechTV to G4techTV, so did the channel's programming. Much like the American service, G4techTV Canada would acquire a mixture of the former TechTV and G4 programs, of which a number of those would be the younger-skewing gaming-related series such as Arena
Arena (G4 TV series)
Arena was a G4 TV show which aired from 2002 to 2004. It is devoted entirely to teams competing against one another via multiplayer video games....
and Cinematech
Cinematech
Cinematech was a TV show on G4 and G4techTV that showcases various cutscenes and trailers for video games past, present, and upcoming. Some of the cut scenes are outros, which only people who have played through the game would have been able to see. Some of this footage comes from the interns of...
from the former channel, G4
G4 (TV channel)
G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...
.
In 2006, the CRTC granted a license amendment allowing G4techTV Canada to broadcast drama and comedy programs, including animated series such as anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
. Less than two months later, G4techTV Canada introduced Anime Current
Anime Current
Anime Current is an Anime Television block running on G4techTV Canada, in which one series is broadcast from beginning to end. It is similar to Anime Unleashed, a former programming block on the American G4 that broadcast Anime. Anime Current started on November 6, 2006 with R.O.D The TV...
, a programming block consisting of anime series. It was the channel's first venture into the airing of scripted series. Later, in 2007, G4techTV Canada would begin to introduce more scripted series including Code Monkeys
Code Monkeys
Code Monkeys is an American animated television program created by Adam de la Peña. Set in the early 1980s, it follows the adventures of fictional video game company GameaVision....
and The IT Crowd
The IT Crowd
The IT Crowd is a British sitcom by Channel 4, written by Graham Linehan, produced by Ash Atalla and starring Chris O'Dowd, Richard Ayoade, Katherine Parkinson and Matt Berry...
.
When the channel was finally renamed G4 Canada in June 2009, it marked the shift towards a more entertainment-based schedule with less emphasis on technology, similar to its American counterpart
G4 (TV channel)
G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...
, instead focusing primarily on gaming and other general entertainment geared towards a younger audience. Much of the technology-based programming was removed or scheduled during off-peak hours. New programming introduced included Adult Digital Distraction
Adult Digital Distraction
Adult Digital Distraction is a block airing on G4 Canada. Similar to Adult Swim and Teletoon at Night, Adult Digital Distraction airs mature comedies...
(ADd), a programming block consisting of comedy and animated series, many of which were non-technology based. Along with ADd, the channel would later add outdoor adventure programming including Angry Planet
Angry Planet
Angry Planet is a 39 part television series broadcast around the world featuring the adventures of storm chaser George Kourounis, Angry Planet is produced by Peter Rowe of Pinewood Films...
and Mantracker
Mantracker
Mantracker is a Canadian reality television series produced by Bonterra Productions. It premiered in Canada in April 2006 on the Outdoor Life Network. In the United States, the show currently airs on the Science Channel and in the UK on Extreme Sports Channel...
in the fall of that year.
Distribution
As a category 1Category 1 specialty channel
A Category A service is a Canadian specialty television channel which, as defined by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, must be carried by all digital cable and direct broadcast satellite providers that have the capability to do so....
television service, it is mandatory for all digital cable
Digital cable
Digital cable is a generic term for any type of cable television distribution using digital video compression or distribution. The technology was originally developed by Motorola.-Background:...
and direct broadcast satellite
Direct broadcast satellite
Direct broadcast satellite is a term used to refer to satellite television broadcasts intended for home reception.A designation broader than DBS would be direct-to-home signals, or DTH. This has initially distinguished the transmissions directly intended for home viewers from cable television...
providers in Canada that have the capacity to do so to carry the channel in markets where English is the majority language.
G4 Canada, under the name G4techTV Canada, was broadcast internationally in the Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
market. The government-owned Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation
Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation
The Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation is the government-owned media corporation located in Barbados.The television service broadcasts on channel 8 and is the only legally-licensed, over-the-air television channel broadcasting in the country of Barbados...
in Barbados switched from providing the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-based feed, in favour of the Canadian channel for its cable television network known as Multi-Choice TV
Multi-Choice TV (Barbados)
The television service provider known as Multi-Choice TV or MCTV is a MMDS or DVB-C wireless microwave based broadcast subscription television provider in the country of Barbados. They offer a variety of packages which can be considered as comparatively priced to similar providers throughout the...
. For unknown reasons, the channel has since been removed.
Logos
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