TVtropolis
Encyclopedia
TVtropolis is a Canadian
English language
Category A specialty channel
owned by Shaw Media
and Rogers Media
.
The channel operates two time shifted feeds: East (Eastern Time
) and West (Pacific Time
).
" generation, preferring instead to position itself as a general entertainment television channel. Prime's slogan, on-air and in advertising, was "Canada's Entertainment Network".
Prime's schedule reflected a mix of general interest television programs, including home improvement and design series, along with classic television series such as The Golden Girls
, M*A*S*H, All in the Family
, The Cosby Show
, and Newhart
. It also hosted repeat showings of several Global
and CH series, including The Apprentice, The Restaurant
, The Price Is Right
, Entertainment Tonight Canada
, and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
. Global
and CH also being Canwest properties at the time.
With the launch of the cable channel DejaView
(also owned by Canwest) in 2001, showing similar programming to Prime (1960s, 1970s and 1980s programming), the channel's focus shifted to its current format of shows from the late 1980s and beyond.
On June 1, 2006, Prime was renamed TVtropolis, which initially primarily focused on sitcoms and dramas from the 80s and 90s such as Seinfeld
and Beverly Hills 90210, with additional television series focused on television pop culture such as Inside the Box
and FANatical
. Over the course of its existence as TVtropolis, the channel has lessened its emphasis on sitcoms and dramas, focusing on other programs from reality series, game shows, lifestyle series, and others, with little emphasis on theme of television pop culture, rather focusing on general entertainment.
On October 27, 2010, Shaw Communications
purchased Canwest after it had entered into creditor bankruptcy protection in late 2009. As a result, Shaw acquired control of Canwest's stake in TVtropolis and renamed Canwest as Shaw Media.
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 Shaw Media
Shaw Media
Shaw Media is the television broadcasting division of Shaw Communications. Shaw Media owns the Global Television Network, which broadcasts via 11 television stations, as well as various specialty channels including HGTV Canada, Showcase, Food Network Canada, and History Television.Despite also...
and 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 channel operates two time shifted feeds: East (Eastern Time
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
) and West (Pacific Time
Pacific Time Zone
The Pacific Time Zone observes standard time by subtracting eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time . The clock time in this zone is based on the mean solar time of the 120th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory. During daylight saving time, its time offset is UTC-7.In the United States...
).
Programming
TVtropolis consists of a variety of programming ranging from 80s and 90s sitcoms, animated series, reality series, game shows, and other general entertainment programming. In marketing material, as its slogan suggests, it is described as a focusing on "hit" television series and television series and celebrities that have "have defined pop culture."History
The channel was launched as Prime on October 17, 1997 by Canwest. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) licensed Prime in 1996 as a specialty television service directed towards men and women 50 years of age and older. However, the channel did not explicitly market itself as a channel for the "baby boomerBaby boomer
A baby boomer is a person who was born during the demographic Post-World War II baby boom and who grew up during the period between 1946 and 1964. The term "baby boomer" is sometimes used in a cultural context. Therefore, it is impossible to achieve broad consensus of a precise definition, even...
" generation, preferring instead to position itself as a general entertainment television channel. Prime's slogan, on-air and in advertising, was "Canada's Entertainment Network".
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
, M*A*S*H, All in the Family
All in the Family
All in the Family is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. In September 1979, a new show, Archie Bunker's Place, picked up where All in the Family had ended...
, The Cosby Show
The Cosby Show
The Cosby Show is an American television situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, which aired for eight seasons on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992...
, and Newhart
Newhart
Newhart is a television situation comedy starring comedian Bob Newhart and actress Mary Frann as an author and wife who owned and operated an inn located in a small, rural Vermont town that was home to many eccentric characters. The show aired on the CBS network from October 25, 1982 to May 21, 1990...
. It also hosted repeat showings of several Global
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
and CH series, including The Apprentice, The Restaurant
The Restaurant
The Restaurant is a reality television series that aired on NBC in 2003, with a second season broadcasting in 2004. The series had encore presentations on CNBC and Bravo....
, The Price Is Right
The Price Is Right
The Price Is Right is a television game show franchise originally produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman, and created by Bob Stewart, and is currently produced and owned by FremantleMedia. The franchise centers on television game shows, but also includes merchandise such as video games, printed...
, Entertainment Tonight Canada
Entertainment Tonight Canada
Entertainment Tonight Canada is a daily entertainment newsmagazine show that airs primetime on Global Television in Canada. Encore presentations can also be found on the Slice and TVtropolis channels, both of which are part of the Shaw Media network...
, and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is a reality television series providing home renovations for less fortunate families and community schools etc...
. Global
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
and CH also being Canwest properties at the time.
With the launch of the cable channel DejaView
DejaView
DejaView is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel owned by Shaw Media. It airs television shows from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.-History:In November 2000, Global Television Network Inc...
(also owned by Canwest) in 2001, showing similar programming to Prime (1960s, 1970s and 1980s programming), the channel's focus shifted to its current format of shows from the late 1980s and beyond.
On June 1, 2006, Prime was renamed TVtropolis, which initially primarily focused on sitcoms and dramas from the 80s and 90s such as Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
and Beverly Hills 90210, with additional television series focused on television pop culture such as Inside the Box
Inside the Box
Inside the Box is a Canadian game show which debuted in 2006 on the cable network TVtropolis, and was syndicated in the United States by Program Partners in the 2008 television season...
and FANatical
FANatical
Fanatical is a Canadian half-hour documentary television series produced by Peace Point Entertainment Group and currently airs on TVtropolis and DejaView. FANatical explores the motivations and activities of people involved with the fandom of various television series...
. Over the course of its existence as TVtropolis, the channel has lessened its emphasis on sitcoms and dramas, focusing on other programs from reality series, game shows, lifestyle series, and others, with little emphasis on theme of television pop culture, rather focusing on general entertainment.
Shaw 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...
purchased Canwest after it had entered into creditor bankruptcy protection in late 2009. As a result, Shaw acquired control of Canwest's stake in TVtropolis and renamed Canwest as Shaw Media.