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Vision TV
Owner: Vision TV (a non-profit corporation)
Overview: Vision is Canada's faith channel, the service that explores religion and family values. Its programming ranges from paid programming for countless denominations / religions to family-friendly programming for all faiths to religious-themed discussions or comedies. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that it's one of the most ignored channels within key demographics - but you'd get a lot of angry seniors if you ever tried to get rid of it.
Website: http://www.visiontv.ca

YTV
Owner: YTV Canada Inc.
Overview: There is no possible way to market products to kids without going through YTV. It is the most-watched channel among children and "tweens" and has award-winning branding, imaginative promotions, and - above all - most of the most popular kids programs in Canada. And there's also the YTV-branded websites, magazines, CDs, awards shows, concerts, and marketing reports. In many ways, YTV is no longer just a channel on a cable dial: it's part of the culture to almost all Canadian youth.
YTV - standing for Youth Television, although they won't admit it - was originally a partnership involving Rogers, Shaw, and Atlantis (before it merged with Alliance). Through some dealing, though, Shaw ultimately took full control in the mid-90s, before regulatory concerns led it to spin it and other media assets off as Corus Entertainment.
Website: http://www.ytv.com

Bravo!
Owner: CHUM Limited
Overview: Bravo!, the "NewStyleArtsChannel" launched in 1995 and loosely based on the U.S. service of the same name, is arts at its best. Yes, there's a lot of high-class programming: dance, drama, books, even high-class music videos (mainly instrumental music, mind you). But thanks to programs like the current imported-from-HBO smash Sex and the City plus movies several times a week, it's not that high-class.
Website: http://www.bravo.ca
The Discovery Channel Canada
Owner: 2953285 Canada Inc. (NetStar Communications Inc. - 80%, Discovery Communications Inc. - 20%)
Overview: Discovery launched in 1995 and quickly became the most popular channel of the new crop of specialties that started that year. The Canadian cousin of the popular U.S. service, it is home to the daily science news show @discovery.ca (pronounced At Discovery Canada), Crocodile Hunter, Wild Discovery, and other nature / science programs.
Website: http://www.exn.ca

Life Network
Owner: Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting Inc.
Overview: The Life Network, launched in 1995, is - obviously - a service devoted to lifestyle programming. Initially it had theme days, each weekday concentrating on a specific kind of topic, with the "Best of Life" on the weekend. But that was quickly dropped.
Now, having spun off most of its strictly "lifestyle" programming to sister services HGTV and Food Network, Life is trying to make a name for itself as a 24/7 "reality" channel - the home of "real life stories", such as "The Lofters", a nightly, year-long version of Big Brother - without prizes. Other programs include Life's Little Miracles, Life's Weddings, Canadian Living TV, and Martha Stewart Living.
Website: http://www.lifenetwork.ca

Showcase
Owner: Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting Inc.
Overview: Showcase, Canada's first all-fiction channel, is (as the slogan goes) television without borders. It shows the best dramas from Canada and around the world - a few original series, a lot of long-cancelled Canadian series. It is perhaps best known at this point for the very offbeat drama Queer as Folk, imported from Showtime, and the prison drama Oz, imported from HBO.
Website: http://www.showcase.ca

Women's Television Network
Owner: Lifestyle Television (1994) Ltd. (Corus)
Overview: It's a channel that can seem to never make the critics happy. Billed as a channel by women and for women, WTN was initially ridiculed by the press and comedians (ie. the Air Farce) alike for a lackluster schedule, bad programming, and stuff like that. WTN has since switched gears, being a lifestyle channel by day (ie. Debbie Travis' Painted House) and a women's entertainment channel by night (old American sitcoms like Kate & Allie, and dramas like The Division). And who can forget Sunday Night Sex Show. But then, at least one critic (a woman) still dislikes the channel for turning its back on the femininity it showed at its launch. Oh well, I can stand it, and I'm a guy...
Recent/Coming Developments: Corus recently received approval to purchase WTN following the purchase of WTN's old owner, Moffat Communications, by Corus's sister company Shaw. But despite several requests from the CRTC and others to stay in Winnipeg, the channel is moving operations to Toronto in early January. The entire Winnipeg management team has been told that it will be replaced - by a bunch of long-time Corus employees. (WTN master control will still be run by CKY / CTV employees for now.)
Website:
http://www.WTN.ca

Canadian Learning Television
Owner: Canadian Learning Television Ltd. (CHUM - 60%)
Overview: CLT is Canada's national educational service. It allows Canadians to earn credits for university courses at home, and it helps students and adults alike with such things as finding a job. But at the same time, in order to make a profit, it has to make as much of its programming interesting for the masses. So there are movies and even game shows (and yes, there is apparently a university course somewhere that involves studying game shows), plus a few daytime informercials to kill some time.
CLT is based in Alberta and is a spin-off of Access, the Alberta educational service which CHUM bought control of from the provincial government in the mid-90's.
Website: http://www.clt.ca

The Comedy Network
Owner: The Comedy Network Inc. (CTV Inc. - 65.1% / Corus Entertainment Inc. - 29.9% / Les Films Rozon Ltd. - 5%)
Overview: Known by its trademark tagline, "Time Well Wasted", The Comedy Network has quickly become one of the country's best-known specialty services with its irreverant and sometimes shocking humour. There are various comedy specials, series such as South Park and The Man Show, classic episodes of Air Farce and The Simpsons, and, of course, its live airings of Open Mike with Mike Bullard. Open Mike is perhaps the service's biggest success story, starting on Comedy and later getting a late-night slot on most CTV stations.
The Comedy Network was originally licenced to a consortium led by Baton Broadcasting in 1996 - Baton later merged with CTV, and CTV was later purchased by BCE. Astral Media has sold its interest to Corus, which has since agreed to sell its now-larger interest to CTV.
Website: http://www.thecomedynetwork.com

History Television
Owner: History Television Inc. (Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting Inc. - 88% / CTV Inc. (Bell Globemedia - 12%)
Overview: The mission of History Television, launched in 1997, is rather self-explanatory. Movies, specials, and series, all relating to stuff that's happened in the past in Canada and around the world, fill the constantly-changing schedule.
Developments: Alliance Atlantis is purchasing CTV's interest.
Note for American Readers: Most ads for The History Channel - at least on A&E - make the point of saying, at the end of each ad, "Not Available in Canada". This means that the American service is not available in Canada; A&E (which owns The History Channel - but which is itself available in Canada) is just making sure that no Canadians get the wrong impression as very few THC programs air on History Television. So, if you hear Canadians talking about the History Channel - which is probably just a reference to History TV - don't worry about it.
Website: http://www.history.ca

Home and Garden Television Canada
Owner: HGTV Canada Inc. (Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting Inc. <../companies/alliance.htm> - 80.24% / Scripps Howard Broadcasting Company - 19.76%)
Overview: Following the success of various home decoration / gardening programming on Life Network, Atlantis (before the Alliance merger) decided to launch a new service in partnership with the American service HGTV that would take much of this programming. HGTV Canada, the resulting service, is now home to programs like Martha Stewart Living (half-hour episodes - as opposed to the one-hour episodes on Life Network), This Old House, and House & Home (which recently moved from CTV - but yes, reruns of the original series still air on CTV).
Website: http://www.hgtv.ca

Outdoor Life Network
Owner: ?????? Ontario Inc. (Bell Globemedia, Rogers, OLN U.S. - each with approx. 33%, but Globemedia has voting control over Rogers' shares)
Overview: When you think outdoor life, you might think fishing, hunting, camping, and stuff like that. And that's pretty much how OLN in the U.S. worked for several years - and how OLN Canada was planned. But, reportedly mere weeks before it was set to launch (in fall 1997), it was given a makeover: as an edgier, more sports-oriented service. OLN U.S. soon took the same move itself.
Although the "traditional" outdoor programming hasn't been removed, the service has increasingly leaned towards outdoor sporting events - more specifically, extreme sports like you'd see at the X-Games. Also seen on OLN are the Tour de France, triathalons, and occasionally soccer (during Euro 2000, when there were frequently two games at once and TSN could only show one. It's a stretch, but it doesn't violate the licence).
Website: http://www.facetheelements.com

Global Prime
Owner: Prime TV, a general partnership (Global Communications Limited - 99%, Prime TV Partner Inc.(?) - 1%)
Overview: When CanWest Global first applied for Prime, it told the CRTC that it would be a channel for the aging baby-boomers, with maybe a few classic TV shows. Leave it to Global to find a way around its licence conditions to get a format change.
Prime, which is now one of the country's most popular specialty services, now airs several hours of old sitcoms each day, ranging from M*A*S*H to All in the Family to The Beverly Hillbillies. Cancon requirements are filled with a nightly business program, old game shows, and reruns of Global's talk show Bynon.
Website: None; some info at http://www.primetvmedia.com, http://www.primetvsales.com and http://www.specialtv.ca.

Space
Owner: CHUM Limited
Overview: Only the ChumCity people could do Space, aka "The Imagination Station", a service that airs anything and everything connected with science-fiction. After all, CHUM stations have been airing the two most recent Star Trek series as well as various Canadian-made industrial sci-fi series like LEXX and Earth: Final Conflict
All four Star Trek series as well as The X-Files air daily (in reruns, of course) on the channel. Granted, not everything is strictly sci-fi. The 60's version of Batman aired on the channel in the past, reruns of Xena: Warrior Princess air there now, and reruns of Buffy the Vampire Slayer are coming in the fall.
Website: http://www.spacecast.com

Talk TV
Owner: CTV Television Inc. (Bell Globemedia <../companies/bce.htm>)
Overview: The last of the last batch of analogue English specialties to launch, not to mention the one with the least-certain future. Its planned fall 1999 launch was delayed by a year when cable companies found that they couldn't find room. Even now, only a handful of companies, albeit including major parts of Rogers' and Shaw's service areas, carry it on basic cable. Everywhere else, it's available on satellite and on most cable providers' digital packages. Adding to this uncertainty is the failure of the NBC-backed service America's Talking a few years back (its small subsciber base was eventually used to launch MSNBC). In an attempt to drum up support, CTV O&Os air a one-hour compilation of the best of The Chatroom (for more on The Chatroom, see below) on the weekends.
Nevertheless, where it is available, Talk TV has a rather cult-like following. Each weekday it airs The Chatroom, a six-hour mostly-live program where anything can and will happen, from 5pm to 11pm. Hosts are Jennifer Hollett, Louisa McCormack, Seamus O'Regan, Roberto Veri, and recent addition Ben Mulroney (yes, son of Brian). The program is then repeated three times over the following 18 hours.
Other talk programs, either classic ones or more recent ones that also air on CTV (ie. The View or Vicki Gabereau), can be found within the Chatroom block; these programs also fill up most of the weekend hours.
Website: http://www.talktv.ca

Treehouse TV
Owner: A subsid. of YTV Canada Inc. (Corus ../companies/shaw.htm)
Overview: In 1996, YTV received a licence for - and, in fall 1997, launched - an up-to-21-hours-a-day specialty service (cut back in many areas) devoted entirely to programming for toddlers and preschoolers, thus unleashing adult-sized 3-year-olds Tanzie and Rosabelle on the world. Initially it aired programming on a continuous every-few-hours rotation, including long-forgotten programs from TVOntario or imports from PBS, and a few scattered original programs. Now it is home to a slew of original Canadian programming or co-productions. It also has a "Treehouse Live!" tour regularly seen across the country.
The service's name comes from the original name for YTV's daily young kids block, "The Treehouse", although its in-studio between-program flllers took a different approach to the "treehouse" concept compared to Treehouse TV's intersitials. By fall 1998, YTV realized the conflict, and so YTV's Treehouse block became "YTV Jr." and stopped using in-studio fillers.
Website: http://www.treehousetv.com

Food Network Canada
Owner: Food Network Canada Inc. (Alliance Atlantis Communications Inc. - 70.2% / Television Food Network G.P. (Scripps Howard) - 19.8% / Corus Entertainment Inc. - 10%)
Overview: Like with sister service HGTV Canada, this service is partly a spin-off of Food Network U.S., partly a spin-off of Life Network (which has now dropped most cooking programs). The American version of the channel emerged on Canadian screens in 1997, when several cable companies included it with the new tier containing the latest Canadian services. About three years later, Alliance Atlantis received approval to launch a Canadian version of the channel.
Programming includes Emeril Live (with Emeril "Bam!" Lagasse), Ken Kostick and Company (with the former co-host of What's for Dinner?), and From Martha's Kitchen (yet another Martha Stewart program).
Website: http://www.foodtv.ca

MenTV
Owner: Men TV General Partnership (Groupe TVA Inc. (Quebecor Media) - 51% / Global Television Network Inc. (CanWest) - 49%)
Overview: A category 1 service dedicated to men's lifestyle. It will provide programming related to the luxury market, the gourmet market, mens' beauty and fitness, the book and music market, outdoor adventures and leisure sports, from a Canadian men's perspective. Series include M-Style (about fashion, relationships and getting the most out of life), Casino Life, Red Hot & Ready (about BBQ cooking), and Real Men (a talk show).

i channel
Owner: Stornoway Communications Limited Partnership (1403318 Ontario Limited* - 49.999%, Cogeco Radio-Television Inc. - 49.999%, Stornoway Communications General Partner Inc.* - 0.002% & general partner)
Overview: Formerly to be known as the Issues Channel, it is a Category 1 service focused on public affairs. Its biggest name so far is Catherine Clark, daughter of Joe, who will co-host the Open I magazine talk show along with Jessica Goldman, William Morassutti and Mark Holmes. Also on the channel is Unzipped (a series of pairs of documentaries), Wrongfully Accused (the focus is obvious), and Look Better Naked (about the lengths people go to to reach a physical ideal).
*It appears that Mr. Kitson Vincent and Mr. G. Mark Curry jointly own both of these companies.

MTV Canada
Owner: 3844161 Canada Inc. (Craig Broadcast Systems Inc. / a subsidiary of the Toronto-Dominion Bank / a subsidiary of Viacom Inc.)
Overview: Once MuchMusic USA started, you had to know that it was only a matter of time before MTV found a way to set up its own Canadian service - even if music videos cannot be the main focus. MTV Canada was originally licenced as Connect, a service devoted to teenagers and wholly owned by Craig and some Canadian financing partners. During summer 2001, after backing out of various ventures with CanWest, Viacom negotiated with Craig to sell branding rights for MTV and TV Land, resulting in this partnership.
The service is limited to around 10% music videos, but that doesn't matter much (if you've been following the American press, you know that actual music videos on MTV U.S. are getting scarcer and scarcer). Right now, the service is contenting itself with airing various MTV programs not currently seen in Canada, as well as Select, a Toronto/Vancouver-based TRL-type program. (Total Request Live itself is still not available in Canada.)
Website: http://www.mtvcanada.com

Discovery Health Channel Canada
Owner: Discovery Health Channel Canada ULC (Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting Inc. - 65%, Discovery Communications Inc. - 35%)
Overview: Discovery Health is a service "devoted entirely to useful, practical, reliable and entertaining programming related to health, wellness and medicine." Its best-known name, at least right now, is Dr. Brian Goldman, former CBC News health reporter and now an executive at the new service. Series include The Surgeons, Life's Little Miracles, and Medical Wonders.
Initially the service was to be Health Network Canada, a venture between Alliance Atlantis (with 80%) and The Health Network, a Fox-owned American channel which - at least until the launch of this service - was available in Canada (it would own 20%). In July, Fox pulled out and Discovery bought in - ironically, a few months later, Fox sold THN to Discovery and a merger of the two health services is expected soon.
Note that there is no connection, aside from the same brand and the same foreign partner, between this service and the other Discovery-branded services.
Website: http://www.discoveryhealth.ca

The Biography Channel
Owner: The Biography Channel (Canada) Corp. (Rogers Broadcasting Limited - 40% / Shaw Communications Inc. - 40% / A&E Television Networks - 20%)
Overview: A Category 1 service devoted to fact-based biographical and related programming. Every night will have different themes with multiple profiles. Daytime will feature biographies matched with related documentaries and movies. The service will draw from A&E's vast biography collection for most non-Canadian programming. It will also initially air CBC- and CHUM-produced biographies.
Website: http://www.thebiographychannel.ca
The Independent Film Channel Canada
Owner: The Independent Film Channel Canada Inc. (Salter Street Broadcasting Limited (Alliance Atlantis) - 95%, Triptych Media - 5%)
Overview: A Category 1 service consisting of dramatic and non-fiction short and feature-length independent films, and programs focusing on the independent film-making process, film makers and film festivals - based on an American-based channel of the same name (owned by Rainbow Media). Nothing from Hollywood on this channel.
Alliance Atlantis Communications recent bought Salter Street Films and is committing to keep this channel based in Halifax.
Website: http://www.ifctv.ca

PrideVision TV
Owner: PrideVision Inc. (Headline Media)
Overview: A category 1 service that offers news and information, current affairs, lifestyle and entertainment programming designed to meet the needs of the gay and lesbian community. Programs include the weekly newsmagazine program Shout, various G&L-themed films and shorts, and the (supposed) talk show So Graham Norton.
Website: http://www.pridevisiontv.com

Documentary Channel
Owner: The Canadian Documentary Channel Partnership (Corus Entertainment Inc. - 53% / Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - 29% / National Film Board of Canada - 14% / Barna-Alper Production - 1% / Galafilm - 1% / OMNI Film Productions - 1% / CineNova Productions - 1%)
Overview: A Category 1 service broadcasting documentaries 24 hours a day. Documentary series include "Masterworks" (Oscar-winning documentaries) and "Director's Cut" (other award-winning series). There will also be "Festival": each weekend devoted to a single theme, ie. war, jazz, etc.
Website: http://www.docschannel.ca
techtv Canada
Owner: techtv Canada Inc. (Rogers Broadcasting Limited - 33.3% / Shaw Communications Inc. - 33.3% / techtv LLC - 33.3%)
Overview: A Category 1 service dedicated to providing programming about computing, technology and the Internet. Aligned with techtv (formerly ZDTV) in the U.S., the leading provided of technology-lifestyle programming in that country; most of its programming (eg. Silicon Spin or The Screen Savers) will initially come from that service
Website: http://www.techtv.com/canada/

Country Canada
Owner: 3899071 Canada Inc. (Corus Entertainment Inc. / Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)
Overview: A Category 1 service for rural Canadian families, with a focus on adults 25-54. The service will provide information, interaction and entertainment from a rural perspective. Formerly to be known as Land & Sea. Series include CBC News: Countrywide (a rural-focused news program produced in St. John's in the morning and in Winnipeg at night), a Winnipeg-based call-in show called CountryLive, and reruns of Northern Exposure, Country Canada and Land & Sea.
FashionTelevisionChannel
Owner: CHUM Limited
Overview: A category 1 service dedicated to fashion, beauty, style, art, architecture, photography and design - a flow of short-form fashion and design-related items incorporating news, views, videos, tips and trends. Expect Jeannie Beker to be on a lot.
Website: http://www.ftchannel.com

BookTelevision: The Channel
Owner: Learning and Skills Television of Alberta Limited (CHUM - 60%(?))
Overview: A Category 1 service fully dedicated to magazines and talk shows, dramas and documentaries that have the printed and published word as their base. The service will promote both reading and writing, Canadian authors, and the Canadian publishing industry. The service includes hourly literature news updates - "Word News" - fronted by Daniel Richler, plus a weekly program, "The Word This Week". Other programming is unknown.
Website: http://www.bravo.ca/booktelevisionchannel/

ONE: The Body, Mind and Spirit Channel
Owner: ONE: the Body, Mind & Spirit Channel Inc. (Vision TV Digital Inc. - 41.7%; Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting Inc. - 29.9%; Radio Nord Communications Ltée - 15%; Renewal Partners - 5%; some other company - 3.4%)
Overview: One - originally licenced as Wisdom, until American company Wisdom Media sold out - is a service that explores the connections between the body, the mind, and the spirit. It examines holistic approaches to wellness: new and ancient options in exercise, nutrition, spiritual healing, relationships, etc. - in other words, herbs, yoga, meditation, etc.
Website: http://www.onebodymindspirit.com

Mystery
Owner: Company name unknown (Global Television Network Inc. - 45.05% / Groupe TVA Inc. - 45.05% / Rogers Broadcasting Limited - 9.9%)
Overview: Mystery - originally licenced as 13th Street under an apparently-cancelled agreement with Universal Studios - is a service dedicated to suspense, espionage, thrillers, police dramas and classic mysteries. Currently it operates on an eight-hour "wheel" (ie. aired three times). Initial programming includes Canadian-made MOWs based on the novels of Mary Higgins Clark, as well as series based on the works of Ruth Rendell, P.D. James, Agatha Christie, and others. Classic series on the channel include Murder She Wrote, Adderly, Picket Fences, The Prisoner, and Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys.
Its French-language counterpart, Canal Mystère (formerly 13ième Rue), is currently planning to launch in fall 2002.