2×2 (TV channel)

2x2 (russian: Дважды два, Dvazhdy dva, lit=Twice Two) is a Russian television channel. Founded in 1989, it was the first commercial TV station in the Soviet Union (USSR). The channel shut down in 1997, and resumed broadcasting in 2003. Since then, the channel predominantly broadcasts foreign animated TV series, including children's television series, anime and adult animation shows (similar to the American channel Adult Swim).

The channel has 4-hour versions for broadcasting in other regions of Russia (+0 MSK, +2 MSK, +4 MSK, +7 MSK).

The channel began trial broadcasting in July 1989 on the frequency of Moscow Programme of the Central Television, becoming the first commercial channel in the history of the USSR and Russia. Full broadcasting began on 1 November 1989. Initially, the basis of the TV channel's broadcast network was made up of half-hour and more advertising blocks, modern Soviet and Western music videos, cartoons, and TV series.

Broadcasting of 2x2 on Channel 3 ended on 9 June 1997, moving to the decimeter band, on Channel 51, where it broadcast with extremely low-quality content and a predominance of "shop on the couch". In 2003, the channel has shifted to 60 TVK, after which 50% of the broadcast channel 2x2 took the re-broadcasting of Fashion TV, but after 2 years in the etheric grid once again started to dominate the "shop on the couch”.

Since 1 April 2007, under this name, an animated Russian channel has been broadcasting, aimed at an adult audience at the age of 14–44 years old. Its database contains more than 200 titles of various animated series, game shows and feature films. The channel also has its own animation studio.

Since 2014, the channel has been part of the holding company Gazprom-Media. As of April 2017, it employs 45 people.Число сотрудников за 2017
/ref> The channel applied for inclusion in the second multiplex of digital terrestrial television in Russia, but failed to win the competition held by the Federal Competition Commission (FCC).

History

Trial period (July — November 1989)

The channel was established by order of the state television and radio broadcasting of the USSR as a structural division within the General Directorate of programs (GDP). The staff initially had 6 people, among them: Sergey Alexandrovich Alekseev (Director), Olga Smirnova, Oleg Shchur (Producer), Olga Lukasik (administrator), in August, Sergey Lavrov joined the team as an artist. Trial broadcasting on 3 channel in Moscow and the Moscow region began in July 1989 under the name "Commercial TV channel". Broadcasting was carried out in the daytime, as in the evening the state "Moscow program CT" was broadcasting on the same frequency. The duration of the broadcasts of the "Commercial TV channel" was not fixed. Music videos of "all She Wants Is" by Duran Duran, "Always on My Mind" by Pet Shop Boys, "Assez!" by Niagara, "Everywhere" by Fleetwood Mac, "Around My Heart" by singer Sandra, "Soldier" by singer Thomas Anders, "Mon mec à moi" by singer Patricia Kaas, "Don't Stop the Dance" by singer Bryan ferry, as well as fragments of the song were broadcast during the commercial.concert of the band space in Moscow. The employees had only a small room No. 115 behind the bar in ask-3 (Olympic TV and radio complex) and two hardware rooms, an on-air and an Assembly room.

1989—1997

The name «2x2» was coined by the team around the end of July 1989, at the same time Sergey Lavrov (the only artist in the team) developed the General style of the TV channel and the original version of the logo, which with minor changes still exists. On November 1, 1989, the channel began broadcasting under its own name on the frequency of "Moscow program CT", later - "MTK". In the evening (from 18:00 to 23:00), the MTK channel was broadcast. The meaning of the name «2x2» at the beginning of the channel's activity was explained as" proportional provision of air for advertising and other programs on the principle of 50×50", due to the fact that advertising there was both a source of funding and a form of functioning.

At the initial stage of work, 2x2 did not have money for the production and purchase of programs, as a result of which the broadcast network was filled with materials obtained thanks to the personal connections and capabilities of its managers. Half-hour and more advertising blocks, an advertising clip of the company "Video international", modern Soviet and foreign music videos and cartoons (in particular, the Soviet TV "Screen") were shown on the air, later (in December 1991) the TV series "Captain Power and soldiers of the future"was shown and then repeated many times. The series "I Spy" was also broadcast. In addition, 2x2 also showed a selection of domestic clips, starting with the clip of Oleg Beskrovny "a knock in the heart" (the main character of this selection was Igor Talkov). Among other videos shown by the channel were clips of the Alla Pugacheva song theater from the Video international company, "Accountant" by the Combination group," Arab gold "by the Forgotten conversation group," love Street "and" Ksenia "by Alena Apina. In the program "Afisha" with DJ Ale-Alena, which also broadcast video clips of Russian artists such as Bogdan Titomir and Oleg Gazmanov. From the first day of broadcast have been broadcast by Sergei Selenourea — "Batalla!".

The lack of a rigid broadcast grid and the format of a six-time repeat of the same block of entertainment programs and advertising, which were the result of limited financial resources and a small number of programs at the disposal of 2x2, largely played a role in the growth of its popularity. The channel broadcast in the format of the so-called "background television", when viewing which the viewer could not pay attention to the picture shown on the screen, or even start watching the TV channel from any moment, without specifically catching this or that TV program. TV sets in offices, shops, cafes and other public places and institutions were often tuned to 2x2. At that time, 2x2 was the only domestic TV channel that often showed music videos, which strongly distinguished it from the General background of several existing Soviet TV channels. The channel was very popular among Soviet schoolchildren, who most often, while waiting for a 20-minute show of music videos, watched advertising blocks that sometimes lasted for 40 minutes without a break. According to a survey of 586 high school students in Moscow schools conducted at the end of 1991, the channel became the leader in popularity: it was watched by 34.16% of respondents.

From June 1990 to 31 May 1992, the channel broadcast programs of the British Super Channel. One of these programs was Blue Night. Their share in the broadcast network almost immediately became impressive-one-or two-hour selections of video clips were broadcast (the program All Mixed hit parade SPIN WIN, made up of modern popular clips), thematic programs (music, fashion, sports), movies. Some educational programs were also broadcast, including those produced by the Discovery Channel, including "After 2000".

Since mid-1991, the channel began to show the anime Macron 1.

In October 1991, a legal entity Enterprise «TV channel 2x2» was re-registered as LLP Company «TV Channel 2x2».

Since 2 July 1992, instead of the daytime show of feature films of Central television, the TV channel began to carry out reruns of series going to MTK, the first of which was "Nobody but you".

Starting around 1992, the channel began to broadcast a program about heavy and rock music "Green Corridor", produced by the production Studio "BIZ Enterprises" entrepreneur Boris Zosimov. In the future of music policy of the channel is almost entirely under the control of that person, the consequence of which in 1993 was the signing of a guide channel of a contract with the owners of the TV channel MTV Europe on the rebroadcast of some programs of the channel (for example, on the night of 1 January 1994, was shown the concert of ABBA). Initially, clips from the European broadcast of MTV were broadcast during the day between series and other programs. At first, recordings of MTV broadcasts were broadcast quite often, including VJ blocks, often even without translation. Among the programs were episodes of the animated series Beavis and Butt-Head. Soon, paid clips of Russian artists such as Vlad Stashevsky and Yevgeny Kemerovo began to take the place of MTV clips more and more. By the summer of 1994, there was a daily hour-long selection of clips from the MTV broadcast (aired in the afternoon), which soon also disappeared. Music videos, but no longer from the airwaves of MTV, were occasionally broadcast in the future, still in between the series.

Despite the fact that some of the ideas of Boris Zosimov (MTV) did not justify themselves, he continued to occupy part of the air on 2x2, creating a TV producer "BIZ-TV". Within its framework, a number of musical programs were released and, in fact, almost all the musical component of the channel was formed. Also, as part of this project, the program "Forgotten names", dedicated to the Soviet stage, was broadcast, later moved to the TV-6 channel, where it was aired as part of the program "Disk-channel" as "spinning disks". The hosts of the program were Kirill Nemolyaev.

In 1993, 2x2 first came to the satellite, which resulted in retransmission (in the recording) it is supported by some regional partners. Prior to the satellite launch, the channel broadcast only in Moscow and the Moscow region, and through its own transmitters in Tver and Ryazan, with real-time signal delivery via ground-based RRL.

In 1993–1994, 2x2 also regularly showed commercials of the organization Greenpeace, and therefore on the air of this TV channel you could often see Joanna Stingray and Boris Grebenshchikov. In 1993, newscasts "2x2" appeared (at first they were in the middle of each hour, less often-at the end of the ending hour, later-at the beginning of each hour, in the format of short news blocks). A half-hour weekly broadcast of AUM Shinrikyo was also broadcast.

From 1992 to 1994 inclusive, the channel broadcast BBC
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