History
Alliance Atlantis (AAC) was granted a broadcast licence for a Category 2 speciality service covering "entertainment, drama and documentary programming". BBC Canada, by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in November 2000. Alliance also received licenses for channels including National Geographic (Canadian TV channel), National Geographic, IFC (Canadian TV channel), IFC, and The Health Network, launched as FYI (Canadian TV channel), Discovery Health. The television channel, channel was launched on 7 September 2001 as a joint venture between AAC and BBC Worldwide. To promote the launch of BBC Canada's 2007 fall season, a 16-page British-style tabloid insert called the ''BBC Telly'' was published in the ''Toronto Star''. Toronto-based Pilot PMR created the campaign. On 28 January 2008, a joint venture between Canwest and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners known as CW Media bought Alliance Atlantis and gained AAC's interest in BBC Canada. On 27 October 2010, the channel's ownership changed once again as Shaw Communications gained control of BBC Canada as a result of its acquisition of Canwest and Goldman Sachs' interest in CW Media. On 13 May 2011, BBC Canada was separated from the now-defunct children's channel BBC Kids due to its ownership changing hands to Knowledge Network. On 1 April 2016, Shaw Media was sold to Corus Entertainment. BBC Canada also earned several sister networks to go with the existing ones. In a notice to subscribers posted in early November 2020, Corus sister company Shaw Direct indicated that the channel would be shutting down on 31 December 2020. In March 2021, Blue Ant Media, a company owned by former Alliance Atlantis executive Michael MacMillan which already owns BBC Earth (Canadian TV channel), the Canadian version of BBC Earth, announced that its BBC First (Canadian TV channel), HIFI channel would be rebranded as a BBC First (Canadian TV channel), Canadian version of the BBC's international entertainment channel brand BBC First on March 16. Several programs that had been carried by BBC Canada prior to its closure, including ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' and ''Antiques Roadshow'', were picked up by BBC First.Programming
While BBC Canada was part-owned by the BBC, not all of the BBC's programmes aired on BBC Canada. In general, while BBC Worldwide and its affiliated operations have a "first look" at the corporation's output, this right only applies so long as BBC Worldwide pays no less than what the BBC Commercial Agency, which is at arm's length, judges to be a particular property's value. Furthermore, while BBC Canada served a similar purpose to the BBC America channel available in the United States, there are also significant differences between the programming rights owned by the two channels. This meant that much of the BBC's output (and, for that matter, BBC America's original programming) aired on other Canadian channels which have either co-produced the programmes or simply bid more for the Canadian broadcast rights. Conversely, many of the British series that did air on the channel are not sourced from the BBC, with some having originally been produced by or aired on other British channels, such as the privately owned ITV (TV network), ITV or the independent public-service broadcaster Channel 4. Despite its British focus, BBC Canada was licensed as a Canadian channel and was not exempt from the CRTC's broadcasting regulations that required it to carry a quota of Canadian content. This meant that in addition to British programmes, it also broadcast a number of Canadian series, which according to the channel's licence were required to "explore or [be] informed by Canada's relationship to the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth".Decision CRTC 2000-484BBC Canada HD
In October 2016, Corus Entertainment launched BBC Canada HD, a 1080i high-definition television, high definition simulcast of the standard-definition television, standard definition feed. The HD feed was only available on Telus TV, Telus Optik TV and Shaw Direct. The HD simulcast was shut down on 31 December 2020.Related properties
Apart from the television channel, BBC Worldwide directly operates a BBC Canada Shop website which sells merchandise related to British television series such as ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'', ''Little Britain (sketch show), Little Britain'' and ''Doctor Who''.See also
* BBC * Other BBC-associated television channels available in Canada: ** BBC News Arabic - news service in Arabic operated under licence by Ethnic Channels Group ** BBC Earth (Canadian TV channel), BBC Earth – factual programming channel operated under licence by Blue Ant Media ** BBC Kids – now-defunct children's channel majority-owned by Knowledge Network ** BBC World News – distributed directly as a permitted foreign channel ** BritBox – cross-genre British TV streaming service jointly owned by BBC Studios, ITV plc and AMC NetworksReferences
External links
*-