The Country Network is an American cable, streaming and
broadcast
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began wi ...
television network
A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid ...
that specializes in broadcasting
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
videos
Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) system ...
and exclusive original music-based content; its
playlist
A playlist is a list of video or audio files that can be played back on a media player either sequentially or in a shuffled order. In its most general form, an audio playlist is simply a list of songs, but sometimes a loop. The term has sev ...
of videos extends from the 1990s through the present day. The network also airs occasional
infomercial
An infomercial is a form of television commercial that resembles regular TV programming yet is intended to promote or sell a product, service or idea. It generally includes a toll-free telephone number or website. Most often used as a form of dire ...
s and traditional advertising.
The network is headquartered in
Haltom City, Texas, with offices in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
, and New York.
History
The network first launched on January 7, 2009, as the Artists & Fans Network; the music video that inaugurated the network was the
Kid Rock video "
All Summer Long". AFN was first carried on
satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioiso ...
through
DirecTV
DirecTV (trademarked as DIRECTV) is an American multichannel video programming distributor based in El Segundo, California. Originally launched on June 17, 1994, its primary service is a digital satellite service serving the United States. I ...
on channel 236.
In August 2009, after suffering from financial problems, Southern Venture Capital Group sold all the assets of the company to one of the founders, Warren Hansen, who then changed its name to the American Music Video Network, and rolled out the programming with a new look and feel. On February 15, 2010, the company was renamed The Country Network to represent its focus on country music. Around this time, The Country Network began to transition into a digital multicast network, carried
over-the-air on broadcast television stations across the United States as well as the first broadcast network to simulcast to Roku, iPhone, iPad, web, and other OTT outlets.
On May 20, 2013, Zuus Media announced its acquisition of The Country Network. On June 1, 2013, Zuus Media announced the rebranding as Zuus Country. Zuus Country was to be the first of several music video networks of various
formats. Only one of these other formats,
Zuus Latino, ever made it to air.
In January 2016, the network was purchased by a Texas-based company, TCN Country LLC, with a 43,000-square-foot studio, production and broadcast facility. TCN Country changed the brand back to The Country Network, reviving its original name and logo for the revival of the network.
[ The Country Network returns onair & online/ref>
In 2021, The Country Network, after having previously placed its online Web stream behind a ]paywall
A paywall is a method of restricting access to content, with a purchase or a paid subscription, especially news. Beginning in the mid-2010s, newspapers started implementing paywalls on their websites as a way to increase revenue after years of ...
, launched TCN FAST (Free Advertising Supported Television), a free online feed of the channel that is distributed through advertiser-supported over-the-top streaming services.
Affiliates
As of 2013, Zuus Country has television station
A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the ea ...
s in over 41 television markets in 26 states, covering approximately 34 million over the air households an 18 million cable subscribers. ZUUS Country (at the time, still named The Country Network) signed a deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group
Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (SBG) is a publicly traded American telecommunications conglomerate that is controlled by the descendants of company founder Julian Sinclair Smith. Headquartered in the Baltimore suburb of Cockeysville, Maryland, ...
in August 2010 to be carried on digital subchannel
In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a method of transmitting more than one independent program stream simultaneously from the same digital radio or television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compres ...
s of Sinclair stations in most of its media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
s;
Current affiliates
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Country Network
Music video networks in the United States
Television channels and stations established in 2009
Companies based in Nashville, Tennessee
American country music
Country music mass media