FX is a
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
English-language
television channel majority owned by
Rogers Sports & Media
Rogers Media Inc., operating as Rogers Sports & Media, is a Canadian subsidiary of Rogers Communications that owns the company's mass media and sports properties.
Operations
Current television brands owned by Rogers include two television sy ...
, a division of
Rogers Communications
Rogers Communications Inc. is a Canadian communications and media company operating primarily in the fields of wireless communications, cable television, telephony and Internet, with significant additional telecommunications and mass media ass ...
(which owns a controlling 66.64% interest and serves as managing partner), with a minority stake held by the
FX Networks
FX Networks, LLC, commonly known as FX Networks, is an American media company built around FX, FXX, and FX Movie Channel, plus their associated production company, FX Productions, and is a subsidiary of Disney General Entertainment Content, ...
subsidiary of
Disney General Entertainment Content
Disney General Entertainment Content (DGEC), formerly ABC Group, Disney–ABC Television Group and the second incarnation of Walt Disney Television, is a division of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company that ove ...
(which owns the remaining 33.36%). based on the
U.S. cable network of the same name, FX is devoted primarily to scripted dramas and comedies.
History
In February 2011,
Rogers Media
Rogers Media Inc., operating as Rogers Sports & Media, is a Canadian subsidiary of Rogers Communications that owns the company's mass media and sports properties.
Operations
Current television brands owned by Rogers include two television sys ...
was granted approval by the
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; ) is a public organization in Canada tasked with the mandate as a regulatory agency tribunal for various electronic communications, covering broadcasting and telecommunic ...
(CRTC) to launch a television channel called ''Highwire'', described as "a national, English-language Category 2 specialty programming service devoted to the entire genre of action and adventure, including selections from crime fiction, epic and heroic drama."
The channel was first launched on October 31, 2011, as FX Canada in
standard Standard may refer to:
Symbols
* Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs
* Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification
Norms, conventions or requirements
* Standard (metrology), an object ...
and
high definition.
[acclaimed FX Canada launches with exclusive free-view for digital subscribers starting October 31](_blank)
Canada Newswire October 25, 2011 The channel was wholly owned by Rogers Media at its launch. However, on December 16, 2011, the CRTC approved an application for FX Networks to purchase a 20% interest in the channel's direct parent company, and a 16.7% interest in the holding company owning the other 80%, for an overall ownership interest of 33.6% (with Rogers retaining the remainder).
Shaw Direct
Shaw Direct G.P. is a direct broadcast satellite television distributor in Canada and a subsidiary of the telecommunications company Rogers Communications. As of 2010, Shaw Direct had over 900,000 subscribers. It broadcasts on Ku band from two ...
added the channel on November 22, 2012.
On April 15, 2013, it was announced that FX Canada had acquired the exclusive domestic telecast rights to air future episodes of
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
s ''
All My Children
''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2 ...
'' and ''
One Life to Live
''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as ...
'', which were revived through
Hulu
Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...
and
iTunes
iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
in the U.S. However, on May 17, 2013, almost three weeks since the premieres, and a day after
Prospect Park announced a schedule change for both series that reduced each week's broadcasts to two episodes (from four), ''All My Children'' and ''One Life to Live'' were abruptly pulled from FX Canada's schedule. They were replaced by repeats of NBC's ''
30 Rock
''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...
''.
Rogers had tentatively planned to launch a
Canadian version of
FXX, the U.S. spinoff channel launched in September 2013 to which several FX comedy series moved. In the meantime, series that have moved to FXX continued to air on FX Canada. Originally planned for January 2014, the Canadian version of FXX eventually launched on April 1, 2014.
In October 2014, nearly three years after its launch,
Bell Satellite TV
Bell Satellite TV (; formerly known as Bell ExpressVu, Dish Network Canada and ExpressVu Dish Network and not to be confused with Bell's IPTV Bell Fibe TV, Fibe TV service) is the division of BCE Inc. that provides satellite television service a ...
reached a deal to carry FX Canada and FXX; they were added to its satellite and
Fibe TV lineups on October 10, 2014. Bell was one of the most prominent television providers not to carry FX Canada - a fact regularly noted in promotions for the channel on its sibling networks. It was reported that the channel's incorporation into the revamped ''
Hockey Night in Canada
''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') is a long-running program of broadcast ice hockey play-by-play coverage in Canada. With roots in pioneering hockey coverage on private radio stations as early as 1923, ...
'' was an impetus for the deal.
In January 2015, the channel started referring to itself as FX, in addition to adopting the current logo used worldwide.
In April 2022, FX and FXX have been available on
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...
channels as part of the launch of the Citytv+ streaming package.
On November 19, 2024, it was revealed on
Access Communications
Access Communications Co-operative Limited is a Canadian telecom cooperative based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The cooperative provides internet, cable television, telephone, smart home and security services to residential and business customers ...
' website that the local version of FXNow would cease operations effective December 31, 2024, with all of its content moving to the
Citytv
Citytv (sometimes shortened to City, which was the network's official branding from 2012 to 2018) is a Television in Canada, Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The network consis ...
app. Rogers has yet to confirm this plan.
Programming
Programming acquired from FX Networks
As part of the agreement between Rogers Media and FX Networks, any new original series produced for the flagship FX channel in the U.S. by its co-owned studios (FXP and
20th Television
20th Television, Inc. (formerly known as TCF Television Productions, Inc., 20th Century-Fox Television and 20th Century Fox Television) is the television studio arm of 20th Century Studios, owned by Disney Television Studios, a division of the Di ...
) will air on FX Canada.
[Rogers Media to launch FX Canada](_blank)
Rogers press release August 6, 2011 This means that while the channel airs most programming from FX, it does not carry all original series that premiered prior to 2011.
For example, ''
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX (TV channel), FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charl ...
'' didn't air on the channel until mid-2013, and FX Canada only had
second window rights to ''
Sons of Anarchy
''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American Action film, action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX (TV channel), FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008, to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-k ...
'', as premiere rights to each season had been previously sold to
Super Channel. The channel also didn't carry certain series produced by third-party studios; such as ''
Anger Management
Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...
'' (produced by
Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to:
Gates
*Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece
*Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey
*Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...
), ''
Justified'' (primarily produced by
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production company, production and broadcast syndication, distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, California, it is a division o ...
), ''
Archer'', and ''
The New York Times Presents
''The New York Times Presents'' (previously ''The Weekly'') is an American narrative investigative journalism docuseries produced by ''The New York Times'' for FX and Hulu.
The program has aired in two distinct formats. The first format, ''T ...
'' (which is distributed separately by
Red Arrow Studios
ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE (officially abbreviated as P7S1, formerly ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG) is a German mass media and digital company based in Unterföhring near Munich. It operates in three segments: Entertainment, Dating and Commerce & Venture ...
) In most of these cases, the rights were purchased by other Canadian broadcasters.
FX Canada has carried series commissioned for the
FX on Hulu hub launched in 2020 (such as ''
Devs
DEVS, abbreviating Discrete Event System Specification, is a modular and hierarchical formalism for modeling and analyzing general systems that can be discrete event systems which might be described by state transition tables, and continuous stat ...
'' and ''
Mrs. America''), as the
Hulu
Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...
streaming service isn't available in Canada. With the February 23, 2021 launch of the
Star
A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by Self-gravitation, self-gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night sk ...
hub on
Disney+
The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
, which is available in Canada, all of FX's Hulu series unannounced for broadcast on FX Canada (such as ''
American Horror Stories'' and ''
Reservation Dogs
''Reservation Dogs'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi for FX Productions. It follows the lives of Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma, as they try to reconcile their heritage with the ...
'') has instead aired on Disney+. Since December 2021, past seasons of all FX Network programming became available on Disney+ in Canada.
Other programming
FX Canada has served as an overflow channel for
Sportsnet
Sportsnet is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language Discretionary service, discretionary sports broadcasting, sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture betw ...
; its license dictates that it can air up to 10% sports programming. During the
2013 Major League Baseball season
The 2013 Major League Baseball season started on March 31 with a Sunday night game between the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros. , FX Canada aired six pre-season
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...
games. The channel was made available as a
free preview to providers during this period as well.
During the 2014–15 season, FX Canada occasionally aired
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
games on Saturday nights as part of Rogers' ''
Hockey Night in Canada
''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') is a long-running program of broadcast ice hockey play-by-play coverage in Canada. With roots in pioneering hockey coverage on private radio stations as early as 1923, ...
''. They primarily simulcasted all-U.S. matchups from U.S.
regional sports networks.
During the
Stanley Cup Playoffs
The Stanley Cup playoffs () is the annual elimination tournament to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, and the league champion of the National Hockey League (NHL). The four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held after the NHL's regular s ...
, FX occasionally airs early round games involving two U.S. teams.
In addition to other acquired or syndicated programming, FX Canada also airs off-network repeats of various
Citytv
Citytv (sometimes shortened to City, which was the network's official branding from 2012 to 2018) is a Television in Canada, Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The network consis ...
and
CBC CBC may refer to:
Media
* Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico
* Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster
** CBC Television
** CBC Radio One
** CBC Music
** ...
original programs during the weekday morning
graveyard slot
A graveyard slot (or death slot) is a time period in which a television audience is very small compared to other times of the day, and therefore broadcast programming is considered far less important. Graveyard slots are usually situated in the ea ...
to fulfill
Canadian content
Canadian content (abbreviated CanCon, cancon or can-con; ) refers to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requirements, derived from the Broadcasting Act of Canada, that radio and television broadcasters (inclu ...
requirements.
See also
*
FX (UK)
*
FX Australia
*
FX (Greece)
*
FX (Asia)
*
FX (Latin America)
References
External links
*
{{Disney-ABC TV Group
Rogers Communications
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
Specialty television channels in Canada
Television channels and stations established in 2011
English-language television stations in Canada
2011 establishments in Canada