Z 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 ...

French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...

specialty channel A specialty channel (also known in the United States as a cable channel or cable network) can be a commercial broadcasting or non-commercial television channel which consists of television programming focused on a single genre, subject or targete ...

owned by

Bell Media Bell Media Inc. (Canadian French, French: ) is a Canadian media conglomerate that is the mass media subsidiary of BCE Inc. (also known as Bell Canada Enterprises, the owner of telecommunications company Bell Canada). Its operations include nati ...

. Z focuses on programming primarily from the

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

, fantasy, and technology genres consisting of dramas, films, and documentaries. Founded on January 31, 2000 as Canal Z by

Astral Media Astral Media Inc. was a Canadian media conglomerate. It was Canada's largest radio broadcaster, with 84 radio stations in eight provinces. Astral was also a major player in premium and specialty television in Canada, with 23 specialty channel ...

, the channel was rebranded to Ztélé in 2005 and was acquired by Bell Media in 2013, which by that point becoming aligned with English-language counterpart to Space (renamed to

CTV Sci-Fi Channel CTV Sci-Fi Channel is a Canadian English-language discretionary specialty channel owned by Bell Media subsidairy of BCE Inc.. The channel primarily broadcasts speculative fiction and related programming. The network was launched on October 17 ...

in 2019), before renaming to its current name in 2014.

History

In May 1999, Radiomutuel Inc. 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) for a television broadcasting licence for a channel called ''Canal Z, aux limites du savoir'', described as "a national French-language television specialty service that is dedicated entirely to science and technology, the earth and its secrets, space exploration, the paranormal and science fiction, lifestyles and computer science." Before the channel was launched, in June 1999,

announced its intention to purchase Radiomutuel, which was approved by the CRTC on January 12, 2000 and closed shortly thereafter. The channel launched on January 31, 2000 as Canal Z (often referred to as simply Z). The channel was renamed Ztélé in 2005 and a new logo was introduced. In 2006, an HD feed debuted. Astral Media was acquired by Bell Media on July 5, 2013, making Ztélé a sister channel to the English-language science-fiction channel

Space Space is a three-dimensional continuum containing positions and directions. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions. Modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless ...

, while retaining its other sister stations.

Disney Junior Disney Jr. (formerly Disney Junior) is an American pay television network owned by the Disney Branded Television sub-division of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company. Aimed mainly at children two to seven year ...

was sold to DHX Media, and MusiMax and MusiquePlus were sold to V Media Group, both deals occurring the next year. As of August 25, 2014, the channel has been renamed Z. On August 16, 2023, Z and

Vrak Vrak (stylized as VRΔK) was a Canadian French language specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. subsidiary Bell Media. The channel primarily broadcast live-action programming aimed at 13-to-35 age group audiences. Launched in 1988 as Le Canal Fa ...

were removed from

Vidéotron Vidéotron is a Canadian integrated telecommunications company founded in 1964. It's active in cable television, interactive multimedia development, video on demand, cable telephony, wireless communication and Internet access services. Owned by Qu ...

, a cable service serving most major markets in Quebec. File:Ztele (channel) .png, Canal Z logo (2000–2005) File:Ztélé (logo).svg, Ztélé logo (2005–2014)

Z HD

On October 30, 2006, Astral Media launched "Z HD" (then-known as "Ztélé HD"), a HD simulcast of Z's standard definition feed.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Z (TV Channel) Bell Media networks Specialty television channels in Canada Television channels and stations established in 2000 French-language television networks in Canada 2000 establishments in Canada