Historia (TV channel)

Historia is a Canadian discretionary service owned by Corus Entertainment. The network broadcasts French-language programming related to history and historical fiction, and is a sister network to the English-language History; both channels operate as Canadian licencees of the U.S. network History.

This article is about the specialty cable channel in Canada. For a similar channel in Spain and Portugal that also uses the Historia name, see History (European TV channel). For other uses, see Historia.

Historia
CountryCanada
Broadcast areaCanada
HeadquartersMontreal, Quebec
Programming
Picture format1080i HDTV
(downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
Ownership
OwnerCorus Entertainment
Sister channelsHistory
History2
History
LaunchedJanuary 31, 2000 (January 31, 2000)
Links
Websitehistoriatv.com
Availability
Cable
Available on most cable systemsChannel slots vary on each provider
Satellite
Bell Satellite TVChannel 133 (SD)
Channel 1862 (HD)
Shaw DirectChannel 756 (SD)
Channel 398 / 232 (HD)
IPTV
Bell Aliant Fibe TVChannel 863 (SD)
Channel 963 (HD)
Bell Fibe TVChannel 124 (SD)
Channel 1124 (HD)
Bell MTSChannel 431 (SD)
Optik TVChannel 8017 (West SD)
Channel 2017 (East HD)
SaskTelChannel 257 (SD)
Telus QuebecChannel 43 (SD)
Channel 543 (HD)
VMediaChannel 116 (SD) (QC)
TotalTVChannel 209 (HD)

History
Original logo used from the channel's launch until 2010
Second logo used from the channel until 2015, when it was replaced with Historia Spain's logo
Third logo used from the channel in 2015

Licensed by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) as Canal Histoire to Alliance Atlantis and Premier Choix Networks (Astral),[1] the channel was launched on January 31, 2000 as Historia.

On January 18, 2008, a joint venture between Canwest and Goldman Sachs Captain ital Partners known as CW Media bought Alliance Atlantis and gained its interest in Historia. The new company also acquired Historia's English language equivalent, History Television (now History).

On October 27, 2010, Shaw Communications completed its acquisition of Canwest and Goldman Sachs' interest in CW Media, giving it control of CW Media's 50% interest in Historia.[2][3]

On March 4, 2013, Corus Entertainment announced that it would acquire Astral Media's stakes in Séries+ and Historia, as well as several other properties, under separate transactions with the two companies. The purchase was tied to Bell Media's pending takeover of Astral Media; an earlier proposal had been rejected by the CRTC in October 2012 due to concerns surrounding its total market share following the merger, but was restructured under the condition that the companies divest certain media properties.[4] In a separate deal, Corus also acquired Shaw's interests in Séries+ and Historia, giving it full ownership.[5] The deals were approved by the CRTC on 20 December 2013[6] and Corus become the full owner of the channel on 1 January 2014.[7]

On October 21, 2014, Corus reached an agreement with A&E Networks to acquire French-language rights to programming from History, the U.S. counterpart of Historia's English-language sister network. On 9 March 2015, the network was relaunched under History's logo and branding, while maintaining the Historia name.[8]

On October 17, 2017, Bell Media announced its intent to acquire Historia and Séries+ from Corus for $200 million, pending regulatory approval. Corus cited the two channels as not being part of the company's "strategic priorities" at this time; the deal came shortly after an announcement that Corus no longer planned to commission original programs for the two channels.[9] On 28 May 2018, both transactions were blocked by the Competition Bureau, as a violation of conditions placed on Bell's acquisition of Astral Media, which barred it from re-acquiring any of the properties it divested in the merger for 10 years.[10] As a result, Bell and Corus mutually agreed to shelve the sale.[11]

High-definition feed

On October 30, 2006, Astral Media launched a high definition simulcast feed of Historia.

References
  1. Decision CRTC 99-111
  2. Shaw Communications closes purchase of Canwest TV assets, rebrands as Shaw Media
  3. CRTC approves Shaw’s purchase of the Canwest Global television properties Archived 2013-12-20 at the Wayback Machine
  4. "Bell moves closer to Astral with sale of TV assets". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  5. "Corus Entertainment Expands Interests in French-language Specialty Television Market through Major Deals with Bell and Shaw Media". Corus Entertainment. 4 March 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  6. "Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2013-738". CRTC. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
  7. "Press Release - Corus Entertainment completes purchase of Historia, Séries+ and TELETOON Canada Inc". Corus Entertainment. 1 January 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  8. "Historia: new logo, new look, new shows!". Corus Entertainment. 9 March 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
  9. Faguy, Steve (17 October 2017). "Corus agrees to sell Séries+ and Historia to Bell Media for $200 million". Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  10. "Analysts predict steeper Corus dividend cut after watchdog blocks $200-million sale of TV stations to Bell". Financial Post. 28 May 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  11. "Corus and Bell end channel sale after rejection by Commissioner of Competition". Financial Post. 30 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
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