The Movie Network Encore
| TMN Encore | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Launched | October 1, 1994 |
| Owned by | Bell Media |
| Picture format |
1080i (HDTV) 480i (SDTV) |
| Slogan | Have It All |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Broadcast area | Nationwide[1] |
| Headquarters | Toronto, Ontario |
| Formerly called |
TMN Moviepix (1994–1996) Moviepix (1996–2001) Mpix (2001–2012) |
| Replaced | Encore Avenue |
| Replaced by | Starz |
| Sister channel(s) |
The Movie Network Super Écran |
| Website | tmnencore.ca |
Availability | |
| Satellite | |
| Bell TV |
304 TMN Encore 1 305 TMN Encore 2 1257/839 TMN Encore 1 HD |
| Shaw Direct |
240/258 TMN Encore 1 (East/West) 241/259 TMN Encore 2 (East/West) 640/650 TMN Encore 1 HD (East/West) 655 TMN Encore 2 HD (West) |
| Cable | |
| Available on most Canadian cable systems | Consult your local cable provider for channel availability |
| IPTV | |
| Bell Aliant Fibe TV |
366 TMN Encore 1 367 TMN Encore 2 578 TMN Encore 1 HD 579 TMN Encore 2 HD |
| Bell Fibe TV |
304 TMN Encore 1 305 TMN Encore 2 1304 TMN Encore 1 HD 1305 TMN Encore 2 HD |
| Bell MTS |
215 TMN Encore 1 216 TMN Encore 2 431 TMN Encore HD 432 TMN Encore 2 HD |
| Optik TV |
9431 TMN Encore 1 9432 TMN Encore 2 431 TMN Encore 1 HD 432 TMN Encore 2 HD |
| SaskTel |
204 TMN Encore 1 205 TMN Encore 2 |
| VMedia |
307 TMN Encore 1 HD 308 TMN Encore 2 HD |
| Zazeen |
174 TMN Encore HD 171 TMN Encore 2 |
TMN Encore is a Canadian English language Category A premium cable and satellite television specialty service owned by Bell Media. A sister to The Movie Network, TMN Encore broadcasts classic films.
TMN Encore is carried by various Canadian cable and satellite television providers, including Bell TV, Shaw Direct, Rogers Cable, Vidéotron, EastLink, Shaw, Telus and Cogeco. Similarly to its parent network, TMN Encore previously operated only in provinces west of the Ontario-Manitoba border, with Western Canada served by a similar service run by Movie Central known as Encore Avenue. With the shutdown of both services in 2016, TMN Encore now serves the entirety of Canada.
TMN Encore is also the only private broadcaster financing film preservation in Canada through its sponsorship of the AV Preservation Trust, and National Archives.
History
The channel was launched on October 1, 1994 as TMN Moviepix; by 1996, its name was shortened to simply Moviepix. By 2001, the channel's name was shortened for the third time to simply Mpix. The channel was originally owned by Astral Communications (later Astral Media).
In an effort to re-align Mpix with The Movie Network brand, on August 20, 2012, Astral announced that it would be rebranding Mpix as The Movie Network Encore, or TMN Encore, on September 18, 2012. On the day of the rebrand, its multiplex channel MorePix was accordingly renamed TMN Encore 2; with the change, TMN Encore 2 also launched a high definition feed, which simulcasts its standard definition counterpart.[2]
On March 4, 2013, the Competition Bureau approved the takeover of Astral Media by Bell Media.[3] Bell filed a new application for the proposed takeover with the CRTC on March 6, 2013;[4] the CRTC approved the merger on June 27, 2013.[5]
On November 19, 2015, Corus Entertainment announced that as a result of a strategic review, it had decided to exit the pay television industry. The company announced that it would shut down Encore Avenue and Movie Central (which held a monopoly position in Western Canada, while TMN held a monopoly in the East), and work with Bell to transition existing subscribers to TMN Encore and The Movie Network respectively. The CRTC had quietly removed the regional restrictions from both services' licences earlier in the year.[6][7][8]
On January 23, 2018, Bell Media announced that it had reached licensing agreements with Starz Inc. and Lionsgate, and that TMN Encore would be rebranded under the Starz brand in 2019, featuring its programming.[9][10]
Channels
List of channels
Depending on the service provider, The Movie Network Encore provides up to four multiplex channels – two 24-hour multiplex channels, both of which are simulcast in both standard definition and high definition – as well as a subscription video-on-demand service (TMN Encore on Demand). TMN Encore broadcasts its primary and multiplex channels on an Eastern Time Zone schedule. Because The Movie Network Encore operates a singular feed and its original license was restricted to broadcast solely in a geographical area covered by the Eastern, Atlantic, and Newfoundland time zones, this results in the difference in local airtimes for a particular movie or program between two geographic locations being 4 and half hours at most.
The premium film service The Movie Network, which is also owned by Bell Media and shares the TMN branding, operates as a separate service under a separate license – and subscribers to one of the two services do not necessarily have to subscribe to the other. However, The Movie Network is very frequently sold together in a package with TMN Encore.[11]
| Channel | Description and programming |
|---|---|
| TMN Encore | The flagship channel; TMN Encore carries films from the 1970s to the 2000s, including blockbuster and critically acclaimed imported and domestic films; this channel was formerly known as MoviePix from 1994 to 2003 and Mpix from 2003 to 2012. |
| TMN Encore 2 | TMN Encore 2 is a secondary channel that provides additional movie choice, which is counterprogrammed with The Movie Network Encore; this channel was originally known as MoviePix 2 from 1996 to 2001, and was later renamed Mpix Too from 2001 to 2004, MEscape from 2004 to March 31, 2008, and MorePix from April 1, 2008 to September 23, 2012. |
Background
For a time, Mpix was focused on classic thriller, suspense and action films, while MorePix focused on classic dramas and light-hearted movies. This distinction no longer seems to be in place and both channels now carry a variety of films from various genres and eras, though TMN Encore 2 is more likely to carry older and/or less commercially successful films.
Related services
TMN Encore HD
TMN Encore HD is a high definition simulcast feed of The Movie Network Encore that broadcasts in the 1080i resolution format. In addition to its main channel, The Movie Network Encore also operates a high definition simulcast feed of its multiplex channel TMN Encore 2. The original HD channel initially operated as MHD from launch of the HD feed in January 2006 until April 1, 2008. Until September 2010, TMN Encore HD (at that time known as Mpix HD) alternated between simulcasts of Mpix and its multiplex channel MorePix; at that point it began simulcasting its main channel exclusively. A high definition simulcast of TMN Encore 2 was launched on September 23, 2012.[2]
TMN Encore on Demand
The Movie Network Encore operates a subscription video-on-demand television service called TMN Encore on Demand, which is available at no additional charge to new and existing subscribers of The Movie Network Encore. The service, which launched on December 19, 2006, as Mpix on Demand, carries feature film content from the two linear TMN Encore television networks. TMN Entcore on Demand's rotating program selection incorporates select new titles that are added each Friday, alongside existing program titles held over from the previous one to two weeks.
TMN Encore GO
On February 27, 2013, The Movie Network Encore launched TMN Encore GO, a website and mobile app for the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, which carries feature film content available for streaming in standard or high definition.[12] TMN Encore GO is currently available to TMN Encore subscribers of Bell TV, Bell Fibe TV, Cogeco Cable and Rogers Cable.[12]
Programming
The majority of the program content offered by the TMN Encore channels is in the form of classic films, although the channel offers a limited amount of television series in the form of pop culture-related series on the topic of films and filmmaking including:
- Moviehead, a show that takes a snapshot look at a movie and how it was made; hosted by Matt Hawkins, it airs every Friday before the 9 p.m. Reel Premiere.
- Movie Style, a lifestyle show on TMN Encore 2, hosted by Lisa Williams and Matt Hawkins, that combines films with trends in fashion, design, beauty and entertainment.
- Reel Premiere, every weekend, a new movie airs on television.
Movie library
Sony, Fox, Warner Bros., and Universal Studios, plus their labels (except Walt Disney Pictures), air on TMN Encore.
See also
References
- ↑ http://www.telus.com/en/bc/support/article/optik-tv-service-updates?lang=en&prov=bc&INTCMP=VAN_tvnews
- 1 2 Classic Movie Channels Mpix and MorePix Re-Brand to The Movie Network Encore and The Movie Network Encore2 CNW 2012-08-20
- ↑ BCE takeover of Astral OK’d by Competition Bureau Archived 2013-04-11 at Archive.is, The Montreal Gazette (via The Canadian Press), March 4, 2013.
- ↑ Astral and Bell Comment on New Acquisition Application to CRTC, Broadcaster Magazine, March 6, 2013.
- ↑ CRTC approves Bell-Astral merger, CBC News, June 27, 2013. Retrieved July 16, 2013.
- ↑ "Bell expanding TMN into national pay TV service; to be sole operator of HBO Canada". Winnipeg Free Press. The Canadian Press. 2015-11-19. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
- ↑ Bugailiskis, John (19 November 2015). "UPDATED: Corus walks away from pay TV for $211 million; Bell signs new multiplatform deal with HBO, will take TMN national". Cartt.ca. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- ↑ "Broadcasting Applications Report (2015)". Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. Retrieved 18 December 2015. (see applications 2015-0639-6 and 2015-0640-4)
- ↑ Littleton, Cynthia (2018-01-23). "Starz Expands Into Canada With Bell Media Pact". Variety. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
- ↑ Hayes, Dade (2018-01-23). "In First Global Foray, Starz Sets Long-Term Deal With Bell To Enter Canada". Deadline. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
- ↑ "Rogers | Sign up for the Movie Network". Gettmn.ca. Retrieved 2012-05-13.
- 1 2 "The Movie Network Launches Three Video Streaming Services". Broadcaster Magazine. February 28, 2013. Retrieved March 1, 2013.