Vrak (stylized as VRΔK) was a CanadianFrench languagespecialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel primarily broadcast live-action programming aimed at 13-to-35 age group audiences. Launched in 1988 as Le Canal Famille,[1] the channel ceased operations on October 1, 2023, due to declining viewership and it being deemed "outdated" by Bell Media.[2]
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The youth channel TVJQ[fr] ("Télévision des Jeunes du Québec") went on the air in 1982 and was distributed by a subsidiary of Vidéotron.[3] It was originally available only in the Montreal and Quebec City areas.[4]
In 1986, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) granted a license to Vidéotron for its TVJQ channel to be carried over by other cable companies elsewhere.[4] This made Vidéotron the first cable company in Canadian history to simultaneously be a producer of television content.[4] However, TVJQ was intended to be temporary until a permanent channel for children would succeed it.[4]
Le Canal Famille
Licensed by the CRTC in 1987, Le Canal Famille was launched on September 1, 1988, as a replacement to TVJQ.[6] Le Canal Famille was created by Premier Choix TVEC which was already partially owned by Astral Media through its subsidiary Astral Bellevue Communications.[7][8]
Le Canal Famille, name translated as The Family Channel, which was the name of another Canadian youth channel that also began airing in September 1988 and itself owned at 50% by Astral Bellevue Communications.[9][8]
VRAK
Canal Famille was replaced by VRAK.TV on January 2, 2001, keeping the same channel frequency and still owned by Astral Media.[10] The channel switched to an ad-supported format in 2006 to coincide with the renewal of license the launch of its high definition feed on October 30, 2006.
Vrak.TV was simply renamed to just Vrak on August 25, 2014 and launched a new block, Vrak2, aimed at a teen audience.[11]
On September 12, 2016, Vrak changed its audience focus to the ages 13–35 group due to the success of its Vrak2 block.[12] Some series targeting its former audience focus moved to other stations.
Removal from Videotron, closure
On August 16, 2023, Vrak and Z were removed from Vidéotron, the company that created the original channel it was based on 41 years earlier, whilst Bell removed Yoopa from all of their TV services a day later. Yoopa is now scheduled to shut down on January 11, 2024, and will be replaced with a TV broadcast version of its parent company's QUB Radio channel.
Two days later on August 18, 2023, Bell Media announced that the channel would be closing on October 1, 2023, owing to "challenges" in the broadcasting sector, lack of viewers and regulatory affairs deemed "outdated" by Bell Media.[2] On September 25, the CRTC confirmed it had revoked Vrak's licence at the request of Bell Media.[13] On October 1, 2023 at midnight ET, the channel quietly shutdown without ceremony after an episode of Entre deux draps.
Initially, as required by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), the channel carried no commercials until 2006.[14] However, it aired promotional messages, interstitial programs (such as help segments known as R-Force (pronounced like "Air Force")), and public service announcements instead. The channel aired commercials from 2006-2023 with the launch of its HD feed and license renewal. Its former English-language counterpart (Family Channel) continued to be commercial-free until November 2016.
Unlike the other specialty channels, Vrak was the only channel on the air daily from 6am to midnight. When the station was Le Canal Famille, the station would close down at 7pm (8pm on weekends), sharing time with the flagship Super Écran channel (then also owned by Astral and now sharing Bell Media ownership with Vrak). In 2001, when the channel was revamped as VRAK.TV, its hours were increased to 10 p.m. (Super Écran followed on most systems). Vrak's closedown time at midnight went into effect in mid-2005.
On September 12, 2016, due to the channel's changes in audience focus, its animation programming completely disappeared from the channel, eventually, they reappeared on the channel in January 2017, starting with Bob l'éponge. By May 2019, all animated and children's programming had left the network's schedule, with comedy following in May 2022; the network's final schedule exclusively consisted of dramas.
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article VRAK_TV, and is written by contributors.
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