Has METV ever thought of expanding to Canada? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Hawkee · 11-21-2020, 05:07 AM

I often wonder if METV is planning to come to Canada? Because with so many channels in Canada I bet a Canadian METV would have serious competition with Deja View and be a huge hit in Canada
Bestie

visaman666 · 11-21-2020, 05:59 PM

MeTv is in Vancouver, on KVOS Bellingham. Although based in Bellingham Washington, KVOS was actually for the Vancouver market, until it was sold to Weigel. It is available OTA and on cable.

Sal · 11-21-2020, 06:43 PM

I have always wanted to have Antenna TV and MeTV in Canada and have tried and prayed for many years to have this happen but to no avail and the chances get worse each year (although on my own antenna I can pick up Antenna TV from Buffalo fairly well.) But during the last couple of years, I have been blessed to get a local cable and OTA station that can be seen across Canada that is not only a LOT better than DejaView but I dare say is also better than Antenna and MeTV. That is CHCH TV in Hamilton (11,1), which I have talked about proudly and extensively for a long time on this board and for good reason. In the past three years, between 10:00 am and 6:00 pm Eastern time, CHCH has brought back a lot of my favorite classic shows (and a few of yours too, I'm sure!) including "The Partridge Family", "I Dream Of Jeannie", "Happy Days", "Laverne & Shirley", "Mork & Mindy", and "The Monkees". This fall, their daytime schedule will feature "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Green Acres", "Bewitched", "The Brady Bunch", "Get Smart", and "Gilligan's Island". And next year figures to be a great one as well with other surprises and goodies which I will tell you about before they happen. So for now, I don't really need to have Antenna or Me or Decades which is supposed to be very good, but I'll be keeping my fingers and antenna crossed just in case!

CHCH Retro Promo

TV Guy · 11-21-2020, 08:11 PM

Once you cross borders, the rights issues make it more complicated. They wouldn’t just be able to replicate the US version. MeTV’s business model is based on low overhead and wide coverage: cheaper, older shows; few acquisitions; digital OTA substations. A Canadian version would require more investment because they’d have to acquire Canadian rights to their shows. And I don’t know how difficult it is to sign up affiliates in Canada (in the US, there aren’t many affiliations up for grabs due to the glut of digital OTA networks).

Plater of Everything · 11-23-2020, 04:16 PM

Canada's rules on subchannels are very restrictive.

In the US, stations are licensed by the FCC. Station owners can add as many subchannels as they want. The station's subchannels are all under the same license, so no matter how many subchannels a station has, its licensing fees remain the same.

In Canada, the CRTC says that subchannels require a separate license (except for simulcasts of the station's main channel, I think). So a station has to get a separate license to add a subchannel. If a Canadian station has a .1 and a .2, the owner, I imagine, would pay twice the fees. Because each subchannel is treated as a different station by the CRTC. As a result, there's only one Canadian station that has subchannels that each air different programming (CFTV Leamington, ON).

The reason for this is most likely because cable companies bribe the Canadian government. In return, the CRTC made this rule to discourage OTA stations from giving antenna viewers many options. So they have no choice but to keep cable (unless they live near the US and can get US stations, like how Windsor, ON can watch Detroit stations)

11-21-2020, 05:07 AM	#1
Hawkee Michael Fassbender Fanatic Moderator Forum Star Join Date: Jan 17, 2016 Location: California Posts: 10,799	Has METV ever thought of expanding to Canada? I often wonder if METV is planning to come to Canada? Because with so many channels in Canada I bet a Canadian METV would have serious competition with Deja View and be a huge hit in Canada Bestie
	__________________ Hawkee and Aguilar, Hoping to be a great team

11-21-2020, 06:43 PM	#3
Sal Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Jul 20, 2001 Location: Oakville, Ont. Canada Posts: 6,182	I have always wanted to have Antenna TV and MeTV in Canada and have tried and prayed for many years to have this happen but to no avail and the chances get worse each year (although on my own antenna I can pick up Antenna TV from Buffalo fairly well.) But during the last couple of years, I have been blessed to get a local cable and OTA station that can be seen across Canada that is not only a LOT better than DejaView but I dare say is also better than Antenna and MeTV. That is CHCH TV in Hamilton (11,1), which I have talked about proudly and extensively for a long time on this board and for good reason. In the past three years, between 10:00 am and 6:00 pm Eastern time, CHCH has brought back a lot of my favorite classic shows (and a few of yours too, I'm sure!) including "The Partridge Family", "I Dream Of Jeannie", "Happy Days", "Laverne & Shirley", "Mork & Mindy", and "The Monkees". This fall, their daytime schedule will feature "The Beverly Hillbillies", "Green Acres", "Bewitched", "The Brady Bunch", "Get Smart", and "Gilligan's Island". And next year figures to be a great one as well with other surprises and goodies which I will tell you about before they happen. So for now, I don't really need to have Antenna or Me or Decades which is supposed to be very good, but I'll be keeping my fingers and antenna crossed just in case! CHCH Retro Promo
	__________________ LIVE TV - Updated By Request - April 2026 ANTENNA TV ME TV ME TV TOONS Zerostream - LIVE TV Guide

11-23-2020, 04:16 PM	#5
Plater of Everything Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jul 08, 2017 Posts: 387	Canada's rules on subchannels are very restrictive. In the US, stations are licensed by the FCC. Station owners can add as many subchannels as they want. The station's subchannels are all under the same license, so no matter how many subchannels a station has, its licensing fees remain the same. In Canada, the CRTC says that subchannels require a separate license (except for simulcasts of the station's main channel, I think). So a station has to get a separate license to add a subchannel. If a Canadian station has a .1 and a .2, the owner, I imagine, would pay twice the fees. Because each subchannel is treated as a different station by the CRTC. As a result, there's only one Canadian station that has subchannels that each air different programming (CFTV Leamington, ON). The reason for this is most likely because cable companies bribe the Canadian government. In return, the CRTC made this rule to discourage OTA stations from giving antenna viewers many options. So they have no choice but to keep cable (unless they live near the US and can get US stations, like how Windsor, ON can watch Detroit stations)
	__________________ Jackie Rush > Sara Rush

11-21-2020, 05:59 PM	#2
visaman666 Member Forum Regular Join Date: Jan 06, 2007 Posts: 818	MeTv is in Vancouver, on KVOS Bellingham. Although based in Bellingham Washington, KVOS was actually for the Vancouver market, until it was sold to Weigel. It is available OTA and on cable.

11-21-2020, 08:11 PM	#4
TV Guy Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 25, 2001 Location: Boston, MA, USA Posts: 3,419	Once you cross borders, the rights issues make it more complicated. They wouldn’t just be able to replicate the US version. MeTV’s business model is based on low overhead and wide coverage: cheaper, older shows; few acquisitions; digital OTA substations. A Canadian version would require more investment because they’d have to acquire Canadian rights to their shows. And I don’t know how difficult it is to sign up affiliates in Canada (in the US, there aren’t many affiliations up for grabs due to the glut of digital OTA networks).