When did you see that there are Canadian versions of American channels?

[Frank Gannucci]

I did when I visited the Canadian side of Niagara Falls in 1994. I saw that there is or was a Canadian version of the Weather Channel called The Weather Network. They even had Local Forecast segments on there. I noticed what could have been then the Canadian version of Nickelodeon before a real Canadian version was launched in 2009. The Canadian version was called Youth TV. They carried then-current Nick shows but they would say “This show was brought to you by Crayola.” The USA version never did that. They also had a Canadian version of the old Prevue Channel called…the TV Guide channel with listings on the left side and other network promos on the right complete with the times the shows that the promos were advertising on the screen. In the USA, the future Pop channel used to do that but with listings on the bottom and promos and info. On the top. Ironically, in 1998 the US version had the TV Guide moniker until 2013.

In my last visit in 1999, I noticed a Canadian version of History channe called History and I think I Canadian version of Comedy Central called Comedy. I am familiar with ESPN and know that the Canadian version of ESPN is TSN.

[Sal]

I live in Canada so I have noticed it for my whole life!!

It doesn't bother me that much although I would prefer getting the original US channel rather than having separate Canadian versions. When they do arrive, they are no longer popular or in great demand. For example, Canadians didn't get to see Nickelodeon and MTV until more than 30 years after they first aired in the US. By then, all the excitement and anticipation had completely evaporated and the programming became far worse than it would have been than if they had arrived a lot earlier. Can you believe that we have Nickelodeon but there is no "Nick At Nite"? That's one thing I seriously miss not having seen. For a couple of years we also had TV Land Canada and its programming was a lot better than what the US channel had. I miss that channel a lot! Also, on the US channels some of the programming gets substituted with other shows due to complicated rights issues. For example, whenever TCM features a Laurel and Hardy movie, Canadian viewers get to watch The Bowery Boys instead! Call it the revenge of Ted Turner! Canadians have had US superstations as part of their cable packages since the 1980s, but when the Toronto Blue Jays beat Turner's Atlanta Braves in the 1992 World Series, TBS was swiftly removed and replaced with Atlanta's local station Peachtree. I have hated the Braves ever since!!


For me, the best Canadian versions of US channels would be the following: MuchMusic - Canada's version of MTV when it was strictly a music video station; TSN - The Sports Network, a Canadian partner with ESPN; TSN's biggest rival, Sportsnet; CMT Canada - another channel with better shows than its US original; ABC Spark - with programming taken from FreeForm; and Silver Screen Classics, a classic movie channel that will sometimes have better movies than TCM.

Try and catch those channels sometime when you plan to visit Canada again. We would love to have you!