MTV
American cable television channel / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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MTV (originally an initialism of Music Television) is a 24-hour American cable music video channel officially launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global.
.svg) MTV's 2021 logo paying homage to the MTV logo in 1981. | |
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | United States |
| Headquarters | One Astor Plaza, 1515 Broadway, Times Square, Manhattan, New York City, NY |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | American English (New York City English) |
| Picture format | 1080i 16:9 HDTV |
| Timeshift service | MTV East (New York City) MTV West (Los Angeles) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Warner Communications (1981–1986; 50%) American Express (1981–1985; 50%) Viacom (1986–2006, 2005–2019) Paramount Global (2019–present) National Amusements (1986–present) |
| Parent | MTV Entertainment Group (1996–present) Paramount Media Networks (1981–present) |
| Key people | Chris McCarthy (President/CEO, MTV Entertainment Group) |
| Sister channels | List |
| History | |
| Launched | August 1, 1981 |
| Former names |
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| Links | |
| Website | www |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Philo | Internet Protocol television |
| Hulu | Internet Protocol television |
The channel originally aired music videos and related programming as guided by television personalities known as video jockeys, or VJs.[2] In the years since its inception, it significantly toned down its focus on music in favor of original reality programming for teenagers and young adults.
Since early 2020, MTV has devoted most of its programming schedule to select programs, primarily Ridiculousness, which in June 2020 aired "for 113 hours out of the network’s entire 168-hour lineup".[3][4][5]
MTV has spawned numerous sister channels in the United States and affiliated channels internationally, some of which have since gone independent. Approximately 90.6 million households in the US received MTV as of January 2017.[6]