CKXT

CKXT is a broadcast television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada which uses the on-air brand of Sun TV. The station began broadcasting on September 19, 2003, on channel 52. The station also has a rebroadcast transmitter in Hamilton on channel 45. The station was known as Toronto 1 until August 29, 2005,.

Related Topics:
Broadcast - Television station - Toronto, Ontario - Canada - September 19 - 2003 - Channel 52 - Hamilton - August 29 - 2005

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Sun TV is currently owned by TVA and Sun Media, both subsidiaries of Quebecor, and bought as part of the takeover of Craig Media Inc. by CHUM Limited. CHUM was required, due to CRTC competition regulations, to divest itself of the station, owing to its already strong presence in the Toronto television market. The deal was completed on December 2, 2004; Quebecor gave CHUM $46 million (CAD) and Sun Media's 29.9% share in CablePulse24 for CKXT.

Related Topics:
TVA - Sun Media - Quebecor - Craig Media Inc. - CHUM Limited - CRTC - December 2 - 2004 - CAD - CablePulse24

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Craig Media Inc. was awarded a license for Toronto 1 by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission on April 8, 2002 in a non-unanimous and somewhat controversial decision. Torstar was widely deemed the frontrunner for the licence, but its proposed schedule, which many called an "innovative" locally-oriented proposal, was found to be unviable by most commissioners. (Alliance Atlantis and CanWest Global were also applicants.) Additionally, several existing broadcasters were opposed to any new broadcasters being licensed in the Toronto area, due to the unstable economic climate.

Related Topics:
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission - April 8 - 2002 - Torstar - Alliance Atlantis - CanWest Global

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This also marked the first time that Craig Media had been granted a license to compete directly with a station owned by CHUM Limited, which meant that CHUM lost sales revenues from the broadcast rights it had contracted to Craig's A-Channel stations. CHUM retaliated by applying for broadcast licenses in Calgary, Alberta and Edmonton, Alberta, two markets it had previously avoided so as not to compete directly with Craig. The CRTC ended up denying CHUM's applications.

Related Topics:
Calgary, Alberta - Edmonton, Alberta

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The station proved to be a complete disaster for Craig, and the company was soon sold. (See Craig Media Inc.) It was frequently criticized in the Toronto media when it launched, particularly for flashy but vacuous and repetitive local content, and for an uninspired prime time schedule based heavily on movies, much like CHUM's longstanding CITY. Columnist Russell Smith of The Globe and Mail even went so far as to call Toronto 1 a "wretched excuse for a television station."

Related Topics:
Craig Media Inc. - Prime time - CITY - Russell Smith - The Globe and Mail

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On May 19, 2004, Craig announced that 28 Toronto 1 employees, in addition to 9 employees working at CKAL in Calgary, Alberta, were being laid off. In addition, a large portion of Toronto 1's original programming, including weekday morning show Toronto Today and late evening show Last Call, were cancelled. Some of the hosts, such as Wei Chen and Roz Weston, remained with the station in other roles at that point. Craig Media said the cuts were made to "further rationalize its operations and control costs". http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/news/2004/05/19/Arts/toronto120040517.html

Related Topics:
May 19 - CKAL - Calgary, Alberta - Morning show - Toronto Today - Last Call - Wei Chen - Roz Weston

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Subsequent to the station's sale to Quebecor, the new management cancelled its evening news program, Toronto Tonight, and announced it would expand its entertainment magazine program The A-List (which would become "Inside Jam!") to one hour in length, airing weeknights from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. The station was officially rebranded "Sun TV" on August 29. A late-night sports talk show, The Grill Room, premiered on September 1. Even before Toronto Tonight concluded June 30, 2005, former Toronto Tonight co-anchor Ben Chin announced he would be moving to Global Television Network as a senior news correspondent; later that summer he decided to enter political life instead as a member of Ontario Premier Dalton McGunity's Communications Team. Fellow Toronto Tonight co-anchor Sarika Sehgal was also let go.

Related Topics:
Quebecor - The Grill Room - September 1 - June 30 - 2005 - Ben Chin - Global Television Network - Sarika Sehgal

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Under its current management and branding, the station has met its Canadian content obligations primarily by airing repeats of old CBC Television series such as King of Kensington, The Beachcombers and Side Effects. The nightly entertainment magazine The A-List was also rebranded as Inside Jam!.

Related Topics:
Canadian content - CBC Television - King of Kensington - The Beachcombers - Side Effects - Inside Jam!

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