This article is about the main MTV channel. For other uses, see MTV (disambiguation).
"Music Television" redirects here. For the genre, see Music television.
Television channel
Music Television (MTV)
Logo since February 5, 2021, paying homage to the original 1981 logo.
Country
United States
Broadcast area
United States
Headquarters
One Astor Plaza, 1515 Broadway, Times Square, Manhattan, New York City, NY
Programming
Language(s)
English
Spanish (via SAP audio track)
Picture format
1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
Timeshift service
MTV East (New York City) MTV West (Los Angeles)
Ownership
Owner
Paramount Media Networks (Paramount Global)
Parent
MTV Entertainment Group
Key people
Chris McCarthy (President/CEO, MTV Entertainment Group)
Sister channels
List
Nickelodeon
Nick Jr. Channel
Nicktoons
TeenNick
NickMusic
CBS
CBS Sports Network
CBS Sports HQ
CBS Sports Golazo Network
MTV2
MTV Tres
MTV Live
MTV Classic
MTVU
BET
BET Gospel
BET Her
BET Hip-Hop
BET Jams
BET Soul
VH1
Comedy Central
TV Land
Logo
CMT
CMT Music
Pop TV
Showtime
The Movie Channel
Flix
Paramount Network
Smithsonian Channel
History
Launched
August 1, 1981; 42 years ago (1981-08-01)
Former names
MTV: Music Television (1981–2010)[1]
Links
Website
mtv.com
Availability
Streaming media
Philo
Internet Protocol television
Hulu
Internet Protocol television
MTV (originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television channel. It was 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.
The channel originally aired music videos and related programming as guided by television personalities known as video jockeys, or VJs.[2] MTV, as one of the American cable channels available in other countries has since gained a massive cult following. This was one of the factors in cable programming's rise to fame and American corporations dominating the television economy in the 1990s.[3][4] 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 the late 2010s, MTV has devoted 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".[5][6]
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.[7]
^"MTV drops 'Music Television' from the network logo". Los Angeles Times. February 8, 2010. Archived from the original on January 31, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2012.
^"CNN – MTV changed the music industry on August 1, 1981 – July 31, 1998". Archived from the original on May 8, 2019. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
^Jennings, Peter; Brewster, Todd (November 1998). The Century (1st ed.). New York: Doubleday. p. 551. ISBN 0-385-48327-9.
^Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Aurthur, Kate; Schneider, Michael (July 21, 2020). "R.I.P. Cable TV: Why Hollywood Is Slowly Killing Its Biggest Moneymaker". Variety. Archived from the original on September 2, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
^Gonzalez, John (September 15, 2020). "How Did MTV Become the 'Ridiculousness' Network?". The Ringer. Archived from the original on September 24, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
^"Cable Network Coverage Area Household Universe Estimates: January 2016". Archived from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
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Global Information
