ABC Spark

Last updated

ABC Spark
Final logo used from 2012 to 2025
CountryCanada
Broadcast areaNationwide
Headquarters Toronto, Ontario
Programming
Language(s)English
Picture format 1080i HDTV
(downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
Ownership
Owner Corus Entertainment (2001–2025)
Alliance Atlantis (2001–2008)
Canwest (2008–2010)
Shaw Media (2010–2013)
Sister channels
History
LaunchedSeptember 7, 2001;24 years ago (2001-09-07) (as Scream)
March 26, 2012;13 years ago (2012-03-26) (as ABC Spark)
ClosedSeptember 1, 2025;19 days ago (2025-09-01)
Replaced by Slice and W Network (programming)
Former namesScream (2001–2009)
Dusk (2009–2012)
Links
Website ABC Spark (archived July 2025)

ABC Spark was a Canadian English-language discretionary specialty channel owned by Corus Entertainment. The channel launched on September 7, 2001, as Scream (stylized as SCREAM), under the ownership of Corus Entertainment and Alliance Atlantis as a Category 2 service. During its early years, Scream broadcast horror, thriller, and suspense films along with some television series. After the acquisition of Alliance Atlantis by Canwest and Goldman Sachs, the channel was relaunched as Dusk in 2009, with a pivot from horror to paranormal- and suspense-themed programming to appeal to a wider audience. During its time as Dusk, it aired programming consisting of films, television dramas, and reality TV, and documentary-style television series from the thriller, suspense and supernatural genres.

Contents

Two years after Canwest was sold to Shaw Media, a sister company of Corus, the channel was relaunched on March 26, 2012 as ABC Spark which used the ABC branding and various programs were licensed from the ABC Family Worldwide subsidiary of Walt Disney Television, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. [1] . [2] [3] This channel was based on the U.S. subscription channel Freeform (previously known as ABC Family) and primarily consisted of programming aimed at teenagers, young adults, and preteens, as well as some sitcoms.

Amid the finanical problems at Corus, the channel ceased operations on September 1, 2025.

History

As Scream

In November 2000, Corus, on behalf of a corporation to be incorporated, was approved by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to launch a television channel called HorrorVision, which would be devoted primarily to the horror and thriller genres. [4]

The channel was launched as Scream on September 7, 2001, as a joint venture between Corus Entertainment and Alliance Atlantis. Programming on Scream focused primarily on horror, thriller, suspense films and television series.

Logo used when under SCREAM brand (2001-2009) Scream TV.png
Logo used when under SCREAM brand (2001–2009)

On January 18, 2008, [5] a joint venture between Canwest and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners known as CW Media, [6] acquired 49% of Scream through its purchase of Alliance Atlantis' broadcasting assets, which were placed in a trust in August 2007. [7]

As Dusk

Dusk logo used from 2009 to 2012) Dusk TV.svg
Dusk logo used from 2009 to 2012)

On September 9, 2009, Scream was re-launched as Dusk, shifting away from horror and "gore" to focus more broadly on paranormal and suspense-driven programming (such as Supernatural and mainstream film premieres such as Along Came a Spider ), to appeal to a broader viewer demographic such as women. [8]

On October 27, 2010, ownership changed once again as Shaw Communications gained a 49% stake in Scream as a result of its acquisition of Canwest and Goldman Sachs' interest in CW Media. [9] [10]

The last program aired on Dusk was the 1990 film Ghost , which was aired in a 24-hour marathon on March 22. As after the movie was finished, the network was relaunched as ABC Spark at 6:00 am ET on March 23.

As ABC Spark

Announcement and launch

The announcement of the formation of ABC Spark occurred on October 26, 2011, as part of a program licensing agreement between Corus Entertainment and The Walt Disney Company. [11] The network was branded as ABC Spark to avoid any confusion with Astral's Family Channel, which then held the rights to programming from ABC's sister network, Disney Channel. [12] The channel's broadcast licence, tentatively known then as Harmony, was approved by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in February 2012. [13]

Selected ABC Family programs that were set to air on ABC Spark began airing in preview blocks in advance of the network's launch on January 26, 2012 through sister channels YTV, W Network, and CMT. [14] The channel was owned by Corus (51%) and Shaw Media (49%) at launch on March 26. [15] At the same time, on February 10, 2012, Dusk revealed through an announcement via its Twitter and Facebook accounts, that it would be ceasing operations on March 23, 2012. [16] [17] A statement later announced on the channel's website stated the channel was being shuttered for strategic reasons to concentrate on "areas of expertise." [18] Corus later indicated more specifically, through CRTC filings, that Dusk was rebranded to ABC Spark, such that Shaw Cable and Shaw Direct could carry the latter while complying with the CRTC's "3:1 ratio" policy (which limits the proportion of speciality channels carried from companies affiliated with a particular service provider). [19]

Shortly after the channel's launch, the CRTC published notice of a pending application to transfer the ABC Spark licence to the numbered company which previously owned Dusk, which is 51% owned by Corus and 49% owned by Shaw Media. [20] [21] However, on March 4, 2013, Corus Entertainment announced that it would acquire Shaw Media's 49% ownership interest in ABC Spark, in a larger transaction that would see Corus also acquire Shaw's 50% interest in Historia and SériesPlus, while Corus would sell their 22.58% stake in Food Network. In total, Shaw would receive net proceeds of approximately $95 million in cash. [22] The sale of the portion of ABC Spark closed in April 2013. [3]

Expanded relationship with Disney; first original series

In April 2015, Corus Entertainment announced that it would expand its relationship with Disney, and Corus acquired the rights to Disney Channel's programming and related brands, which resulted in the launch of a Canadian version of Disney Channel, and re-launched versions of Disney Junior and Disney XD after DHX Media decided against renewing their agreement to broadcast the programs in Disney's programming catalogue. [23] [24]

In October 2015, ABC Family announced plans to change its name to "Freeform" in January 2016. [25] ABC Spark did not adopt the Freeform name, but it did adopt the on-air imaging used by the U.S. network.

By the end of October 2015, ABC Spark had its first original series entitled Cheer Squad , a docu-reality series which first premiered on July 5, 2016. [26]

Closure

On July 10, 2025, Corus announced that they would close ABC Spark alongside a selection of children's channels (Nickelodeon, Disney XD, Disney Jr. and La Chaîne Disney) at midnight on September 1. [27] Despite the closure, Corus confirmed that it would continue to air Nickelodeon and Disney content on its other channels. The last program to air on the channel ahead of its midnight closure was the film This Is 40 , after which the channel ceased operations with a slate stating "This channel is no longer available". [28]

Programming

ABC Spark carried most of the original programs produced for Freeform in the U.S. ( Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists premieres on W Network), [29] including its own versions of the 31 Nights of Halloween and 25 Days of Christmas events, which broadcast special programming during the lead-up to their respective holidays. The channel's daily programming mainly consists of acquired sitcoms and dramas, as well as syndicated programs from other Corus-owned channels.

In its early years, Dusk was Canada's first horror television channel dedicated to the thriller, suspense and horror genres and was one of the most-watched new speciality channels. After its rebranding to ABC Spark, another attempt to launch a horror-based channel took place five years later when Sylvain Gagné, owner of IO Média inc., launched Frissons TV in September 2017 with its English counterpart, Terror TV to be launched.

References

  1. ↑ ABC partners with Corus to launch youth network in Canada Archived October 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine . Los Angeles Times. October 26. 2011.
  2. ↑ Punter, Jennie (October 26, 2011). "ABC Spark launches in Canada". Variety. Archived from the original on June 19, 2017. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Press Release – Corus Entertainment Receives CRTC Approval on TELETOON Canada Inc., Historia and Séries+ Acquisitions". Corus Entertainment. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
  4. ↑ Decision CRTC 2000-527 CRTC 2000-12-14
  5. ↑ Canwest Global receives final CRTC approval for the acquisition of Alliance Atlantis CNW press release 2008-01-18
  6. ↑ Goldman's happy ending at CanWest The Globe and Mail 2010-05-03
  7. ↑ CanWest Completes Acquisition of Alliance Atlantis Archived April 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Investor Point 2007-08-15
  8. ↑ Kuburas, Melita (June 26, 2009). "Scream TV to lose gore after Dusk falls this September". Media in Canada. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  9. ↑ Shaw Communications closes purchase of Canwest TV assets, rebrands as Shaw Media
  10. ↑ CRTC approves Shaw’s purchase of the Canwest Global television properties Archived December 20, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑ Vlessing, Etan (October 26, 2011). "ABC Spark To Launch in Canada in Spring 2012". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 11, 2016. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  12. ↑ Whittock, Jesse (June 1, 2012). "Canada lights up for ABC Spark". c21media. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  13. ↑ Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2012-93 Archived April 22, 2012, at the Wayback Machine CRTC February 14, 2012
  14. ↑ "Corus' ABC Spark to launch March 26th". Broadcaster Magazine. January 5, 2012. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  15. ↑ Wedge, Pip. "ABC Spark". broadcasting-history.ca. Canadian Communications Foundation. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  16. ↑ Dusk Twitter page
  17. ↑ Dusk Facebook page
  18. ↑ Corus pulls plug on Dusk Archived 2012-07-30 at archive.today Cartt.ca 2012-03-27
  19. ↑ Corus Entertainment. "CRTC Application 2012-0197-0 (.zip format)" . Retrieved April 11, 2012.
  20. ↑ Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (April 10, 2012). "Broadcasting notice of consultation CRTC 2012-212" . Retrieved April 11, 2012.
  21. ↑ Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (May 20, 2010). "Financial summaries: Dusk (formerly Scream), 3924181 Canada Inc". Archived from the original on August 31, 2010. Retrieved April 11, 2012.
  22. ↑ "Shaw, Corus and Bell ink specialty channel sales agreements". Mediacaster Magazine. Business Information Group. March 5, 2013. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  23. ↑ "Corus Entertainment snaps up Disney content from DHX Media, plans to launch Disney channel in Canada". Financial Post . Postmedia Network. April 16, 2015. Archived from the original on April 17, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
  24. ↑ Dickson, Jeremy (August 21, 2015). "DHX TV reveals fall skeds for rebranded channels". Kid Screen. Archived from the original on August 23, 2015. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  25. ↑ Lesley Goldberg (October 6, 2015). "ABC Family Changing Its Name to Freeform". The Hollywood Reporter . Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on November 6, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  26. ↑ Alessi, Sara (October 30, 2015). "Production Begins on ABC Spark's First Original Series". World Screen. WSN INC. Archived from the original on August 3, 2024. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  27. ↑ "Corus to pull plug on some kids channels amid financial pressure". Cartt.ca. July 10, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  28. ↑ "TV Schedule for ABC Spark". TV Passport. Archived from the original on August 28, 2025. Retrieved August 31, 2025.
  29. ↑ "Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists - W Network". www.wnetwork.com. Archived from the original on September 2, 2019.
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