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Formerly |
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Company type | Division |
Industry | Television distribution |
Founded | 1991 |
Headquarters | London, England |
Key people | Chris Wronski |
Parent | AMC Networks International,Fox Corporation(2025) |
Website | Official website |
AMC Networks International UK (EMEA), formerly Zone Vision, Zone Media, Chello Zone and AMC Networks International Zone (EMEA), is a British television media company founded in 1991 by Chris Wronski and owned by AMC Networks International as its EMEA hub that houses its asset interests in that region.
The company was founded to distribute television programmes in Eastern Europe, but now operates in 138 countries. They operate channels under 7 brands, albeit with some limited to specific countries, and provide 22 sound tracks across these.
Its English speaking-targeted channels show mainly US and Canadian imports as well as older BBC and ITV produced content; whereas its Central European stations show large quantities of recent British television. Original sound tracks are provided on most shows which are dubbed.
On 14 September 2009, it was revealed that the international arm of CBS, CBS Studios International, struck a joint venture deal with Chellomedia to launch six CBS-branded channels in the UK during 2009. The new channels would replace Zone Romantica, Zone Thriller, Zone Horror and Zone Reality, plus timeshift services Zone Horror +1 and Zone Reality +1. [1] [2] On 1 October 2009, it was announced that CBS Reality, CBS Reality +1, CBS Drama and CBS Action would launch on 16 November 2009 replacing Zone Reality, Zone Reality +1, Zone Romantica and Zone Thriller. [3]
On 5 April 2010, Zone Horror was rebranded as Horror Channel, following the rebrand of the portfolio's other three channels in November 2009. [4] On-air the channel name appears as Horror. The rebrand was produced by Chello Zone's in-house creative services team. [5]
On 1 August 2012 Chellomedia revealed that the European versions of the Chello Zone channels would be rebranded into CBS Reality, CBS Drama and CBS Action as well. [6]
On 28 October 2013, AMC Networks announced it would acquire Chellomedia (apart from its Benelux division) from Liberty Global, for around $1.04 billion. [7] This acquisition was completed 11 February 2014.
In April 2014 it was announced that AMC Networks has acquired Kinowelt TV. [8] A renaming of the channel is currently not planned. [9]
On 8 July 2014, AMC Networks renamed Chellomedia as AMC Networks International and Chello Zone as AMC Networks International Zone (later dropping the 'Zone' for 'UK'). [10] [11] [12]
In June 2022, it was announced that AMC would drop the CBS branding from the channels owned in a joint-venture with Paramount Global in a reshuffle of their portfolio. CBS Justice will close down, with its slot being taken over by a new channel called Legend on 30 June 2022. [13] Legend will feature the majority of the sci-fi, fantasy and horror programming found on Horror, with a dedicated horror sister channel only operating in the evening under the name Horror Xtra. In addition their Reality channel will get a sister channel as CBS Drama will close and be replaced by Reality Xtra.
In August 2023, it was announced that AMC UK channel including all Catch Up Content will be removed from BT TV on 28 September.
AMC Networks Inc. is an American entertainment company headquartered in 11 Penn Plaza, New York. The company owns and operates the AMC cable channel, BBC America, IFC, We TV, and Sundance TV. It also owns the art house movie theater IFC Center in New York City; the independent film companies IFC Films and RLJE Films; the anime licensor Sentai Filmworks; the premium subscription streaming services AMC+, IFC Films Unlimited, Acorn TV, Allblk, Shudder, Sundance Now, Philo, and Hidive; and a minority interest in the leading Canadian production studio Shaftesbury Films.
MGM Networks was a subsidiary of AMC Networks International. They held AMC Networks International's interests in the MGM branded cable television, satellite television, other television channels and services that reached nearly 120 countries and territories.
Legend, formerly Zone Horror and Horror Channel, is a British free-to-air television channel specialising in sci-fi, fantasy, thriller, action and cult series. It is broadcast in the UK and Ireland. The channel is known for its horror movies during the evenings and early hours with its schedule featuring in the Films section of the Radio Times rather than with the General Entertainment channels.
Zone Thriller was a television channel in Europe that launched on 3 July 2006. The channel aired a number of varying movie styles including psychological dramas and murder mysteries.
Film Cafe is a Polish film channel. It broadcasts contemporary films, influential classics, acclaimed favourites and avant-garde productions.
Paramount Global Content Distribution is the international television distribution arm of American media conglomerate, Paramount Global, originally established in 1962 as the international distribution division of Desilu Productions. With the sale of Desilu to Gulf+Western, then-owners of film studio Paramount Pictures, in 1968, the division evolved into Paramount's first foray into the international television industry in the 1970s.
Zone Romantica was a European TV channel that launched in 1998. The channel broadcast a mixture of telenovelas, music and entertainment from all over the world, but mainly from Latin America. The channel was available 24 hours a day, to 20 territories across Europe and the Middle East. The channel reached 8 million subscribers.
Zone Club was a European lifestyle and entertainment channel. It launched in 1998 as Club. It then launched on 1 April 2001 in Poland, and on 13 September 2004 in Hungary.
History is a European documentary television channel which broadcasts programs related to historical events and persons. There are also reality television, ufology and paranormal programs.
AMC Networks International is the division of AMC Networks that operates outside the United States. AMC Networks commissions and distributes TV channels, content and video services. The division's operating companies and business units currently own and operate in joint venture a total of 68 branded TV channels and run a suite of digital, on demand and broadband services in Europe. In aggregate, its channels and feeds reach 382 million homes. AMC Networks International also provide a set of advanced digital services, such as ad sales and broadcast solutions to international channel operators.
AMC Networks International Southern Europe is a Madrid, Spain-based television company, owned by AMC Networks International.
JimJam is an international children's preschool television channel operated by AMC Networks International Central and Northern Europe, which originally launched in Italy on Sky in 2006.
Viacom International Inc. is the international division of the Paramount Media Networks subsidiary of Paramount Global that oversees the production, broadcasting and promotion of its brands outside of the United States. These brands include Paramount Network, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon and BET, as well as CBS-branded channels co-owned with AMC Networks International. PIN also owned a 30% stake in the Rainbow S.p.A. animation studio in Italy from 2011 to 2023 and a stake in Viacom18, an Indian joint venture with domestic partner TV18, from 2007 to 2024.
True Crime Xtra is a British free-to-air television channel that centres its programming on American television shows produced by CBS. It is the sister channel of True Crime and is owned in partnership by AMC Networks and Paramount Networks.
CBS Justice, formerly CBS Action, is a television channel specializing in factual programming ranging from action films to drama and murder-mysteries. Currently available only in Africa since 21 November 2019 via DStv and Ireland, it was previously available free-to-air in the UK from 16 November 2009 to 30 June 2022.
MGM Channel, sometimes called just MGM and in Spain Canal MGM, was a European 24-hour film channel that was launched by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios in Germany in 2001, later followed by other European countries. The programming of the channel mainly consisted of movies from MGM's library comprising approximately 4,000 titles, including West Side Story, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Madhouse, The Manchurian Candidate, 12 Angry Men, amongst many others. The main language was in English and the films were locally subtitled or dubbed. Some cable operators did offer MGM video on demand.
Film1 Sundance was a Dutch premium television channel. It was the Dutch version of the American cable television network SundanceTV devoted to airing independent feature films, world cinema, documentaries, short films, television series, and original programs, such as news about the latest developments from each year's Sundance Film Festival.
CBS Reality is a European free-to-air television channel broadcast in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
True Crime is a British free-to-air television channel.