Sony Movies (British and Irish TV channel)

Last updated

Sony Movies
Sony Movies Logo.svg
Country United Kingdom
Broadcast areaUnited Kingdom
Ireland
Programming
Picture format 576i 16:9 SDTV
Timeshift serviceSony Movies +1
Ownership
OwnerNarrative Capital
Sister channels Pop
Pop Max
Sony Channel
Sony Movies Action
Sony Movies Classic
Tiny Pop
History
Launched3 May 2012;9 years ago (3 May 2012)
Replaced Movies4Men 2 (Sky)
Movie Mix (Freeview)
Closed25 May 2021;2 days' time (25 May 2021)
Replaced byGreat! Movies
Former namesSony Movie Channel (2012-2019)
Links
Website sonymovies.co.uk
Availability
Terrestrial
Freeview Channel 33
Channel 60 (+1)
Cable
Virgin Media Channel 425
UPC Switzerland Channel 224
Satellite
Freesat Channel 302
Sky Channel 321
Channel 322 (+1)
Astra 2F
28.2°E
11306 V 27500 5/6
11306 V 27500 5/6 (+1)
Streaming media
TVPlayer (UK) Watch live

Sony Movies is a British free-to-air television channel showing films and related content. As of 2018 the channel is transmitted on all the major broadcast platforms in the UK - terrestrial, satellite and cable. The channel is only broadcast in standard-definition.

Contents

As a free-to-air channel, supported by advertising, it is subject to standard UK broadcasting rules, which means that films shown between 5.30 am and 9 pm are often edited to make them suitable for pre-watershed slots. After 9 pm, the rules are more relaxed and films will generally not be censored.

The channel formerly aired an Animax programming block every Monday night.

History

Launch and transmission on satellite

The Sony Movie Channel brand was made available outside the US for the first time when a British version of the station launched on the Sky platform in the UK and Ireland on 3 May 2012. [1] [2] To release Sky guide slots for the launch of SMC and its +1 timeshift, Movies4Men 2 and its +1 service were closed (and thus lost by Freesat viewers).

At launch and until 2018, SMC was broadcast on a free-to-view basis, meaning that access to channel was only available to those with a Sky viewing card, and although no subscription payment was required to view the channel, it was unavailable to Freesat devices.

Sony Movie Channel became fully free to air on satellite on 13 August 2018, in preparation for its full launch on the Freesat programme guide on 9 October 2018. [3] To permit SMC's launch on Freesat, Sony reorganised their other movie channels on the guide: Movies4Men +1 was no longer listed on the Freesat guide as a result of the addition of SMC, though remains freely available for manual tune-in. Encryption was also removed from Sony Movie Channel +1 at the same time, though this was not added to the Freesat full guide.

On 24 July 2019, it was announced that the channel will be renamed as Sony Movies from 10 September 2019. [4]

Freeview and cable (Movie Mix)

When launched on 15 July 2009, The Big Deal broadcast live interactive quiz content 7 days a week from 22:00-05:00 on Freeview channel 37 (later channel 32), initially timesharing with RT and Create and Craft. Each night, The Big Deal broadcast various games and puzzles, with cash prizes to be won for viewers who guessed the correct answers. Viewers were asked to call in or log on to The Big Deal website to enter these games. Later in the year The Big Deal reduced its timeslot from 22:00-05:00 to 00:30-05:00.

On 6 November 2009, The Big Deal ceased broadcasting its live quiz content. Teleshopping instead commenced broadcasting between 04:00-06:00, later reduced to 05:00-06:00, in areas yet to undergo digital switchover. A 24-hour version of the channel, meanwhile, was rolled out using the same channel number in post-DSO areas; the fulltime version was made available in all areas on 2 March 2011.

On 12 April 2011, The Big Deal began broadcasting TView, a short-lived pay-per-view film service, with broadcasting hours reduced to 18:00-05:00. [5] The TView service ran until 27 April 2011, when it was replaced by teleshopping, and its hours were reduced further to 18:00-22:00. From 7 July 2011, The Big Deal changed back to operating 05:00-06:00, then, on 6 September 2011 it changed its broadcasting 00:00-04:00. The broadcasting hours were changed again on 20 October 2011 to 03:00-05:00. By this point, in addition to teleshopping presentations the channel also broadcast psychic sessions in which the viewer could ask for their own psychic reading.

On 6 December 2012, The Big Deal was renamed Movie Mix on the programme guide, and reacquired a 24-hour broadcast slot. [6] The channel continued airing chiefly teleshopping - initially via a simulcast of Speed Auction TV - as well as a classic movie each night. [7]

On 17 January 2013, Movie Mix on Freeview began to simulcast the full schedule of films and programmes of satellite channel More Than Movies (previously known as men&movies), though presented under the retained Movie Mix branding. [8] The Movie Mix channel initially remained owned and operated by Cellcast subsidiary Square 1 Management, [9] but using More Than Movies programming under license from Sony Pictures Television. [10]

In March 2014, Cellcast agreed to early termination of its exclusive rights for Movie Mix for a one off payment of £2.98m from Entertainment Networks, a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Television,. [11] bringing Movie Mix and More Than Movies under common ownership. The channels continued to carry the same programming and split branding as before.

On 22 March 2016, More Than Movies on satellite was closed down and was replaced by True Crime, with Movie Mix retained on Freeview only, broadcasting its own programming schedule, By this time many films on Movie Mix on Freeview were also being broadcast on the Sony Movie Channel on satellite, though the channels retained separate schedules and branding.

On 12 August 2016 Movie Mix began testing on Virgin Media cable systems, with the channel fully launched on 25 August 2016. This meant the Movie Mix schedule was now available on terrestrial and cable platforms, but not on satellite.

Former logo as Sony Movie Channel (2017-2019) Sony Movie Channel.png
Former logo as Sony Movie Channel (2017–2019)

In December 2016 it was announced that Sony Movie Channel would be re-launched and made available over cable and Freeview in January 2017, by way of a rebranding of Movie Mix. [12] [13] On 10 January 2017, the channel replaced Movie Mix on the Freeview and Virgin Media platforms. [14] In preparation for the switch Movie Mix and SMC had been broadcasting an identical schedule in the final days prior to the transition. Although now fully free-to-air on Freeview, the channel remained unavailable to Freesat users until satellite encryption was lifted in August 2018.

Great! Movies

On 25 May 2021, the channel is relaunching as Great! Movies as Sony Pictures Television is acquired by Narrative Capital. [15]

Related Research Articles

Film4 British free-to-air television channel

Film4 is a British free-to-air television channel owned by the Channel Four Television Corporation, that broadcasts films. It was launched on 1 November 1998. While its standard-definition channel is available as a FTA network, its high-definition variant is offered as a pay television service.

Yesterday (TV channel) UKTV channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland

Yesterday is a British free-to-air history-oriented television channel broadcasting in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It launched on 30 October 2002 as UK History and relaunched in its current format on 2 March 2009. It is available on satellite through Sky, Freesat and through the digital terrestrial provider Freeview. Hours on Freeview had previously been cut, with transmissions finishing at 6 pm, but were restored on 1 June 2010.

Tiny Pop British childrens television channel

Tiny Pop is a free-to-air children's television channel in the United Kingdom, owned by Narrative Capital. Broadcast on many of the major digital television platforms in the UK, Tiny Pop, which was launched on 8 September 2003 as Pop Plus, and shows, its target audience is children aged 7 and under. The station broadcasts principally animated content sourced from various distributors.

Scuzz

Scuzz was a British 24-hour rock and metal music television channel owned and operated by Sony Pictures Television. It was launched on 17 April 2003 and went on to be the highest-rated rock TV station on the Sky satellite platform, available in over 12 million homes in the UK and Ireland. The channel closed on 15 November 2018.

Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, provided by joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Freesat offers a satellite alternative to the Freeview service on digital terrestrial television, with a broadly similar selection of channels available without subscription for users purchasing a receiver.

QVC (British TV channel) British television channel

QVC UK is a television shopping channel broadcast from the United Kingdom to the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was formed in 1993 when QVC, Inc. agreed to a deal with Sky TV to create a UK version of the US channel. "QVC – The Shopping Channel" first broadcast in the UK on 1 October 1993.

ITV HD

ITV HD is a British free-to-air high-definition television channel operated by ITV plc, the company which is contracted to provide 11 ITV services across the UK. ITV HD is available to view in England, Wales and the Scottish Borders on Freesat via channel 103, Freeview channel 103, Sky channel 103, Virgin Media channel 103 and in Switzerland on SwisscomTV.

Movies4Men was a free-to-air film channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was available on Freeview, Freesat and Sky. The channel was aimed at the middle to old aged male viewer, with a look at the classics in cinema history, focusing mainly on western and war film genres. The channel closed on 10 September 2019 and was replaced with Sony Movies Action.

Movies4Men2 was a satellite television film channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland, available as a free-to-air service on Freesat, Sky and as in the basic package on Smallworld Cable. Prior to 9 October 2006, Movies4Men2 was previously known as ACTIONMAX. Between November 2011 and January 2012, Movies4Men2 and Movies4Men2 +1 were also available on Freeview in Manchester.

There are four major forms of digital television (DTV) broadcast in the United Kingdom: a direct-to-home satellite service from the Astra 28.2°E satellites provided by Sky UK, a cable television service provided by Virgin Media ; a free-to-air satellite service called Freesat; and a free-to-air digital terrestrial service called Freeview. In addition, an IPTV system known as BT Vision is provided by BT. Individual access methods vary throughout the country. 77% of the United Kingdom has access to HDTV via terrestrial digital television. Satellite is the only source of HDTV broadcast available for the remaining 23%.

JML Direct TV Series of British television shopping channels owned by John Mills Limited

JML Direct TV is a generic name for a series of British shopping channels broadcasting on the Sky, Freesat and Freeview platforms, owned by JML Direct Limited. JML Direct TV originally launched on Sky channel 664, on 1 October 2002 as JML Direct. Due to various Sky EPG reshuffles, this original channel is located on channel 661 as of 2018.

High-definition television in the United Kingdom is available via cable, IPTV, satellite and terrestrial television. The first high-definition broadcasts began in late 2005 and since then the number of channels available to view has grown to a maximum of 87 that can be viewed on pay-TV service, Sky.

Viva (British and Irish TV channel) Free-to-air music television channel

Viva was a British free-to-air music television channel owned by Viacom International Media Networks Europe. The channel launched on 26 October 2009, replacing TMF, and ceased broadcasting on 31 January 2018.

Cellcast Group is a broadcasting company based in the United Kingdom. They operate channels on the Sky UK, Virgin Media, YouTube, Freesat and Freeview TV platforms in the UK and internationally via paid programming which consist of participatory television programming such as phone-ins, teleshopping and quiz channels. They are also a provider of software development services for the media industry such as second screen application development, production of digital on screen graphics, mobile gaming development, direct carrier billing and internet marketing.

Channel 5 is a British free-to-air television network launched in 1997. It is the fifth national terrestrial channel in the United Kingdom and is owned by Channel 5 Broadcasting Ltd, which is operated by ViacomCBS Networks UK & Australia.

More Than Movies was a satellite television channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland, available on Sky and as a free-to-air service on Freesat. It launched on 4 October 2010 as Men&Movies, and was the first Freesat exclusive TV channel until it joined the Sky EPG on 4 April 2011. Between November 2011 and January 2012, Men&Movies was also available on Freeview in Manchester.

Quest Red Digital television channel in the United Kingdom

Quest Red is a British free-to-air television channel in the United Kingdom broadcasting factual, lifestyle, crime and reality programming aimed at a female audience. The channel is operated by Discovery, Inc. and runs as a sibling to Discovery's established Freeview channel Quest, launched in 2009.

Sony Crime Channel defunct British Free to air Crime channel owned by Sony Pictures Television

Sony Crime Channel was a British free-to-air television channel, focusing on crime television programmes and documentaries. It was launched on 6 February 2018 and was owned by Sony Pictures Television. It aired crime programming targeted at a female audience.

Sony Movies Action is a British free-to-air TV channel which launched on 10 September 2019 on Freeview, Freesat, Sky and Virgin. It replaced Movies4Men. The channel is dedicated to showing action, war and western movies but also shows classic action television series.

References

  1. "Sony planning UK film channel". Broadband TV News. 29 February 2012.
  2. "Sony Movie Channel – Almost here!". Sony Entertainment Television UK. 28 March 2012.
  3. Sony Movie Channel joins Freesat a516digital 8 October 2018. Retrieved 16 October 2018
  4. "Sony Pictures Television Revamps Entertainment Portfolio And Launches UK's First Free-To-Air Movie Network". Sky Media. 24 July 2019.
  5. "New Freeview channel offers PPV Bollywood". Biz Asia. 20 April 2011.
  6. "Big Deal morphs as Speed Auction TV and Classic Movies arrive on Freeview channel 32". a516digital. 6 December 2012.
  7. "Changes to Freeview Channel 32". Radio and Telly. 6 December 2012.
  8. "MovieMix morphs again as channel aligned with More>Movies". a516digital. 17 January 2013.
  9. "Television Broadcast Licensing Update December 2012". Ofcom. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  10. "is the movie mix..." Sony Entertainment Television . Facebook. 17 January 2013.
  11. www.bloomberg.com https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=28434816.Missing or empty |title= (help)
  12. "Sony preps UK movie channel". c21Media. Retrieved 18 April 2017.
  13. "Sony Movie Channel to go live on UK platforms". TBI Vision. Retrieved 18 April 2017.
  14. "Sony Movie Channel to replace MovieMix on Freeview and Virgin". SEENIT. 6 January 2017.
  15. "Sony Pictures Television U.K. Channels Sold to U.S. Investment Firm Narrative Capital". Variety. 14 May 2021.