National Geographic Wild is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
English-language
Category B specialty channel
A specialty channel (also known in the United States as a cable channel or cable network) can be a commercial broadcasting or non-commercial television channel which consists of television programming focused on a single genre, subject or targeted ...
owned by
Corus Entertainment
Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian mass media company. Formed in 1999 as a spin-off from Shaw Communications, it has prominent holdings in the radio, publishing, and television industries. It is headquartered at Corus Quay in Toronto, Onta ...
and
National Geographic Global Networks
National Geographic Global Networks (formerly National Geographic Channels Worldwide and National Geographic Channels International) is a business unit within National Geographic Partners (a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the Nat ...
. The channel airs programming devoted to wildlife, nature, and animals.
History
In April 2010,
Canwest
Canwest Global Communications Corporation, which operated under the corporate name Canwest, was a major Canadian media conglomerate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with its head offices at Canwest Place. It held radio, television broadcasting an ...
(the majority owner and operator of the Canadian version of National Geographic Channel) had requested the
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...
(CRTC) to add the U.S. version of
Nat Geo Wild
National Geographic Wild (shortened as Nat Geo Wild and abbreviated NGW) is a global pay television network owned by National Geographic Partners, a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (73%) and the National Geographic Society (27%). T ...
to the list of available foreign channels permitted to broadcast in Canada. Both
High Fidelity HDTV
High Fidelity HDTV was a Canadian licensed television broadcaster specializing in HD content. The company was founded in 2003 by co-founders John Panikkar and Ken Murphy, both of whom have been involved in the Canadian broadcasting industry for m ...
(the owner of
Oasis HD) and
CTV Speciality Television Inc. (the major owner of the Canadian version of
Animal Planet
Animal Planet (stylized in all lowercase since 2018) is an American multinational pay television channel owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks unit of Warner Bros. Discovery. First established on June 1, 1996, the network is primarily dev ...
) sent letters to CRTC to oppose the request because they considered Nat Geo Wild to be competitive with Oasis HD and Animal Planet. Canwest was acquired by
Shaw Communications
Shaw Communications Inc. is a Canadian telecommunications company which provides telephone, Internet, television, and mobile services. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Shaw provides home telecommunications services primarily in Alberta and Br ...
later that year. The CRTC denied the application on February 15, 2011.
In October 2011, NGC Channel Inc. (a company owned by Shaw and National Geographic Channel in the U.S.) put forth its own application to the CRTC in order to launch a Canadian version of Nat Geo Wild. The licence was approved by the CRTC on April 13, 2012. Neither High Fidelity HDTV nor
Bell Media
Bell Media Inc. ( French: ) is a Canadian company formed by the amalgamation of several companies.
Establishment (2011–13)
On December 9, 2011, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan announced the sale of its majority stake in Maple Leaf Sports ...
voiced a concern about Nat Geo Wild competing with their services.
On April 30, 2012, Shaw released a statement that the Canadian version of Nat Geo Wild was scheduled to be launched on May 7, 2012. The channel was launched in
standard Standard may refer to:
Symbols
* Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs
* Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification
Norms, conventions or requirements
* Standard (metrology), an object th ...
and
high definition.
Bell Aliant Fibe TV is the only provider no to carry the channel.
On April 1, 2016, Shaw Media was sold to
Corus Entertainment
Corus Entertainment Inc. is a Canadian mass media company. Formed in 1999 as a spin-off from Shaw Communications, it has prominent holdings in the radio, publishing, and television industries. It is headquartered at Corus Quay in Toronto, Onta ...
.
Nat Geo Wild was rebranded as National Geographic Wild in 2019.
Logo
Nat Geo Wild Canada.svg, Logo used from 2012 to 2019
Programming
Noted series
* ''
Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet
Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet is an American television series on Nat Geo Wild. The show premiered April 4, 2014. The show stars Dr. Michelle Oakley and follows her adventures usually around her home base of Haines Junction, Yukon and Haines, Alaska. Oakle ...
''
* ''
Dogs with Jobs
''Dogs with Jobs'' is a Canadian documentary television series about working dogs and show dogs. Each half-hour episode consists of two to three segments on individual dogs from around the world. The family-friendly series has featured service ...
''
* ''
The Incredible Dr. Pol''
* ''
Totally Wild
''Totally Wild'' is an Australian children's television series which premiered on Network 10 on 12 July 1992. The series aired on 10 Peach from 2013 to 2020, and 10 Shake from 2020 to 2021. It had a current affairs program format, and did stor ...
''
* ''
Zoo Diaries
''Zoo Diaries'' is a Canadian documentary television series airing on Life Network. The series documents the live of animals and people at a zoo with a record of breeding endangered species. 74 episodes have been produced since 2000 by DocuTainmen ...
''
References
External links
*
{{National Geographic
English-language television stations in Canada
Digital cable television networks in Canada
Television channels and stations established in 2012
Corus Entertainment networks
National Geographic (American TV channel)
2012 establishments in Canada