Rede 21 (Portuguese for ''21 Network'') is a Brazilian

television network A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid- ...

, launched on October 21, 1996 (relaunched on July 7, 2008), as Canal 21, broadcasting only for

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

. It grew to a network in 2003 with the addition of the TV Brasília affiliation. Before this, Salvador and

Macapá Macapá () is a city in Brazil with a population of 512,902 (2020 estimation). It is the capital of Amapá state in the country's North Region. It is located on the northern channel of the Amazon River near its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean. The c ...

pass to have the 21 signal. In 2003,

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

received the 21 on channel 54 UHF by retransmission, but shut down at the end of 2005. In 2005, the network nationally broadcast five hours, from 7pm to 12am, but had good quality. Most part of this schedule was occupied by Japanese cartoons and American series like ''

Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the same name, the series premiered in the United Stat ...

'', ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction drama television series created by Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who ...

'' and ''

That '70s Show ''That '70s Show'' is an American television period teen sitcom that aired on Fox from August 23, 1998, to May 18, 2006. The series focuses on the lives of a group of six teenage friends living in the fictional town of Point Place, Wisconsin, ...

''.

Rise and decline

The network had presence in 14 cities in 2004, but in this time of the year lost affiliates in

Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, , Brazilian ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of 1,488,252 inhabitants (2020) makes it the twelfth most populous city in the country and the center of Brazil's fif ...

, Belo Horizonte, Vitória and

. At the end of 2005, the small schedule and prime time from 7pm at 12am was further reduced. The newscast host and the Blog 21 hosts were fired and was canceled the programs Top of the Pops, Doc 21 (with the National Geographic documentaries), the sitcom Seinfeld and Top of the Pops Brasil and put on air the Gamecorp programs. On June 5, 2006, Rede 21 shut down and Play TV was put in its place.

Rede 21's return

After two years off the air, on July 7, 2008, Rede 21 came back on, after the disaccord between Grupo Bandeirantes and Gamecorp.

External links

* {{Television in Brazil Grupo Bandeirantes de Comunicação Television networks in Brazil Mass media in São Paulo 1996 establishments in Brazil Television channels and stations established in 1996 2006 disestablishments in Brazil Television channels and stations disestablished in 2006