TX Network (TXN) is a commercial

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- ...

in Japan owned by

Nikkei, Inc. Nikkei, Inc. is a Japanese media company which owns ''The Nikkei'' and the ''Financial Times''. Its first publication was in 1876 with the publication of ''The Chugai Bukka Shimpo (Domestic and Foreign Prices News)''. In 1946, the company name wa ...

The "TX" is taken from the callsign of its

flagship station In broadcasting, a flagship (also known as a flagship station or key station) is the broadcast station which originates a television network, or a particular radio or television program that plays a key role in the branding of and consumer loyalt ...

TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as and known colloquially as , is a television station headquartered in the Sumitomo Fudosan Roppongi Grand Tower in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by the subsidiary of listed certif ...

. It is also known as TV Tokyo Network.

History

Tokyo Channel 12 almost went into bankruptcy in 1968. At the time, a television production company was established, with two companies, business newspaper ''

Nihon Keizai Shimbun ''The Nikkei'', also known as , is the flagship publication of Nikkei, Inc. (based in Tokyo) and the world's largest financial newspaper, with a daily circulation exceeding 1.73 million copies. The Nikkei 225, a stock market index for the Tok ...

'' and the

Mainichi Broadcasting System , or MBS, is a radio and television broadcasting company headquartered in Osaka, Japan, affiliated with Japan Radio Network (JRN), National Radio Network (NRN), Japan News Network (JNN) and TBS Network, serving in the Kansai region. It ...

having a central role in the investment. At this time, MBS was affiliated to NET TV (now

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Com ...

), which carried out a "key station declaration" at the request of Nikkei, in the form of cross-networking with Tokyo Channel 12 and NET, in October 1969. Both channels either signed a network, or launched a co-production program, by, for example, each other to supply the programs from both stations, to strengthen the relationship. However, the relationship involving MBS and Tokyo Channel 12 disappeared on March 31, 1975, when MBS and ABC swapped their affiliations. Tokyo Channel 12 became an independent channel and remained that way until the start of the 80s. Then, on March 1, 1982,

TV Osaka is a television station affiliated with the TX Network in Osaka, Japan. The mascot character is "Takoru-kun" (たこるくん). History Television Osaka, Inc. was founded in 1981 as part of the reorganization of Tokyo Channel 12 Ltd (now TV T ...

(TVO) became the first affiliate stations of what came to be TV Tokyo's network of stations. The new network was named Mega TON Network. Although "Mega TON" initially stood for "Megalopolis Tokyo-Osaka Network", the "N" also meant Nagoya, where a third station was planned.

TV Aichi JOCI-DTV, branded as , is a television station in Nagoya, Japan operated by the Aichi Television Broadcasting Company, Ltd. (TVA; ja, テレビ愛知株式会社, Terebi Aichi kabushiki gaisha) and is an affiliate of the TX Network. Broadcast ...

(TVA) began broadcasting on September 1, 1983. Also, the "Megalopolis Song Festival" was once broadcast featuring the name of the network. On October 1, 1985, a fourth station covering

Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The city was founded on June 1, 1889. , the city has an estimated population of 720,841 and a population density of 910 persons per km2. The total area is . The city is ...

and Kagawa (the Setouchi quasi-Wide Area), named

TV Setouchi (TSC) is a TV station in Japan. It is one of the TX Network (TXN) stations, broadcasting in Okayama Prefecture and Kagawa Prefecture, and it is the only TXN TV station in the Chugoku-Shikoku region. Anime produced TV Setouchi produced a few ...

(TSC), started broadcasting. Because of the expansion, the network changed names on April 1, 1989 to TXN Network (TXN). At the same time, TV Tokyo gained the TX abbreviation from the station's calls. Television Hokkaido in

Hokkaido is Japan, Japan's Japanese archipelago, second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost Prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own List of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; th ...

and

TVQ Kyushu Broadcasting is a television station affiliated with the TX Network, broadcasting in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. History During the time of its establishment, the company was named as "TXN Kyushu" because the name "TV Kyushu", which the owner intended to ...

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center ...

began broadcasting in 1989 and 1991, respectively. The network gained their current shape of six stations. TV Tokyo has and always been by far the largest station in the TXN network and one of the major Tokyo television stations. As such, like the Tokyo television stations themselves and its (former) Canadian counterpart Télé-Métropole (now Groupe TVA), TV Tokyo dominates the network via parent company Nikkei's ownership of shares outstanding in every member station.

TXN stations

References

External links

TXN corporate
{{Japan television networks Television networks in Japan Television channels and stations established in 1983 Nikkei Inc.