Tokyo Broadcasting System

(formerly ) is a Japanese media and licensed broadcasting holding company. It is the parent company of the television network TBS Television and radio network TBS Radio. It has a 28-affiliate television network called Japan News Network, as well as a 34-affiliate radio network called Japan Radio Network.

TBS produced the game show '' Takeshi's Castle'' and has also broadcast the ''Ultra Series'' programs and '' Sasuke'' (''Ninja Warrior''), whose format would inspire similar programs outside Japan.

TBS is a member of the Mitsui Group '' keiretsu'' and highly cooperating with the '' Mainichi Shimbun'' despite the latter's lack of shareholding.

History

* May 1951 - was founded in Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan.
* December 25, 1951 - KRT started radio broadcasting (1130 kHz, 50 kW, until July 1953) from Yurakucho, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and the frequency changed to 950 kHz.
* April 1955 - KRT started TV broadcasting (JOKR-TV, Channel 6) from Akasaka-Hitotsukicho, Minato, Tokyo.
* August 1, 1959 - Japan News Network (JNN) is formed.
* November 29, 1960 - KRT was renamed , and the headquarters and radio studio were moved to the main building in Akasaka.
* August 1961 - TBS unveils the cursive logo, after the renaming of Tokyo Broadcasting System from KRT.
* July 17, 1966 Ultraman Begins airing becoming popular in Japan.
*October 1, 1967 Ultraseven Begins airing becoming More popular and reaching More viewers Ratings.
* 1971 - TBS Radio's transmitter power was increased to 100 kW.
*April 2, 1971 Return Of Ultraman begins airing and revives The Ultra series.
* March 31, 1975 - Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) dropped out JNN and Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS) joined the news network due to ownership issues with ABC. Since then, MBS has been an affiliated TV station of JNN in Osaka and Kansai region.
* November 23, 1978 - The frequency for TBS Radio was moved to 954 kHz.
* May 2, 1986 - TBS starts broadcasting the game show Takeshi's Castle.
* 1989 - TBS became culpable in the Sakamoto family murder by Aum Shinrikyo, resulting in complaints against the network after the case was solved several years later.
* October 19, 1990 - The last-ever episode of Takeshi's Castle was broadcast on TBS.
* September 20, 1991 - TBS enters into an agreement with CBS News in the U.S. for newscasts and satellite relays. Following a short-lived logo for 30 years.
* October 3, 1994 - The present headquarters, TBS Broadcasting Center, were completed next to the old headquarters (later renamed as Akasaka Media Building until its demolition in 2003). They are called "Big Hat (ビッグハット)". Nine months after the third logo was unveiled.
*April 1, 1998 - JNN News Bird starts broadcasting. In 2006, the channel was renamed TBS News Bird.
* February 2000 - TBS adopts a symbol based on the Kanji symbol for "person".
* March 21, 2000 - TBS founded TBS Radio & Communications Inc. (株式会社ティ・ビー・エス・ラジオ・アンド・コミュニケーションズ→株式会社TBSラジオ&コミュニケーションズ), TBS Entertainment Inc. (株式会社ティ・ビー・エス・エンタテインメント), and TBS Sports Inc. (株式会社ティ・ビー・エス・スポーツ), and founded TBS Live Inc. (株式会社ティ・ビー・エス・ライブ) the next day. On October 1, 2001, TBS succeeded the radio station to TBS Radio & Communications, and changed callsign of TV station (JOKR-TV → JORX-TV).
* July 1, 2002 - TBS ch. starts broadcasting on pay television.
* October 1, 2004 - TBS Entertainment merged TBS Sports and TBS Live, and changed the corporate name to Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. (株式会社TBSテレビ).
* October 13, 2005 - Rakuten Inc. announced that it bought 15.46 percent stake in TBS, bringing it up to 19%.
* After over a month and a half of worries over a possible hostile takeover, Rakuten withdrew its bid for TBS on December 1 and planned to form a business alliance with the broadcast company instead.
* April 1, 2006 - Digital terrestrial broadcasts commence.
* April 1, 2009 - TBS became a certified broadcast holding company named Tokyo Broadcasting System Holdings, Inc.. TV broadcasting business and culture business were taken over by Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. and the letters TBS became in use for the abbreviation of the subsidiary company.
* March 14, 2011 - A news special program was broadcast without commercials in three days after the Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent Fukushima nuclear disaster.
* December 1, 2011 - TBS sold the Yokohama BayStars, a Nippon Professional Baseball team to DeNA. DeNA will buy 66.92 percent of the team's stock for 6.5 billion yen from TBS. TBS will retain a 2.31 percent ownership stake in the team.
* April 1, 2016 - TBS Holdings subsidiary, TBS Radio and Communications renamed TBS Radio.
* April 1, 2020 - After 26 years, TBS unveils an updated logo.
* October 1, 2020: Tokyo Broadcasting System Holdings, Inc. was renamed as TBS Holdings, Inc., to commemorate 70th anniversary of the company since 1950.

Coverage

Current

Broadcasting rights

Football

= Soccer

=
* FIFA
** National teams
*** Men's :
**** FIFA World Cup (including qualifiers for Europe (all matches) and Asia (selected matches)
** Japan national football team
** Japan national under-23 football team

Volleyball

* FIVB
** FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship
**FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship

Golf

* The Masters

Multi-sport events

* IAAF World Championships in Athletics
* Summer Olympic Games
* Winter Olympic Games

Announcers

Programs

Below is a selection of the many programs that the network has broadcast.

Sporting competition

*'' Kinniku Banzuke'' (, also known as ''Unbeatable Banzuke'' in the United States and United Kingdom)
*'' Sasuke'' (''known as Ninja Warrior in other countries, e.g.:American Ninja Warrior'' in the United States) ''an obstacle course based game show, originally part of Kinniku Banzuke''
*''Kunoichi'' Sasuke's female counterpart
*'' Takeshi's Castle'' ()
*'' Pro Sportsman No.1'' (最強の男は誰だ!壮絶筋肉バトル!!スポーツマンNo.1決定戦)
** ''Sports Danshi Grand Prix'' (究極の男は誰だ!?最強スポーツ男子頂上決戦), reboot version of ''Pro Sportsman No.1.''
* KASSO, skateboarding gameshow
* Honoo-no Taiiku-kai TV (炎の体育会TV)
*''HANZO'', Sasuke's spin-off sports gameshow based on pentathlon.

Variety and talk shows

*'' Masahiro Nakai's '' ()

Music

*'' The Best Ten'' () (1978–1989) (the program's best episodes were rerun in 2020 as a special)
*'' Count Down TV''

Dramas and TV series

*'' Another World'' ()
*'' Days of Our Lives'' ()
*'' Passions'' ()
*'' Santa Barbara'' ()
*'' Sunset Beach'' ()

Information and news programs

*'' Mino Monta no '' ()
*''The World Heritage'' ()

Game shows

*''Quiz ¥20,000,000 Money Drop'' (), Japanese version of The Million Pound Drop
*' () (Spring/Fall)
*'' Sanma's '' ()
*'' Tokyo Friend Park II'' ()
*'' Dragon Zakura'' ()
*'' Princess Resurrection''
*'' Japan Cable Awards'' ()
*'' Japan Record Awards'' ()
*'' Tokyo Music Festival'' ()
*'' Food Battle Club''
*'' Hachiji da yo! Zen'in shūgō'' (1969–1985)
*''Newscope'' () → ''JNN Evening News'' () → '' Evening 5'' () → ''THE NEWS'' () → ''N Studio'' ()
*''Karei-naru Ichizoku () - TBS 55th anniversary drama starring Takuya Kimura ( SMAP)
*'' Lincoln'' ()
*'' Utaban'' () → ''The Music Hour'' ()
*''Samurai Baseball'' () - baseball games
*'' Masters Tournament''
*''Quiz Derby''
*''We asked 100 people'' () (1979–1992), Japanese version of Family Feud
*''The Chance!'' () (1979–1986), Japanese version of The Price Is Right
*''Toray Pan Pacific Open''
*'' FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship, FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship, FIVB Volleyball World League''
*'' IAAF World Championships in Athletics'' (since 1997, IAAF Official Broadcaster)
*'' Happy family plan'' ()
*'' Survivor'' ()
*'' Ah, You're really Gone Now''. This TV film was selected at the 49ème Festival de télévision de Monte-Carlo in Monte-Carlo in June 2009. It obtained the special commendation of the SIGNIS Jury.
*'' Hiroshima Showa 20 nen 8 Gatsu Muika'' (2005)
*''Japanese Americans'' (2010)
*' (2011)
*''Ginayon'' (1985-2012 (present))
* Produce 101 Japan (2019)

Anime programming

* ''The Idolmaster''

Criticism

Sakamoto family murders

TBS was accused of failing to protect its sources in October 1989, when it taped an interview with Tsutsumi Sakamoto regarding his investigations into the Aum Shinrikyo sect. The network secretly showed a video of the interview to Aum members without Sakamoto's knowledge. Aum officials then pressured TBS to cancel the planned broadcast of the interview, but Sakamoto, his wife and child were murdered by Aum members on 3 November.

See also

* Hobankyo - Organization based in Japan that enforces TBS copyright issues.

Notes

References

External links

TBS Television
-

{{Authority control

Japanese companies established in 1951

Holding companies based in Tokyo
Liberal media in Japan
Mass media companies based in Tokyo
Mitsui
Shochiku
Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange
Akasaka, Tokyo
1960s initial public offerings