Sony Movie Channel
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Culver City, California, United States |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Sony Pictures Television |
Sony Movie Channel is an American television channel that was launched on October 1, 2010.[1] Owned by the Sony Pictures Television subsidiary of Sony Corporation, its programming consists entirely of films from the Sony Pictures Entertainment library (including content from Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures and Sony Pictures Classics among others), which are broadcast unedited, and remastered in 1080i high definition. It is the only television channel in the United States run by Sony Corporation that is wholly owned by the company.[1]
Program blocks and theme weeks
A program block on the channel is "Killer Mandays", a double feature of horror films on Monday nights.[2] From November 6–November 12, 2011 the channel aired a week-long salute to Bollywood films.[3]
Availability
United States
Sony Movie Channel is available nationally on DirecTV and Dish Network, and regionally on AT&T U-Verse[4] and Verizon FiOS. DirecTV and Dish Network also offer "Sony Movie Channel Everywhere", which allows viewers to watch its movies through its website for no additional cost.[5] The channel is also available through streaming for owners of the Sony Network Media Player.
Sony Movie Channel is also available on Sony's PlayStation Vue platform included with the Elite and Ultra plans.
Canada
On May 31, 2012, Hollywood Suite announced it would re-brand its high-definition channel Hollywood Festival as a Canadian version of Sony Movie Channel on September 4, 2012 as part of a new licensing arrangement with Sony Pictures.[6] The channel was discontinued on November 3, 2015, as part of the re-formatting of Hollywood Suite's channels to use decade-based formats.[7]
United Kingdom and Ireland
The channel was made available outside of the US for the first time on Sky in the United Kingdom and Ireland on May 3, 2012.[8][9] While it is only available in standard-definition, it is accompanied by a one-hour timeshift channel. The channel formerly airs the Animax block every Monday night. As a free-to-air channel, supported by advertising, it is subject to standard UK broadcasting rules, which means that films shown between 5.30am and 9pm are often edited to make them suitable for pre-watershed slots. After 9pm, the rules are more relaxed and films will generally not be censored.
On January 10, 2017, the channel replaced Movie Mix on the Freeview and Virgin Media platforms, becoming free-to-air for the first time.[10] Movie Mix had been broadcasting an identical schedule in its final days prior to the transition.
References
- ^ a b Sony Television Plans to Launch Two New U.S. Channels, Los Angeles Times, July 5, 2010
- ^ Sony Movie Channel Dresses Up for Halloween with KILLER MANDAYS Press Release September 26, 2011
- ^ Sony Movie Channel Announces Weeklong Salute to Bollywood (Exclusive) The Hollywood Reporter September 8, 2011
- ^ Sony Movie Channel Launches on DISH Network, DIRECTV and AT&T U-verse TV, Press Release, October 18, 2010
- ^ Sony Movie Channel Goes Online Multichannel News October 5, 2011
- ^ "Hollywood Suite brings Sony brands into its stable". Cartt.ca. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ "Hollywood Suite to go by the numbers in rebranding its movie channels". Cartt.ca. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
- ^ "Sony planning UK film channel". Broadband TV News. February 29, 2012.
- ^ "Sony Movie Channel - Almost here!". Sony Entertainment Television UK. March 28, 2012.
- ^ http://www.seenit.co.uk/sony-movie-channel-to-replace-moviemix-on-freeview-and-virgin/