Aboriginal Peoples Television Network

Infobox_TV_channel
name = APTN
logofile = APTN.png logoalt=
logosize= 150px
launch = January 21 1992
closed date =
picture format =
share =
share as of =
share source =
network =
owner = Aboriginal Peoples
Television Network
slogan =
country = Canada
broadcast area = National
headquarters = Winnipeg, Manitoba
former names = Television Northern Canada
replaced names =
sister names =
timeshift names =
web = [http://www.aptn.ca/ www.aptn.ca]
terr serv 1 =
terr chan 1 =
sat serv 1= Bell TV
sat chan 1= Channel 269 (Cable- East) (SD)
Channel 270 (CHTY-TV) (SD)
Channel 808 (HD)
sat serv 2= Star Choice
sat chan 2= Channel 350 (Cable- East) (SD)
cable serv 1 = Available on most Canadian cable systems
cable chan 1 = Check local listings
online serv 1 =
online chan 1 =

Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (more commonly referred to as APTN) is a Canadian broadcast and cable television network. APTN airs and produces programs made by, for and about Aboriginal Peoples. It is noted as the first of its kind in the world and is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

History

The road to TVNC

The inevitable creation of APTN can be traced back as far as 1980 when the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) issued the "Therrien committee report". In that report, the committee drew the conclusion that there was a growing interest of northern Aboriginal peoples in developing their own media services and that the government has a responsibility to ensure that broadcasting landscape supports Aboriginal languages and cultures. They also noted that measures be taken to enable northern native people to use broadcasting to support their languages and cultures.

The implications of this report led to the creation the "Northern Broadcasting Policy" on March 10, 1983 by the Canadian government. It was a policy which laid out the principles for the development of Northern native-produced programming. Within this policy also came the "Northern Native Broadcast Access Program", a funded program used to produced radio and/or television programs in First Peoples' languages to reflect their cultural perspectives.

One of the main problems identified soon after the programs creation was program distribution via satellite. Thus, in January 1987, Canadian aboriginal and Northern broadcasters met in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories to form a non-profit consortium with the goal of establishing a Pan-Northern television distribution service. In 1988, the Canadian government gave the organizers $10 million to establish Television Northern Canada (TVNC).

In 1991, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) approved TVNC's application for a native television service for the purpose of broadcasting cultural, social, political and educational programming in Northern Canada.

On-air

TVNC began broadcasting on January 21 1992 over-the-air in northern communities in the Canadian territories.

After several years broadcasting in the territories, TVNC began lobbying the CRTC for a licence to distribute and broadcast TVNC nationally, showcasing the "uniqueness" and "significance" of a national Aboriginal service. On February 22 1999, the CRTC granted TVNC a licence for a national broadcast network.

On September 1 1999, TVNC was renamed "APTN" and became available nationwide as a cable network.

Distribution

APTN's service consists of three different feeds: a terrestrial feed, an Eastern Canada national cable feed and a Western Canada national cable feed.

The terrestrial feed is available over-the-air in Canada's far northern areas. It consists of flagship station CHTY-TV [RecnetCanada|CHTY-TV] in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, semi-satellite CHWT-TV [RecnetCanada|CHWT-TV] in Whitehorse, Yukon and numerous rebroadcasters across the Northwest Territories, Yukon, Nunavut, Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Eastern Canada cable feed operated as the national feed until the Western Canada feed began service on October 2 2006. Unlike most other time shifted feeds in Canada that delineate at the Manitoba/Ontario border, APTN's feeds are delineated at the Saskatchewan/Manitoba border.

APTN is one of four officially licensed television networks in Canada, thus placing it on par with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Radio-Canada and TVA. Since 1999, the CRTC has required all Canadian cable television operators to carry APTN. Many cable companies outside the Arctic place it above channel 60 on their systems, rendering it inaccessible to older television sets that don't go above channel 60. The CRTC has considered requiring cable companies to move APTN to a lower dial position.

Programming

APTN offers a variety of programming related to Aboriginal peoples, including documentaries, news magazines, dramas, entertainment specials, children's series, cooking shows, educational programs and more. APTN's network programming is approximately 56% English, 16% French, and 28% Aboriginal languages.

Programs which have aired on the network include:

* "Anash"
* "APTN National News"
* "Bro'Town"
* "Cooking With the Wolfman"
* "Guides and Gurus"
* "La piqure"
* "Mixed Blessings"
* "Moccasin Flats"
* "My TV"
* "Rabbit Fall"
* "renegadepress.com"
* "Rez Blues"
* "The Sharing Circle"
* "Storytellers in Motion"
* "Wumpa's World"

APTN HD

In March 2008, APTN launched an high definition simulcast of APTN's cable feed called "APTN HD". Unlike the standard definition feed that has both an East and West coast feed, APTN HD has only one national feed operating from the Eastern Time Zone.

References

External links

* [http://www.aptn.ca/ APTN]
* [http://www.aptn.ca/HD APTN HD]
* [http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/T/htmlT/televisionno/televisionno.htm Museum of Broadcast Communications -- TVNC History]