Owned by Media Prima Berhad Audience share 6% (Sept 2013, ) Founded 2004 | Picture format 576i (4:3/16:9) Country Malaysia Owner Media Prima | |
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Launched 1 July 1995 (1995-07-01)Relaunch: 8 January 2004; 13 years ago (2004-01-08) Slogan We're differentChinese: 我们是不同的(2004-2010)None (2010-present) Motto We're different; Chinese: 我们是不同的; (2004-2010); None (2010-present) TV shows The 8TV Quickie, I Wanna Be A Model, M Countdown, Gol & Gincu The Series, The Heart of Woman Profiles | ||
8TV (Chinese: 八度空间; pinyin: Bādù Kōngjiān; literal: 8th dimension) is a free-to-air private television station in Malaysia. The television channel targets the urban youth and Chinese audience demographics. 8TV's line up consists of dramas, sitcoms, and reality shows either produced in Malaysia or imported from other countries, mainly in the English and Chinese languages. 8TV broadcasts with the concept of "one station, two channels" in two languages shifts: 8TV in English and 八度空间 (pinyin: Bādù Kōngjiān) in Chinese.
Contents
8TV is also available on Astro channel 708, and through channel 108 on ABNXcess and HyppTV.
History
8TV was launched on 1 July 1995 as MetroVision Channel 8. It was managed by City Television Sdn Bhd, part of the Melewar Group (controlled by the Negeri Sembilan royal family) and broadcasts from Shah Alam. It was first available only in Klang Valley, Seremban, parts of Pahang and Malacca, but later expanded to Kedah and Johor, thus allowing Singaporean viewers to access it. Viewers were required to install fish-bone antennas to receive this channel.
MetroVision's logo resembled the infinity sign - which is the number 8 rotated 90 degrees. Nevertheless Malaysian viewers name it as TV4 as it was the fourth free-to-air television channel. It was first broadcast in Malay language with original transmission hours from 9am to midnight.
Resulting from the Asian financial crisis and intense competition from other channels (especially ntv7 which launched in 1998), MetroVision quietly closed on 1 November 1999. The operator promised to re-open the channel in March 2000 after a supposed "signal upgrade" but it failed to materialise.
Programmes broadcast
The following are programmes currently or previously broadcast on 8TV. Although English, Malay, and Chinese languages are spoken in the channel, only Mandarin Chinese is used in all of its news broadcasts. There was also a short-lived Malay news broadcast that was available in the channel's early years. TV series that had been broadcast may be repeated on the channel a year or two later, with the exception of those produced by TVB. According to an announcement by Tonton - Media Prima's online portal service - a programme reschedule was implemented on 1 April 2016, with almost all programmes shown were Chinese on Saturdays to Tuesdays, while English programmes retain their time slots as usual on Wednesdays to Fridays, after 8TV Express.
The rescheduling also includes a 3-hour morning home shopping block brought in part by Korean conglomerate CJ Group titled CJ Wow Shop which had also been introduced across other Media Prima channels, some more affected by the changes (especially NTV7 and TV9). However, this block has attract huge criticism on social media as a large part of daytime schedule has been replaced by CJ Wow Shop, which these slots had been previously running mostly reruns, religious programming and kids programming. The programme was initially broadcast in Malay on the channel like its sister channel before being broadcast in Mandarin beginning 8 January 2017 onwards.
Chinese New Year campaigns
As a Chinese-oriented TV channel, 8TV broadcasts more Chinese programmes and movies in conjunction with the Chinese New Year celebrations every year. For the same purpose, the channel also distributes its Chinese New Year singles discography alongside its sister channel NTV7 and sister radio channel OneFM in competition with rival TV company, Astro since 2011. It had previously release and distributed its Chinese New Year singles on its own from 2009 to 2010.
Beginning from 2015 onwards, 8TV, OneFM and NTV7 release and distribute their Chinese New Year singles yearly together with their own themes, theme songs and mascots based on the 12 animal zodiac as well as its' related merchandise (e.g. soft toys). In addition, the discography team responsible also tour across the nation to promote their discography and its' merchandise. The CDs are also sold on shelves of all Popular Bookstore CD Rama kiosks nationwide during the festive season.
Furthermore, 14-second fortune predictions for each of all 12 Chinese Zodiacs are also screened occasionally as bumpers before and after commercials during the Chinese programming slots a few days before Chinese New Year and the first ten days of the celebrations which are then replaced by Chinese New Year greetings during the last five days of the celebrations leading up to the Lantern Festival. But in 2017, the zodiac fortune predictions bumper screening period was shortened to only ten days of which eight of those are during Chinese New Year Celebrations and was replaced by normal ones afterwards.