Launched September 5, 2006 Picture format 1080i (HDTV) Country Canada | Owned by Blue Ant Media Slogan Be Here Broadcast area National | |
 | ||
BBC Earth (formerly named Rush HD and radX) is a Canadian English language high definition Category B television channel owned by Blue Ant Media. The brand and much of its programming is licensed from BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC in the United Kingdom, who owns the originating BBC Earth channel. The channel broadcasts factual programming related to natural history and wildlife.
History
In April 2006, John S. Panikkar (co-founder of the channel's original owner, High Fidelity HDTV), was granted a licence by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to launch AHD, described as "a national, English-language Category 2 high definition (HD) specialty programming undertaking... that would focus on the impact of high definition imagery on high-octane, limit-defying human activity and adventure that tests individual personal limits, both physical and mental."
The channel launched on September 5, 2006 as Rush HD, with its name, and much of its programming, licensed from Rainbow Media, the owners of the Voom HD Networks, owners of the original Rush HD-branded channel in the United States.
Like its American counterpart, Rush HD originally broadcast programming largely focused on high adventure and extreme sports such as snowboarding, windsurfing, bungee jumping, and cliff-diving. Over a year after the American version shut down, Rush rebranded as radX on August 23, 2010. With the rebrand, programming was expanded to include a broader range of action-related programming such as feature films, outdoor lifestyle, travel, reality television, and other programming aimed primarily at men.
On December 21, 2011, radX's parent company, High Fidelity HDTV, announced that it had entered into an agreement to be purchased outright by Blue Ant Media, majority owners of Glassbox Television and minority owners of Quarto Communications. While initially purchasing 29.9% of the company, the remaining 70.1% was purchased after it was approved by the CRTC.
In December 2016, Blue Ant Media announced that it had reached an agreement with BBC Worldwide to rebrand radX as BBC Earth in January 2017, later confirmed officially as January 24, 2017; however, unofficially the channel launched on January 23, 2017 as radX broadcast its last program under the radX brand at 5:00am on January 23, 2017 and transitioned to a BBC Earth Countdown clock at 6:00am that same day. The clock continued until 5:59am January 24 when the channel began broadcasting regularly scheduled programming at 6:00am, starting with the sister station Love Nature original program, Hope for Wildlife. Blue Ant Media has had a history of partnerships with the BBC, while its CEO Michael MacMillan assisted in launching the BBC Canada channel (now owned by Corus Entertainment) whilst working for Alliance Atlantis. BBC Worldwide North America president Ann Sarnoff remarked that Blue Ant Media had a strong interest in factual programming, and that the timing of BBC Earth's launch was "perfect" due to the then-upcoming North American premiere of Planet Earth II, which would air in Canada on the newly rebranded channel.