Country United States Replaced VH1 Uno Parent organization Viacom Media Networks | Language English Founded February 2002 | |
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Launched January 20, 2004; 13 years ago (2004-01-20) Owned by Viacom Media Networks (Viacom) Picture format 480i (SDTV)
(optimized for 16:9 widescreen televisions in stretch mode) Broadcast area Closed-circuit on U.S. college campuses, digital cable Headquarters New York City, New York, United States Profiles | ||
MTVU (formerly stylized as MtvU and mtvU) is an American digital cable television network owned by the Viacom Global Entertainment Group, a unit of the Viacom Media Networks division of Viacom. In addition to distribution on conventional cable systems, the channel is available to more than 750 college and university campuses across the United States, as part of internally originated cable systems that are a part of on-campus housing or college closed-circuit television systems. Music videos played on the channel primarily consist of indie rock, pop punk and hip-hop along with limited original programming. MTVU also owns RateMyProfessors.com.
Contents
History
MTV Networks' proposal for a channel targeting college students, tentatively called MTV University, became public in February 2002. According to The New York Times, the channel was seeking to compete with Burly Bear Network, which was available to 450 campuses and had been attracting nearly a million viewers a week, along with College Television Network (CTN) and the most recent entrant at the time, Zilo. CTN began as a venture that installed video jukeboxes on campuses.
Seven months later, after CTN wound up in financial trouble and as National Lampoon had just acquired the defunct Burly Bear, MTV Networks acquired CTN for $15 million.
In February 2008, MTV Networks discontinued VH1 Uno, a sparsely viewed Spanish language music video channel, and replaced it with MTVU, to expand the channel into traditional cable distribution.
Programming
According to its promotional materials, MTVU broadcasts exclusive content dedicated to aspects of college life, including music, news, and on-campus events. The channel was the first MTV network to stream all of its content online. On-campus events include the Campus Invasion tour, featuring up-and-coming bands; the GAME0Rz Ball tour, which brings new video games to campus; and Tailgate Tour, which provides MTVU with a presence at campus tailgates. MTVU shows include Dean's List, the MTVU Awards, and MTVU Spring Break.
MTVU plays a mix of music videos with an emphasis on emerging artists. (MTVU VIDEO PREMIERES) Each hour, MTVU broadcasts news updates from ABC News (formerly CBS News, changed in late 2006 in the wake of the Viacom/CBS split), including international news and college-related news. Twice an hour, MTV News airs stories on subjects such as music downloading, and musical artists under promotion by MTVU.
Additionally, MTVU airs several original programs produced by and featuring college students. The Freshmen features three rotating student panelists discussing new music videos and is hosted by Kim Stolz; Stand-In brings celebrities and intellectuals into college classrooms to teach for a day, and has featured people as diverse as Nobel Laureates Elie Wiesel and Shimon Peres; Madonna; John McCain; Marilyn Manson; and Jhumpa Lahiri. It has also started a social networking site "Meet or Delete", along with Hewlett Packard.
Woodie Awards
MTVU broadcasts its own semi-annual awards show, the mtvU Woodie Awards, which it states recognizes "the music voted best by college students." Previous winners have included 2005's Death Cab for Cutie, Motion City Soundtrack, and The Afters; 2006 winners include Thirty Seconds to Mars, Plain White T's, mewithoutYou, The Subways and Gnarls Barkley. The 2006 ceremony was also notable for the altercation of Elijah Wood and Scott from the music blog Stereogum with Jared Leto. The 2008 awards had a huge fan voting for the Best Music On Campus award, where The Bride Wore Black won the award and Chasing Arrows came in right behind. Winners at the 2008 Woodie Awards included Paramore and There for Tomorrow. Winners at the 2009 Woodie Awards included Green Day, Kings of Leon, Matt & Kim, NeverShoutNever, Tech N9ne and Hotel of the Laughing Tree. Winners at the 2014 Woodie Awards include Beyoncé, Drake, Ed Sheeran, and Skrillex. Fall Out Boy will become the first inductees at "Hall of Wood" at the 2015 Woodie Awards. They had won the Streaming Woodie award for "Grand Theft Autumn" at the first ceremony in 2004.
Awards for students
The online game Darfur is Dying was developed as part of an MTVU contest, and other Sudan genocide coverage won MTVU two Emmys, including the 2006 Governors Award. It's Half of Us initiative won a Peabody Award in 2007 "for its extensive research and dedication to fighting depression and creating quick routes to convenient solutions." MTVU also provides grants for student activists, giving away $1,000 a week to various student groups. MTVU currently co-sponsors the ecomagination Challenge with GE, which aims to empower college students to solve environmental problems on campuses. MTVU also sponsored the Film Your Issue competition, a competition designed to encourage college-age filmmakers to make short political pieces, and aired the winners.
Other opportunities that MTVU provides for college students include Digital Incubator grants, which award students who are pioneering the future of broadband content, and the Student Filmmaker Award, which provides the winner with the chance to receive a development deal with MTVU and collect the award at the MTV Movie Awards. Besides these competitions, MTVU makes efforts to use student work through its programming.
Winners
Woodie of the Year
Breaking Woodie
Left Field Woodie
Good Woodie
Road Woodie
Streaming Woodie
Best Video Woodie
Best Video Woodie - Animation
International Woodie
Alumni Woodie
Performing Woodie
Welcome Back Woodie
Soundtrack of My Life Woodie
The Sophmore [sic] Jump Woodie
The Silent But Deadly Woodie