Launched September 7, 2001 Country Canada | Closed September 30, 2003 Broadcast area National | |
Owned by CTV Speciality Television Inc. (Bell Globemedia 80%
ESPN Inc. 20%) Slogan Women's Sports Television | ||
WTSN was a Canadian English language category 1 digital cable specialty channel dedicated to women's sports. WTSN was owned by CTV Specialty Television Inc. (CTV Specialty), a joint venture between Bell Globemedia (80%) and ESPN (20%).
Contents
WTSN was a spin-off of TSN, Canada's largest national sports channel, and was headed by pioneering Canadian sports broadcaster Sue Prestedge.
Programming
Programming on the network included a variety of programs ranging from live and tape-delayed sports events, documentaries, talk shows, and more.
Sports events coverage on the network included LPGA golf, WNBA basketball, women's tennis, WUSA soccer, women's curling, CWHL and WWHL ice hockey and coverage of various women's teams in Canadian Interuniversity Sport, among others.
The network also aired special coverage of Hayley Wickenheiser's debut in the Finnish men's hockey league.
History
In November 2000, NetStar Communications Inc. (later renamed CTV Specialty Television Inc.) was granted approval for a television broadcasting licence by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) for a national English-language Category 1 specialty television service called Women’s Sports Network, described as a service to be "consisting exclusively of sports programming featuring female athletes and participants."
The channel launched on September 7, 2001 as WTSN.
On August 29, 2003, CTV Specialty announced that they would be ceasing the network's operations on September 30, 2003 due to lack of expected growth, limited ad revenue, and the high cost of running a sports service.
TSN did not immediately surrender the channel's licence, and filed an intervention in January 2005 with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) against a proposed licence amendment for Fox Sports World Canada that may have impacted on WTSN's mandate. Media analysts therefore considered it possible that the channel might have relaunched at a later date if economic conditions were found to be more favourable. The licence was eventually revoked at the company's request on December 19, 2006.