Country Canada Launch date 30 September 1998 Founded 1998 | Official website Yes TV Founder David Mainse Availability Québec, Alberta, Ontario | |
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Key people Lorna Dueck (CEO)
Rob Sheppard (General Manager) Owner Crossroads Christian Communications Type of business Broadcast television system Former names Crossroads Television System (1998-2014) Profiles | ||
Yes TV (stylized as yes TV) is a television system in Canada. It is owned by Crossroads Christian Communications and consists of three stations located in the Greater Toronto Area, Calgary, and Edmonton, and two partial affiliates in Newfoundland and Victoria, British Columbia. Formerly known as the Crossroads Television System (CTS), the three stations air a lineup consisting predominantly of Christian faith-based programming, such as televangelists and Crossroads' flagship program 100 Huntley Street. During the late-afternoon and evening hours, Yes TV broadcasts secular, family-oriented sitcoms, game shows, and reality series; the system's September 2014 re-launch as Yes TV emphasized its newly acquired Canadian rights to a number of major U.S. reality series, such as American Idol and The Biggest Loser.
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Outside of the three owned and operated Yes TV stations, the system has also syndicated its acquired programming to other Canadian independent stations through secondary affiliations. It is operated out of Crossroads' headquarters in Burlington, Ontario. The channel can be streamed free of charge in Canada via the Yes TV tvOS app on the Apple TV.
History
The Crossroads Television System originally consisted of a single television station, CITS-TV in Hamilton, Ontario (also serving Toronto), with rebroadcast transmitters in London and Ottawa. CITS, launched in 1998, was the second religious terrestrial television station launched in Canada, after CJIL-TV in Lethbridge, Alberta.
On June 8, 2007, the CRTC approved Crossroads' application for new television stations to serve the Calgary and Edmonton markets. Respectively, these are CKCS-TV, which broadcasts on channel 32, and CKES-TV, which broadcasts on channel 45; both stations launched on October 8, 2007.
On August 12, 2014, Crossroads announced that it would relaunch CTS as Yes TV on September 1, 2014. Describing the new brand as "embracing positivity and approaching the world with an affirmative position", the re-launch coincided with the announcement that it had picked up several new secular reality and game shows for the 2014-15 season, including America's Funniest Home Videos (formerly aired by City), American Idol (formerly aired by CTV and CTV Two), Judge Judy, Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune (both formerly aired most-recently by CHCH-DT), The Biggest Loser (formerly aired by City), and The X Factor UK. Alongside the Crossroads-owned, Yes TV-branded stations, the system has also syndicated some of its secular programs to other independent stations, an arrangement referred to in advertising sales information as the "NET5" alliance (referring to the three O&Os and two affiliates). For the 2016-2017 broadcast season, NET5 was expanded to become "indieNET" with the addition of fellow independent stations CHEK-DT and CHNU-DT, expanding the group to seven members. This group appears to help with purchasing national advertising, ad sales for local entities and program acquisition for the stations.
On September 13, 2016, Yes TV began airing a 3-hour block of BUZZR programs from 1-4 am. A night will include the original Black-and-white To Tell The Truth, What's My Line? and I've Got A Secret followed by two later 1970's (or 1980's) game shows such as Card Sharks on Mondays and Fridays, Double Dare on Tuesdays, Beat The Clock on Wednesdays and Sale of the Century on Thursdays.
Removal of Word TV
In December 2010, CTS removed Word TV, a program hosted by televangelist Charles McVety, from their schedule, following a decision by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council over statements that he disparaged gay people while commenting on Toronto's Gay Pride parade (which he called a "sex parade") and Ontario's sex education curriculum for public schools (which he charged that children would go to school not to learn, but to become gay). The CBSC has ordered CTS to announce the ruling at least twice on the air, and to take steps that incidents like this do not happen again. In January 2011, CTS cancelled Word TV, leading McVety to sue CTS, claiming political persecution. However, CTS has said in a press release that McVety was asked many times to cease his distorting and polarizing behaviour, and comply with broadcasting guidelines, yet he refused to do so.