New channel on Sky abruptly replaced just days before five stations shut down forever
A TV channel on Sky that was only launched a few months ago has been mysteriously replaced.
The station was a revival of an old station watched by music lovers in the 90s and 00s.
Chart Show Retro re-emerged on Sky satellite boxes in March, offering tunes from the 1980s onwards.
But little over three months later, the channel’s owners have decided to give it a total rebrand and change of tact.
As of today it’s called That’s Dance with a focus on dance and club music from across the decades.
The channel number on Sky Q remains the same at 360.
And in a positive change, it’ll be on Freeview channel 76 from now on as well on a part time basis.
The sudden rebrand apparently came about because Chart Show Retro was meant as “an initial pilot” according to RXTVInfo.
It all comes at an uncertain time for the humble long-running music channels which will undergo a major shake-up at the end of this week.
Five huge music stations will close forever on Sunday.
The Box music channels, which are owned by Channel 4, are disappearing as the broadcaster aims to become a “digital-first” public streaming service by 2030.
The full list of Box channels includes:
- 4Music
- The Box
- Kiss
- Magic
- Kerrang!
Channel 4 revealed at the start of the year that it plans to make a number of cuts with 200 jobs going and selling its London HQ.
The Box launched in 1992 as a fresh competitor to MTV.
All five channels have had their schedules overhauled in recent weeks to reflect the upcoming closure playing classic tracks and showing their original graphics.
“As we announced earlier this year as part of Channel 4’s digital-first Fast Forward strategy, we will be closing our Box network of channels from 1 July across all platforms – as they are no longer of sufficient scale to deliver meaningful return on investment,” a Channel 4 spokesperson recently told The Sun.
“Our strategy reflects the generational shift in TV viewing and involves reducing costs – particularly in linear activities – to allow us to invest in digital priorities and stay competitive in a world of global entertainment conglomerates and social media giants.”
A brief history: The Box
From video request dial-ins to its acquisition by Channel 4, the Box has brought music to people's screens across the UK and the US for 32 years.
The Box was brought to the UK in 1992, inspired by the original Miami-based channel The Jukebox Network.
It has been rocking on the airwaves ever since.
Channel 4 bought a 50 per cent stake in the channel in 2007 for an undisclosed sum, and eventually assumed full ownership in 2019.
When it first began, fans could phone in to request music videos of their favourite genres or bands, that could be queued automatically.
Video requests cost a couple quid and took around 20 minutes to be broadcast after being ordered.
The Box has roughly 1,800 music videos in its backpocket to air to viewers in its heyday.
Viewers could even request their top music clips over the internet or via set-top box.
Since then, the channel has become well known for its “First Play” feature, where many videos often make their UK or world premiere.