RTVi is a general entertainment channel that caters to the Russian diaspora in North America & Israel. It features a programming lineup created specifically for Russian speaking audiences outside of Russia and includes movies, news, and sports, as well as coverage of local and international community events.
Logos
2004-2017
2017–present
History
In September 2003, ECG was granted approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to launch a specialty channel called Russian TV One, described as "an ethnic Category 21 specialty television service... targeting the Russian-speaking community."[1]
The channel launched on June 23, 2004,[2][3] along with 3 other channels from ECG, as RTVi, through a licensing agreement with the Russian broadcaster.
A sister-channel, branded RTVi+ was launched in the Fall of 2005, however, it was discontinued in 2009.
On November 4, 2014, the CRTC approved EGC's request to convert RTVi from a licensed Category B (formerly category 2) specialty service to an exempted category B third language service.[4]