Fox Movies (TV channel)

Fox Movies
CountryUnited States
Programming
Picture format1080i (HDTV)
Ownership
OwnerThe Walt Disney Company
ParentFox Networks Group
Sister channelsFox
Fox Life
Fox Crime
Fox Comedy
FX
National Geographic
Nat Geo Wild
BabyTV
History
LaunchedFebruary 8, 2007; 17 years ago (2007-02-08)
ReplacedFox Movie Channel (USA, namesake)
Fox Next (Portugal)
Closed1 March 2024; 9 months ago (2024-03-01)
Replaced byFX Movie Channel (USA)
Star Movies (Balkans and Portugal)
Star Films (Middle East and North Africa)

Fox Movies was an international brand of movie channels owned by Fox Networks Group, a part of Walt Disney Direct-to-Consumer & International. The channel was launched on February 8, 2007.

History

FXM: Movies from Fox channel in the US was renamed to Fox Movie Channel on March 1, 2000[1] until September 2013 when the channel changed its name back to FXM.[2]

In 2008, Fox Movies was launched by Fox International Channels and Rotana Media Services along with Fox Series channels in the Middle East market.[3] Fox then purchased a stake in Rotana, while the joint venture agreed with Disney to carry Disney and American Broadcasting Company content on the two channels for four years.[4] In early March 2010, Fox International Channels agreed to move its Middle East and North Africa market channels' operations from Hong Kong and other locations to an Abu Dhabi facility.[3] On 1 July 2011, Fox Movies was made available in Portugal on pay services and Angola and Mozambique on free-to-air.[5]

On July 1, 2011, Fox Movies was launched by Fox International Channels Portugal with airing many genres including drama, comedy, science fiction, action and horror with programming during the summer slate included hits such as X-Men and The Queen.[6]

On January 1, 2012, Star Movies was rebranded to Fox Movies Premium and FOX Movies Premium HD, available in Hong Kong and selected Southeast Asian countries. In India, China, Middle East and North Africa, Taiwan and the Philippines (SD only), the Star Movies brand remained until July 2017 when was rebranded to Fox Movies.[7]

On October 2, 2012, Fox International Channels would launch another Fox Movies with being available to Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia and Kosovo regions.[8]

On June 7, 2023, Disney announced that it would launch Star Movies in the Balkans as a replacement for Fox Movies in the region on 1 October 2023.[9] Disney would later announce that it would also replace Fox Movies in Portugal (including Angola and Mozambique) on February 7, 2024, due to the acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney in 2019.[10]

On March 1, 2024, Fox Movies was rebranded as Star Films in the Middle East and North Africa.[11]

Market channels

Market Type Formerly Launch date Replacement Replaced date Other
United States channel, basic cable FXM: Movies from Fox March 1, 2000 FXM September 2013 —
Middle East channel, subscription via beIN Channels Network — May 1, 2008[12] Star Films March 1, 2024[13] Fox Action Movies
Fox Family Movies
Southeast Asia channel, pay Star Movies (Vietnam), Fox Movies Premium (the rest of Southeast Asia countries) June 10, 2017 Star Movies Gold (Taiwan), Discontinued (HK and Southeast Asia) October 1, 2021 (Hong Kong and the rest of Southeast Asia countries), January 1, 2022 (Taiwan)
Japan [ja] channel, pay Fox Movies November 1, 2005 discontinued January 31, 2021[14] —
Portugal
  • Angola
  • Mozambique
 channel, pay — July 1, 2011[5] Star Movies February 7, 2024
Balkans
  • Albania
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Croatia
  • Macedonia
  • Montenegro
  • Serbia
  • Slovenia
 channel, pay October 15, 2012 October 1, 2023[15]

References

  1. ^ Dempsey, John (February 18, 2000). "Fixes for Fox web". Variety. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
  2. ^ Weisman, Jon (June 4, 2013). "FX Promotes John Landgraf to CEO". Variety. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Fox moves MENA channels to Abu Dhabi". C21media. 8 March 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  4. ^ "How has American entertainment become omnipresent in the Arab world?". Morocco World News. 6 June 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  5. ^ a b Briel, Robert (22 June 2011). "Fox Movies to launch in Portugal". Broadband TV News. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
  6. ^ "Fox Movies adds Portuguese flavour | News". Rapid TV News. 2011-06-23. Retrieved 2012-02-07.
  7. ^ Chu, Karen (October 31, 2011). "Fox to Replace Star Movies in Asia with Fox Movies Premium". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 31, 2011.
  8. ^ "Fox TV to launch in Balkans". Boardband News. 2012-10-02. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  9. ^ "Fox postaje STAR Channel" [Fox becomes Star Channel]. FoNet portal (in Serbian). 7 June 2023. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  10. ^ "Perguntas Frequentes - A FOX vai ser STAR Channel". foxtv.pt (in Portuguese). 2023-11-28. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  11. ^ "Fox branded channels to undergo rebranding in MENA region". www.broadcastprome.com.
  12. ^ "Middle East Gets New Free Movie Channel". Arab News. 2008-05-02. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
  13. ^ "Fox branded channels to undergo rebranding in MENA region". www.broadcastprome.com.
  14. ^ "「ディズニーＸＤ」「FOXムービー」「ナショジオ ワイルド」が放送終了へ". October 13, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  15. ^ "Fox postaje STAR Channel" [Fox becomes Star Channel]. FoNet portal (in Serbian). 7 June 2023. Retrieved 19 July 2023.