Unis (TV channel)

Unis
Programming

Country	Canada
Broadcast area	National
Headquarters	Montreal, Quebec
Language(s)	French
Picture format	1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
Ownership
Owner	Le Consortium de télévision Québec Canada (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Télé-Québec TFO Association des producteurs de films et de télévision du Québec)
Sister channels	TV5 Québec Canada
History
Launched	September 1, 2014
Links
Website	www.tv5unis.ca (in French)

Unis is a Canadian French language specialty channel. The channel broadcasts general entertainment programming, with a particular focus on highlighting francophone communities outside Quebec.

The channel shares a broadcasting licence with its sister channel, TV5 Québec Canada (TV5), which focuses on international and Quebec francophone programming.

History

After the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission's (CRTC) call for applications regarding services who wish to be regulated to be distributed on the basic package of all television service providers in Canada, TV5's application was made public in January 2013. Within this application, TV5 proposed an additional service, Unis, which would operate under TV5's existing broadcast licence as a secondary feed, and would "offer programming focused primarily on reflecting the diversity of the Canadian Francophonie," while TV5 would continue to focus on offering programming primarily reflecting the international Francophonie.^[1]

The application was approved on August 8, 2013.^[2]

The channel launched on September 1, 2014.^[3]

Programming

Programmes airing on the channel include Couleurs locales, a cultural newsmagazine series; Balade à Toronto, a music series showcasing live performances by francophone artists; Vu de l’intérieur, a documentary series on homes and interior design; J’habite ici, a documentary series showcasing towns and cities through the eyes of local francophone residents; Qu’est-ce qu’on sauve?, a series profiling people committed to protecting animals or safeguarding historical buildings in Ontario; Ma caravane au Canada; Canada plus grand que nature; 5e élément and Pense vite!.^[3]

In 2015, the channel announced that it had commissioned its first original dramatic series, St. Nickel.^[4] The series, filmed in Sudbury, Ontario by Carte Blanche Films, debuted on Unis in 2016.^[4]