LONDON. MTV Networks UK and Ireland will launch a ninth music channel next month.
VH2 will launch on the Sky Digital platform on 16 December. Its content will consist of the best that rock and guitar-based music has to offer from the 1990's till today. The target audience is the 25-34 year old album enthusiast. The channel has aimed at positioning itself as the home of credible artists and real music.
The new channel launch follows extensive research commissioned by MTV Networks UK and Ireland, which reveals a gap in the market for this type of channel proposition. According to the research, over half of all viewers of music television are fans of this genre, and both consumer and industry appetite for guitar-based tracks and rock bands is on the increase.
By concentrating this type of music content in one new channel, both VH1 and VH1 Classic can become even more focused on their own clearly defined playlists - accessible, upbeat popular tracks mixed in with your favourite songs from the last 20 years and the very best in nostalgia respectively.
VH2's tracklist will feature artists such as Coldpay, The White Stripes, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, REM. VH2 will also produce a musical strand Inside Track.. This will keep viewers informed of important artists' release dates and forthcoming tours. The channel also plans to have themed weekends, live performances and coverage of festivals as well as artists interviews and hour-long specials.
The new channel launch is just the latest element of the VH1 family's long-term strategy. Since February VH1 has undergone a transformation to inject more glamour and music-based entertainment programming into its schedule. It will continue to evolve and offer even more music based programming and celebrity content than ever before.
Since the initial changes were made, the channel claims to have increased its women's 25 - 44 profile by around 10 per cent. The channel has also recently introduced a fresh vibrant new logo and has adapted its playlist to include more feel good modern music mixed in with favourite tracks from the last past two decades.
MTV Networks UK and Ireland MD Michael Bakker added, "We are constantly in touch with our audiences to find out what they want. Research is telling us that there is an appetite out there for a very focused, guitar-music based channel that is not currently being met. We are delighted to be launching VH2 to fill that gap, complement our existing VH1 brands and to further extend the appeal and variety of our market-leading portfolio. This year, MTV Networks has taken almost 60 per cent of music viewing and the new launch will help to extend that lead further still."
