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The Music Factory (TMF) was originally a Dutch brand of television and radio channels, which focused onpop music. It was similar to the AmericanMTV which took over TMF in 2002.
TMF operated channels in theNetherlands (TMF Nederland) as well as in theUK withTMF UK andAustralia with (TMF Australia). The brand is owned by MTV Networks International (part of theViacom conglomerate). It shows onlypop videos and locally produced live programming in Belgium. Likewise, with TMF Netherlands before its closure, the British TMF aired some of MTV's and VH1's programmes likeCribs,Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica,Hogan Knows Best andRun's House.
The channel operated until 26 October 2009 in the UK and Ireland, 1 September 2011 in the Netherlands and 1 November 2015 inBelgium.Viacom International Media Networks, the international arm ofViacom, owns the brand.
TMF Nederland was launched on 1 May 1995 as the only local pop station in the Netherlands. It was founded by Lex Harding and theArcade company. The station gradually began to get better viewer figures than MTV,[citation needed] so in 2002, MTV bought shares in TMF. Since 1996 headquartered inBussum, the channel was notable for its dance music mixes. In 2005, three new channels, plus a radio station began broadcasting in the Netherlands under the TMF brand:
On 1 September 2011, TMF Nederland ceased broadcasting in the Netherlands entirely, and on 31 December 2011 all digital channels ceased operations.
TMF Flanders (TMF Vlaanderen) was the first international extension of the TMF brand, broadcast to viewers in theBelgian region ofFlanders. TMF Flanders first day on air was October 3, 1998. TMF Flanders was the first Flemish-specific channel that was dedicated to video clip broadcast. VJs at the beginning included Stijn Smets, Yasmine, Inge Moerenhout and Katja Retsin. In the early few years, the broadcasts of TMF Flanders were conducted from the same Dutch studio facility that operated TMF Netherlands.
Until 2010 its broadcast were entirely inDutch with localFlemish presenters. From the start, TMF Flanders is being distributed viacable-TV (analog and/ordigital) andIPTV. Founded in 1998, its headquarters were inMechelen but moved toLint and later (after the re-alignment of VIMN Northern Europe) toAntwerp (local office) andStockholm (channel operations). It is the sole TMF channel that is currently still in operation, but it has dropped all its presented programs in 2012. Since 2014Comedy Central airs on its channel after 10pm. On November 1, 2015 TMF Vlaanderen ceased broadcasting. The channel was replaced by Comedy Central Vlaanderen, ending the TMF-era. In 2007, a second channel was launched and began broadcasting under the TMF brand:
On 31 July 2010, TMF Live HD ceased operations.
On 1 November 2015, TMF Flanders ceased broadcasting in Belgium entirely, makingComedy Central a 24 hours channel.
TMF launched on 30 October 2002 as a counter againstEMAP'sThe Hits request music channel onFreeview. The channel was also available onSky Digital andVirgin Media. The channel, alongside its music output, showed reruns of successfulMTV andVH1 shows such asPimp My Ride,Jackass andCribs. There was also aNoggin strand in the morning for pre-school children.
On Mondays, TMF used to broadcast The OfficialUK Top 40 narrated byPhil Clifton, a day after it was broadcast onBBC Radio 1. The show featured videos of the singles of the previous week and charts their position in terms of record sales. On 26 October 2009, TMF UK & Ireland was replaced with the UK version ofVIVA.[1]
MTV Networks Australia launched a local version of TMF as a fully integrated, multi-platform 24-hour music channel in May 2007. TMF focused on the interactive playground and along with a selection of music video clips including programming and viewer-generated content including images, videos, text-based applications and graphics. Furthering the connectivity between the platforms, TMF was the first music channel in Australia to seamlessly connect all platforms as well as simulcast to mobile 24 a day via theOptus Zoo mobile portal launched in September 2007.
However, in November 2010, TMF Australia was replaced with an Australian version ofMTV Hits.
The channel organized an annual music award show, the TMF Awards, in the Netherlands and Belgium.In addition, there were theTMF Game Awards, an annual awards show forgames.