tfo logo launched september 27 1970 as programming block january 1 1987 as separate network owned by groupem dia tfo government of ontario picture format 1080i hdtv 2009 present 480i sdtv 1987 present language french broadcast area national via satellite available on basic cable throughout ontario and parts of new brunswick and quebec formerly called la cha ne fran aise 1970 1999 sister channel s tvontario website tfo.org french availability satellite bell tv channel 137 sd channel 1837 hd shaw direct channel 799 sd channel 40 540 hd iptv bell fibe tv channel 145 sd channel 1145 hd optik tv channel 2025 hd zazeen channel 13 hd t l vision fran aise de l ontario tfo is a canadian publicly funded french language educational television station and media organization serving the province of ontario . it is owned by the ontario french language educational communications authority ot lfo a crown corporation owned by the government of ontario and operating as groupem dia tfo . it is one of the few french language broadcasters in canada that is headquartered outside of quebec . the network airs cultural programming including blocks of french language children s programs along with original series documentaries and films . the network was first established in 1985 as la cha ne fran aise a spin off of the provincial english language public broadcaster tvontario later re branding as tfo in 1995 . the network operated under the auspices of tvo until 2007 when it was spun off into an autonomous agency . 1 tfo is available on cable throughout ontario ; all cable systems in the province are required to carry it on their basic tier . 2 3 tfo is also carried nationally on the bell tv and shaw direct satellite television services . the network previously broadcast over the air in some communities in eastern and northern ontario with significant franco ontarian populations ; these transmitters ceased operations in 2012 . contents 1 history 2 television and web programming 2.1 main shows 2.2 music programming 2.3 mini tfo 2.4 cartoons 2.5 other programming 3 tfo transmitters 4 references 5 external links history edit when tvontario launched in 1970 it aired french language programming on sundays from noon until sign off . 4 by the 1980s the provincial government concluded that a separate francophone educational network was needed to prevent the ghettoization of the franco ontarian community . 5 in 1985 the ontario ministry of municipal and cultural affairs together with communications canada approved the creation of an ontario based french language educational television network . at the time the only portions of ontario with access to a dedicated francophone educational television service were the national capital region and the ottawa valley which were served by radio qu bec outlet civo tv in hull . in 1986 the new network received its broadcast licence from the canadian radio television and telecommunications commission crtc . on january 1 1987 this network was officially launched by the ontario educational communications authority under the name la cha ne fran aise primarily known on air as la cha ne . in 1995 la cha ne was renamed tfo short for t l vision fran aise de l ontario . the company would remain a part of tvo until 2007 when it was transferred to the ontario french language educational communications authority a separate crown corporation . it is the only french language television broadcaster in canada headquartered outside of quebec . 6 7 8 9 for the first decade of la cha ne s operations tvontario s existing practice of broadcasting in french on sundays continued and la cha ne aired english language programming during the same time block . this was because la cha ne was only available on cable at first and the government wanted to ensure that franco ontarian viewers without cable still had access to a block of french language programming while making english tvo programs available on la cha ne for those who wanted them . 5 as transmitters were added in a number of french speaking communities the practice was discontinued in the mid 1990s . former logo of tfo used until 1999 in addition to being carried throughout ontario on cable and via over the air transmitters in some communities in october 1996 tfo began broadcasting in new brunswick via select cable companies in that province . 10 new brunswick was the first jurisdiction other than ontario where tfo was offered . 11 tfo would later be broadcast into parts of quebec as well . 12 in 1998 the station began broadcasting nationally via both national satellite companies bell expressvu and star choice now known as bell tv and shaw direct respectively . in august 2008 star choice removed tfo from its lineup . 13 in 1999 tfo s parent company at the time the ontario educational communications authority applied to the crtc for mandatory carriage of tfo in the province of quebec in addition to a carriage fee which other over the air services do not receive . however the crtc denied its application in march 2000 . 14 that year jacques bensimon co founder of the network and managing director of the network since 1986 before it became its own channel resigned from the position . over his tenure he formed relationships between tfo and french language networks in europe in order to share content . this included co producing content with the bbc france 2 and channel 4 in the uk . 12 tfo logo 1999 2012 as part of a restructuring of tvontario announced by the mcguinty government on june 29 2006 15 tfo was taken over by a new separate provincial crown corporation the ontario french language educational communications authority office des t l communications ducatives de langue fran aise de l ontario or ot lfo 16 in 2007 with separate management and its own budget . 17 although the licence transfer was not officially approved by the crtc until june 28 2007 tfo nonetheless announced its autonomy from tvontario effective april 1 . 18 groupem dia tfo is funded mainly by the government of ontario through the ministry of education with an annual budget of 31 million . 19 additional contributions have been made by the government of manitoba since the channel was added to cable services in that province in 2010 . 20 in 2016 tfo announced a content deal with louisiana public broadcasting which will see 14 hours per week of tfo s children s programming air on the lpb2 channel to serve louisiana s francophone community . 21 television and web programming edit at its launch in 1987 the channel s programming schedule included both original programming produced by the network such as the educational comedy series 17 rue laurier the health series la sant contagieuse and the newsmagazine series m.e.m.o. and acquired programming from both quebec and france such as the children s series passe partout and l le aux enfants and the talk show apostrophes . 22 it also aired a francophone dub of the 1970s english canadian children s series matt and jenny under the title la route de l amiti . 22 main shows edit groupem dia tfo broadcasts educational and cultural content for all of its audiences children youth and adults . programs that tfo produces include mini tfo for pre school children m gall for children ages 9 to 12 relief a political social and cultural program aired live monday through thursday the sitcom m t o and ruby tfo a web tv magazine for women . tfo s prime time programming includes documentaries and dramatic series along with unique french language film programming including feature length art films and films from around the world . 23 24 cin tfo is the network s nightly showing of french language cinema . 25 music programming edit brbr is another music show featuring reviews interviews and performances from french speaking artists . 26 the concerts take place in downtown toronto and montreal in front of live crowds . 27 28 the show has been nominated for several gemini awards . 29 in october 2013 brbr teamed with deezer to launch an online radio station dedicated to the music of francophone canadians . 30 other music programming includes the series behind the scenes which shows the backstage studio and other parts of the music industry generally hidden from the public eye . 31 tfo also broadcasts the singing competition reality show jam . 32 mini tfo edit mini tfo provides youtube channels for young children receiving 25 million views between its launch and october 2014 the second most views of any children s channel in the world . tfo has also focused on mobile broadcasting developing several apps for children s use . other apps are developed to provide parents with a rating and research mechanism when deciding between programming and apps developed for child viewers or educational use such as edululu . 33 34 in 2013 mini tfo also opened the mini tfo centre for early childhood education at coll ge bor al. 35 the channel also sponsors live tours of its affiliated acts specifically in remote areas of ontario . 36 children s programming on tfo is integrated into its web programming which includes mobile applications designed for child development . 37 tfo also produces reality television shows featuring kids including the amazing race style series les jumelles where local kids compete against each other in teams of two . 38 cartoons edit toons broadcast on this channel include bing 39 bookaboo 40 bouba 41 aka jacky and jill caillou 42 charlie and lola 43 christopher josee and lexie 44 dinopaws 45 dipdap 46 doodleboo 47 gribouille guess what 48 joue avec jess kioka 49 la reve de champlain 50 le club des cinq nouvelles enquetes le dino train 51 le ranch 52 le village de dany 53 les aventures d olive l autruche 54 les doozers 55 louie 56 lulu zipadoo 57 maya the bee 58 mouk 59 peg et chat 60 petz club 61 pinky dinky doo 62 poppy cat 63 robin le robot 64 sagwa 65 the mysteries of alfred hedgehog 66 tracteur tom 67 wendy 68 zack & quack 69 zoubi doubi 70 other programming edit staff shuttering tvo tfo tower in sudbury july 12 2012 tfo also broadcasts the news and culture show tfo 360 hosted by linda godin who has also moderated debates between national party leaders in canada . plein les vues serves as tfo s entertainment news show . 71 72 on the web it runs sos devoirs a series of web properties designed to help children with their homework used by 90 000 students each year . the tfo website also provides curriculum support pedagogical guides and 4000 different educational programs 1600 available for free . tfo itself has training programs to teach educators how to use video materials in the classroom attended by 2000 teachers per year . 73 tfo is canada s largest producer and distributor of french language educational products . 74 tfo transmitters edit main article list of historical tfo transmitters from 1989 to 2012 tfo operated several over the air transmitters in predominantly francophone areas of eastern and northern ontario . these transmitters had the callsign chlf tv followed by a number to denote their status as rebroadcasters . besides sudbury hawkesbury temiskaming shores and pembroke tfo otherwise transmitted over the air mainly in isolated portions of northern ontario without access to cable . as part of the transfer of tfo to its own management in 2007 the transmitters in sultan oba and jogues were taken out of service . 75 on july 31 2012 tfo shut down its transmitters in sudbury hawkesbury pembroke and lac sainte th r se as tvontario which owned the towers was shutting down and decommissioning all its analog transmitters on that day . 76 as of december 2012 the