this article may contain improper references to self published sources . please help improve it by removing references to unreliable sources where they are used inappropriately . april 2014 learn how and when to remove this template message viacom international media networks europe type cable television industry television founded 1987 headquarters london united kingdom area served europe middle east and africa products television channels parent viacom website www.mtvne.com viacom international media networks europe previously mtv networks europe is a subsidiary of viacom . the unit is no longer used viacom international media networks is now working in five operating units . viacom international media networks europe includes the multimedia entertainment brands mtv vh1 viva nickelodeon comedy central nick jr. and channel 5 . mtv networks europe is primarily based in london while also hosting a number of local offices throughout europe including paris and stockholm . viacom international media networks europe launched its first channel mtv europe on 1 august 1987 from amsterdam with its main headquarters based in london . regionalisation of mtv networks europe s channels began in march 1997 with the launch of mtv germany . today mtv remains viacom international media networks europe s most widely distributed brand as of october 2008 reaching more than 218 186 000 million homes across europe . 1 contents 1 viacom international media networks europe divisions 2 brands of viacom international media networks europe 3 timeline mtv in europe 4 mtv branding 5 websites 6 mtv licensing 7 mtv s local offices 7.1 mtv structural changes 2009 present 8 localised brands 8.1 mtv 8.2 vh1 8.3 vh1 classic 8.4 nickelodeon 8.5 comedy central 8.6 paramount channel 8.7 paramount comedy 8.8 viva 8.9 spike 8.10 additional channels 8.11 high definition channels 8.12 defunct 9 see also 10 references 11 external links viacom international media networks europe divisions edit viacom international media networks uk ireland australia new zealand russia central eastern europe and international content distribution 2 this division serves the uk ireland australia new zealand russia israel hungary and central & eastern europe viacom international media networks northern europe 3 serving germany austria & switzerland sweden norway finland & denmark the netherlands & flanders poland ukraine estonia latvia & lithuania 4 viacom international media networks southern europe middle east and africa 5 serving france italy spain portugal greece turkey middle east and africa brands of viacom international media networks europe edit mtv vh1 comedy central nickelodeon tmf viva europe only channel 5 5 5usa spike timeline mtv in europe edit this is a list of regional channels of mtv in europe in order of launch mtv germany march 1997 mtv uk and ireland july 1997 mtv italy september 1997 mtv russia september 1998 mtv france june 2000 mtv poland july 2000 mtv netherlands september 2000 mtv spain september 2000 mtv romania june 2002 mtv portugal july 2003 mtv flanders february 2004 mtv ireland february 2004 mtv denmark may 2005 mtv adria september 2005 mtv finland mtv sweden mtv norway september 2005 mtv hungary october 2007 mtv israel october 2007 mtv live hd september 2008 mtv switzerland april 2009 mtv south africa 2015 mtv branding edit upon its launch in europe in the late 1980s mtv europe made use of mtv us s on air identity . overtime mtv europe gradually produced its own on air identity throughout the 1990s . from 1997 mtv s regionalization throughout europe brought about specialized on air identity which reflected the tastes and influences from each region . as part of a global rebranding strategy mtv networks international decided to produce a new on air identity that would air on all mtv channels around the world except mtv us mtv canada and mtv brazil . on 1 july 2009 all 64 mtv channels globally began to share the same on air branding . this branding made use of a standardized logo idents and promos 6 except mtv us mtv canada and mtv brazil . the on air branding initiative was called pop x1000 reflecting the changing nature of popular culture with mtv at the heart of these rapid changes . the branding was designed by mtv s design department world design studio in milan with additional designs added by other global departments throughout the year . the branding was overseen by universal everything . this branding was adopted by mtv networks europe mtv networks asia mtv networks africa and mtv networks latin america . as part of mtv s rebrand awareness campaign mtv teamed up with spanish retailer zara in december 2009 to provide branded themed t shirts and hoodies representing the pop x 1000 % campaign . 7 8 as of 8 november 2010 mtv launched is third phase of idents . 9 in 2010 mtv us rebranded its entire network of channels producing a revised version of the traditional mtv logo . it was decided that mtv networks international channels would adopt this logo at a later date . on 1 july 2011 mtv networks europe will rebrand its network across europe and globally . mtv s will replace its traditional logo the mtv music television logo to be replaced by the current mtv us logo . 10 on 30 june 2011 mtv s localized websites throughout europe began to use the new branding . as part of a new strategy mtv networks europe will be part of viacom media international networks . it is expected that mtv networks europe will be rebranded in winter 2011 . in fall 2013 viacom international media networks announced it would relaunch its mtv channels globally with a new on air identity . this came into effect on 1 october 2013 . on june 25 2015 mtv international channels were rebranded with a new initiative to get more viewers involved with the channel . mtv launched mtvbump.com where viewers could upload short video clips which will air on mtv channels worldwide excluding mtv us & mtv canada . mtv also launched mtv art breaks where creative viewers can create special mtv idents . mtv will also launch mtv creative another initiative to coincide with mtv bump . however mtv s rebrand still sees falling ratings . 11 websites edit since january 2010 mtv networks europe has started to rebrand its localized websites featuring a standard website for each region . the website design is similar for each region but has information news and entertainment specific to each region . mtv belgium mtv netherlands mtv switzerland mtv portugal mtv sweden and mtv denmark were the first to receive the new look website layout and design . mtv licensing edit viacom international media networks europe main headquarters are located in new york united states london united kingdom and warsaw poland . in the past most of the mtv channels throughout europe are licensed through the uk broadcasting regulator ofcom . this is not unusual within europe many broadcasters may locate their productions and output departments in one country but receive their broadcasting license from another european country . for example mtv networks europe in warsaw often produces programming for much of europe while mtv networks europe in london operates the broadcasting and licensing issues for this programming . as of 2010 mtv networks europe now receive their broadcasting licenses from broadcasting authorities in the czech republic rrtv . all pan european channels and channels broadcasting in the czech republic and poland are licensed by rrtv . 12 viacom international media networks s main brands include mtv vh1 nickelodeon comedy central viva bet mtv s local offices edit mtv networks europe s main headquarters are based in london and warsaw . mtv networks international europe hosts local offices in the following cities athens 13 amsterdam 14 antwerp 15 berlin 16 budapest 17 bucharest 18 copenhagen 19 dublin 20 milan 21 stockholm 22 oslo 23 helsinki 24 lisbon 25 paris 26 madrid 27 prague 28 zurich 29 kiev 30 moscow 31 tel aviv 32 zagreb 33 ljubljana 34 belgrade 35 istanbul 36 abu dhabi mtv structural changes 2009 present edit baltic s ceases operations mtv networks baltic a division of mtv networks europe has ceased the broadcasting of its local language feeds within the region with immediate effect . 37 mtv latvia and mtv lithuania ceased operating as individual channels in january 2009 and replaced with mtv lithuania and latvia . 38 as of 18 november 2009 both mtv estonia and mtv lithuania and latvia have ceased operating . both channels have been replaced by mtv europe for the time being . mtv networks international are to announce the future of mtv estonia as a brand while mtv lithuania and latvia will no longer exist as a brand . mtv in the baltic region has been somewhat problematic after a number of years under mtv networks international europe mtvni established a licensing agreement with ananey communications in 2008 to continue to broadcast mtv baltic s channels . 39 with the global recession advertising and sponsorship within the region became limited . resulting in the closure of mtv lithuania and replaced with mtv latvia and lithuania . 38 further financial difficulties resulted in the temporary closure of mtv estonia and mtv latvia and lithuania . citation needed mtv networks closes tmf in the netherlands on 4 november 2010 mtv networks international offices in amsterdam confirmed that from 1 january 2011 that tmf in the netherlands broadcasting hours would be reduced until 15 00 each day . 40 from 4 april 2011 tmf was gradually replaced by kindernet and where the channel was only available online from the former tmf.nl website . on 1 september 2011 tmf in the netherlands ceased broadcasting . tmf nederland was the original channel before launching local channels in belgium uk and australia . these local channels have been replaced with different channels . 41 tmf s digital channels in the netherlands tmf live and tmf nl also ceased broadcasting . tmf flanders in belgium currently broadcasts as the only tmf channel . mtv restructures broadcasting in northern europe on 16 september 2011 42 it was confirmed by viacom international media networks its operations in the nordic countries benelux region and germany would operate under viacom international media networks northern europe . vimn northern europe operates from its central offices in amsterdam stockholm and berlin . resulting in job losses at its offices from mtv networks benelux in belgium and the netherlands . the re alignment will see all music programming come from its operations in stockholm . its swedish offices operate local channels such as mtv and vh1 within vimn northern european s portfolio of music channels . all kids and family programming operates from berlin these include localized versions of nickelodeon nick jr. and kindernet . whilst all the localized comedy central channels will be operated from amsterdam . vimn north european s portfolio includes the following territories netherlands belgium germany austria switzerland finland sweden norway and denmark . mtv s amsterdam offices will remain open and will act as the technical play out hub for the channels . closure of mtv russia mtv ukraine and falling ratings in december 2012 both viacom international media networks and profmedia announced the closure of mtv russia . prof media who purchased mtv russia from vimn in 2007 claimed the mtv brand is no longer relevant in the territory and will be replaced by a more youth orientated general entertainment brand called friday on 1 june 2013 . 43 mtv russia is one of the most widely distributed channels in the russian federation and was previously rated the most watched channel in the territory . today the channel has been relegated to the top 20 channels in russia . vimn stated its commitment to the region stating its other mtv channels and brands such as vh1 nickelodeon and the newly localized comedy central will continue to broadcast across russia on cable and digital television providers . 44 it has also been stated in some reports that mtv as a brand