started using the studio for CTV News's local Toronto broadcasts in the mid-1960s; its head offices were located in Downtown Toronto. Original programming included the weekly children's showThe Professor's Hideaway. The station was acquired by CFTO's parent, Baton Broadcasting, in 1997. It is now home to CTV, its flagship station CFTO-DT, and The Sports Network. It was previously the headquarters of CTVglobemedia and its predecessors until it was relocated to 299 Queen Street West in 2008 when it became Bell Media.
Operations
In addition to CTV and CFTO, channels based at the Agincourt complex include:
CTV 2 had its master control facilities moved here in 2011, housing the following stations:
CKVR-DT Barrie
CFPL-DT London
CHWI-DT Windsor
CHRO-DT Pembroke/Ottawa
CTV 2 Atlantic
CTV 2 Alberta
In addition the building also serves as the new home for the technical operations of Bell Media's all-sports radio station in Toronto TSN Radio 1050 which launched on April 13, 2011.
From 2001 until early 2008, both TSN and its main competitor Rogers Sportsnet were based at the Agincourt complex. Sportsnet, originally controlled by CTV before the latter's acquisition of TSN in 2000, had been based there since its launch in 1998, but did not move out immediately after TSN moved in. Hence, when on-air hosts, such as Darren Dreger, moved from one channel to the other, it was referred to as "crossing the parking lot" or, less commonly, "crossing the street". Some at Sportsnet had complained about feeling like "poor country cousins" to CTV and TSN at Agincourt. This peculiarity had been made light of by a couple of notable hosts on Rogers Sportsnet. Bob McCown, a radio host on Rogers-owned The Fan 590, had constantly commented on his show Prime Time Sports that Sportsnet executives throw bottles across the street at the TSN studios. In addition, Sportsnet Connected anchor Sean McCormick had openly stated on-air that he drives to work with his wife, Jennifer Hedger, who anchors SportsCentre on TSN. This arrangement ended on April 30, 2008, when Rogers Sportsnet moved broadcast operations from the Agincourt complex to a new studio in the Rogers Building, a cluster of buildings in the Mount Pleasant-Jarvis Street area of Downtown Toronto.
Other Bell Media facilities in Toronto
Alongside 9 Channel Nine Court, several other Bell Media properties are operated from other facilities in the Toronto area:
Studios for Bell Media's radio channels including TSN Radio 1050, 104.5 CHUM-FM, Newstalk 1010 and 99.9 Virgin Radio are currently located at 250 Richmond Street West at Richmond and Duncan streets which is adjacent to 299 Queen Street West. There is a bridge walkway that currently joins these two buildings together.
