VIVA (German TV channel)


VIVA was a German free-to-air music television channel, first broadcast on 1 December 1993. The channel was intended to compete against MTV Europe and was the first German-language music TV channel, while MTV was only broadcast in English until the introduction of MTV Germany in 1997. It was also supposed to focus more on German music and pop culture while MTV only broadcast anglophone music by artists mostly from North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.
After years of competition for audience share, MTV Networks Europe eventually acquired VIVA on 14 January 2005 after it had outrun its own efforts for better ratings. MTV operated VIVA channels in Austria, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Poland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
In June 2018, Viacom announced that it would shut down all Viva operations worldwide at the end of 2018.
The channel ceased to broadcast at 14:00 on 31 December 2018, being replaced by Comedy Central.

History

Initial concept

The concept behind VIVA originated in 1992, when major record labels were frustrated by MTV Europe's decision to program mostly English-language music videos to the Germanophone markets, in what was perceived as its refusal to play major German-speaking artists. Executives at US media giant Time Warner, keen on increasing their market share of its music repertoire and business in Germany, planned the new TV station in 1992. Eventually, they recruited DoRo Productions, producers of music videos for notable acts such as Queen, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, in the design of the music channel. Time Warner executives Tom McGrath and Peter Bogner assembled a group of record labels that included its very own Warner Music, EMI Music, Polygram Records and Sony Television along with :de:Frank Otto |Frank Otto, Apax Partners, and Austrian producers Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher of DoRo Productions. In a concept paper of Time Warner, Peter Bogner analyzed MTV's market position as vulnerable, and "while MTV is betting on a diet of pure Anglo-American video clips, VIVA should broadcast at least 40% more German music."
VIVA became an immediate success with the audience, while ultimately providing German artists with a music channel that could help expose their music to the German audience.

Competing with MTV

With :de:Dieter Gorny|Dieter Gorny eventually as its second managing director on board, VIVA applied for cable carriage licenses in the various German federal states. DoRo Productions designed the original programming format which while clearly a music video channel, sought to differentiate itself from MTV not just by having a German-speaking voice, but by speaking directly to the differences in pop culture between Germany and the anglophone MTV.
Before launching the channel, the labels offered to fund MTV in a German-speaking version but were rejected by MTV management at the time, as it espoused a "one world, one language" programming philosophy.
On 21 March 1995, a second channel, Viva Zwei, was created, initially a channel for classic music videos which later focused on lesser known and more independently produced music, mostly indie and alternative rock, metal, electronic music and alternative hip hop. However, Viva Zwei was not financially successful, so on 7 January 2002, it was replaced by VIVA Plus, a channel dedicated purely to pop and mainstream music for a younger target audience. Some Viva Zwei formats managed to continue on Viva Plus for some time though, and Fast Forward even got included in the main channel's program. VIVA Plus itself was discontinued on 14 January 2007 and got replaced by Comedy Central Deutschland the next day.

Comet Awards

Since 1995, VIVA held an annual pop music award ceremony known as the :de:Comet |Comet. During the 2003 award ceremonies, VIVA openly expressed an anti-Iraq War view. The awards were last held in 2011. The 2012 awards ceremony was cancelled as Viacom wanted to focus more on the MTV Europe Music Awards instead. In 2013, it got cancelled again. Although the awards were never officially canceled altogether, they weren't held ever since.

MTV's response to VIVA

After MTV introduced a German-language version of itself in 1997, the competition between the two stations increased. VIVA was widely perceived as the more mainstream-oriented channel for younger viewers, while MTV Germany was directed at youths and young adults with some edgier programming. In 2003, VIVA got bad press after it was discovered that it had given Universal Music an unfair advantage in the placement of their music videos.

MTV owner acquires VIVA

In 2004, VIVA was acquired by Viacom International, which also owns MTV, thus ending the rivalry between VIVA and MTV and making them start to cooperate instead. After the acquisition of VIVA by Viacom, MTV Germany shifted to mostly broadcasting reality and comedy shows. VIVA became the music channel with chart shows and other similar programmes which were mostly directed at a mainstream audience. Viacom introduced a programming scheme that allowed the station to be run by just 40 people, making many previous employees redundant. The studios and headquarters in Cologne were closed in March 2005, from then on VIVA broadcast from the same studios as MTV Germany in Berlin.
From January 2011, under a major shakeup at MTV Networks Germany, VIVA continued to be part of MTV Networks Germany's free-to-air package and the channel became the main music and entertainment brand within Germany while complemented by its sister channels MTV Germany and MTV Brand New, which then became pay TV, although in late 2017 MTV Germany was put back into free TV. VIVA Germany received a new look and on-air branding on 1 January 2011. The new look of VIVA joined the four triangles of the new logo into one triangle, putting the angle of VIVA into one heart.
Starting 22 March 2011, VIVA broadcast only in. Programs produced in 4:3 were cropped to 14:9 and black bars were added left and right. VIVA HD Germany, a simulcast in 1080i high-definition, launched on 16 May 2011. It was available via IPTV from Deutsche Telekom.

Discontinuation

In June 2018, Viacom announced its decision to discontinue VIVA at the end of 2018. Viacom general manager Mark Specht said in an interview that the channel is profitable, but that Viacom wants to focus on its three core brands MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon as it sees bigger growth opportunities there. The slot will be filled by Comedy Central, which had already shared its slot with VIVA since 2014 and after the end of VIVA will become a 24-hour channel after so far has been only broadcast in the evening and night hours while VIVA was broadcast at daytime.
On 31 December 2018 at 14:00, the channel aired its final music video, "Viva Forever", by the Spice Girls, which had also been aired when sister channel in the UK and Ireland ceased broadcast earlier in the year. Shortly after, the channel aired a farewell bumper, featuring several music artists, former hosts and other celebrities saying their goodbyes. After the bumper ended, the channel aired the music video of "Zu geil für diese Welt" by Die Fantastischen Vier and then faded into a black screen featuring the old 2002-2004 VIVA logo with the words "Rest In Peace" and "1993-2018" below. Shortly after, the channel faded to dark, followed by the startup of Comedy Central, ending 25 years of broadcast. The broadcast was "extended", as in the first seconds of Comedy Central broadcast, the station failed to switch off the VIVA logo..

Programming

VJYearShows
Mola Adebisi1993–2004Interaktiv; VIVA Top 100; Club R'n’B
Bibiana Ballbè Serra2001–2003Planet VIVA; Chartsurfer; Was geht ab?; Ritmo; Inside
Aleksandra Bechtel1993–1999Was geht ab?; Interaktiv
Nils Bokelberg1993–1998Was geht ab?
Ricky Breitengraser2000Interaktiv Spezial
Sabine Christ1994–1999Housefrau
Rocco Clein †
1993–2001Neuigkeiten
Phil Daub1994–2001Metalla; Planet VIVA
Daisy Dee
1996–2003Club Rotation Dance Charts; Ritmo
Isabel Dziobek1993–1996Freunde der Nacht als "VIVA TWINS“
Natalie Dziobek1993–1996Freunde der Nacht als "VIVA TWINS“
Mate Galić1994–1997Housefrau; VIVA Trance
Daniel Hartwig1998–1999Interaktiv
Klaas Heufer-Umlauf2004–2009Klaas' Wochenshow; VIVA Live!; Retro Charts; NEU; Interaktiv; VIVA News
Gülcan Kamps2003–2010Interaktiv; 17; VIVA News; NEU; Shibuya; VIVA Live!; VIVA Top 100
Markus Kavka1997Metalla
Johanna Klum2005–2012VIVA Top 20; VIVA Top 100; Retro Charts; VIVA Live!; NEU; 17; Jung, sexy, sucht!
Lukas Koch2001–2002Voll VIVA; Was geht ab?; Chartsurfer; Neu bei VIVA
Sebastian König2006–2009Ringtone Charts; Straßencharts; Mixery Massive Music; NEU; VIVA Top 20; Special Charts; VIVA Live!
Joel Korenzecher1999World of Bits
Steffi Krause1999–2000VIVA Wecker
Ralph Michael Krieger1993–1994Jam; Metalla; Neu bei VIVA
Nadine Krüger1997–1999Film ab; Interaktiv; Jam
Sarah Kuttner2001–2005Interaktiv; Sarah Kuttner – Die Show; Albumcharts
Frank Lämmermann1998–1999Lämmermann Live
Liza Li2007–2008Straßencharts; VIVA Top 20; VIVA Top 100

VJYearShows
Milka Loff Fernandes1999–2004Inside; Interaktiv; Was geht ab?; Face it!
Heike Makatsch1993–1997Interaktiv; Heikes Hausbesuche
MC Rene1999–2002Mixery Raw Deluxe
Nova Meierhenrich2000–2001Inside
Markus Meske2002Neuigkeiten
Enie van de Meiklokjes
1996–2000Chartsurfer; Was geht ab?; Neu bei VIVA
Matthias Opdenhövel1993–1997Interaktiv; Neuigkeiten
Nela Panghy-Lee2004–2005Club Rotation Dance Charts; Neu bei VIVA
Minh-Khai Phan-Thi1995–1998Interaktiv; Minh-Khai & Friends
Oliver Pocher1999–2005Alles Pocher; Interaktiv; Trash Top 100; Was geht ab?; Planet VIVA; Chartsurfer
Stefan Raab1993–1998Ma' kuck'n; Vivasion
Janin Reinhardt2001–2005Film ab; Inside; Interaktiv; 17
René le Riche1994–1996Neuigkeiten; Jam
Tyron Ricketts1996–2000Word Cup
Charlotte Roche1998–2005Fast Forward
Niels Ruf1998–2001Kamikaze
Falk "Hawkeye" Schacht2001–2004Supreme; Mixery Raw Deluxe
Tobias Schlegl1995–2004Interaktiv; Kewl; Schlegl; Das jüngste Gericht
Jessica Schwarz2000–2003Film ab; Interaktiv
Axel Terporten1993–1997Neuigkeiten
Martin Tietjen2006Ringtone Charts
Shirin Valentine1995–1999VIVA Wecker
Nadine Vasta2009–2011VASTA; VIVA Live!; VIVA Top 100; NEU
Jessica Wahls2003–200517; Interaktiv; Your Stars for X-Mas
Annemarie Warnkross2004–2005Ringtone Charts; Club Rotation Dance Charts
Collien Fernandes2003–2015Mixery Massive Music; Neu; Ringtone Charts; Special Charts; Straßencharts; VIVA Live!; VIVA Top 20; VIVA Top 100
Palina Rojinski2011–2015VIVA Top 100; VIVAPedia
Romina Becks2011–2015VIVA Top 100; VIVAPedia
Jan Köppen2006–2018VIVA Liederladen Top 20; Ringtone Charts; VIVA Top 100; Neu; VIVA Live!; Retro Charts; VIVApedia; MTV Top 100
Melissa Lee2015–2018VIVA Top 100
Hanna Scholz2017–2018VIVA Top 100
Uli Brase2018VIVA Top 100

Presenters from MTV

VJYearShows
Daniel Budiman2011–2014Game One
Simon Krätschmer2011–2014Game One
Nils Bomhoff2011–2014Game One
Etienne Gardé2011–2014Game One

Logos

Note that from 1 December 2018 to 31 December 2018 all logo designs of Viva were shown by changing every two minutes, as a tribute to Viva due to its shut down.

VIVA in other countries

Viacom also operated VIVA channels in Austria, Hungary, Poland, The United Kingdom and Ireland and Switzerland.