VIVA Germany
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 sole German-language music TV channel after the closure of musicbox in 1988, 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 primarily from North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.
After years of competition for audience share, MTV Networks Europe eventually acquired VIVA on January 14, 2005, after it had exhausted its own efforts for superior 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 that year.
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 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 started broadcasting on December 1, 1993 as Germany's second music channel, after the first channel, musicbox, became Tele 5 in 1988 and its lineup, which was initially dominated by music, was gradually reduced. VIVA advanced to fill this gap. The broadcasting studio was located in the rented rooms of Bertelsmann's VOX studios in Cologne-Ossendorf. Originally, VIVA was started by the media giant Time Warner to boost the German business of its company Warner Music Group. The Bertelsmann Music Group declined an invitation to take part in VIVA because they feared possible reprisals from their competitor MTV Europe and were not convinced that a German-language music channel could prevail against MTV. Undeterred by this, Time Warner executives Tom McGrath and Peter Bogner, along with their competitors Sony, PolyGram and EMI Music, and media executive Michael Oplesch, founded producer Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher, the founders of the TV production company Me, Myself & Eye, Christoph Post, Jörg A. Hoppe and Marcus O. Rosenmüller, and the media lawyer Helge Sasse the Viva Medien GmbH. The first VJs included the moderators Stefan Raab and Heike Makatsch, who were still unknown at the time. After their time at VIVA, they rose to become successful film and television personalities in Germany.
From its beginning, the channel broadcast from Cologne. The studios were in Cologne-Mülheim for most years, in the same building as Brainpool. The first music video played was "Zu geil für diese Welt". The channel's profile was largely defined by Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher. In 1994, market leadership was achieved for the first time. After MTV re-entered free TV, VIVA temporarily lost the upper hand. From the middle of 2004, however, VIVA was again slightly in the lead in terms of viewership in the advertising-relevant target group.
VIVA became an immediate success with the audience, while ultimately providing German artists with a music channel that could expose their music to the German audience.
Competing with MTV
With Dieter Gorny eventually as its second managing director on board, VIVA applied for cable carriage licenses in the various German 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, alternative rock, metal, electronic music and alternative hip hop.
However, Viva Zwei was not financially successful, and on 7 January 2002, it was replaced by VIVA Plus, a channel dedicated purely to pop and mainstream music for a younger target audience. Nonetheless, some Viva Zwei formats managed to continue on Viva Plus for some time, and Fast Forward was even 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 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 was 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 received 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
On June 24, 2004, VIVA was acquired by Viacom International, which also owns MTV, thus ending the VIVA-MTV rivalry and fostering cooperation 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 programs which were mostly directed at a mainstream audience. Although the new owners had outlined that, with four channels under their helm, they were going to "offer a greater variety of content for a wider public and a larger range of tastes" while still promising to continue the "strong national and cultural identity" of the channel, 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, and 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. VIVA was complemented by its sister channels MTV Germany and MTV Brand New, which then became paid TV, although in late 2017 MTV Germany was returned to 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 16:9. 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.
On January 1, 2012, VIVA shut down its analog signal from Astra 19,2º East.
Discontinuation
In June 2018, Viacom announced its decision to discontinue VIVA at the end of the year. 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 was filled by Comedy Central, which had already shared its slot with VIVA since 2014 and was to become a 24-hour channel. Comedy Central had so far been broadcast only during evening and night hours, while VIVA was broadcast at daytime.On 31 December 2018 at 14:00 CET, the channel aired its final music video, "Viva Forever", by the Spice Girls, which had also been aired when the sister channel in the UK and Ireland ceased broadcast earlier in the year. Shortly after, the channel aired end-of-broadcast shows, featuring several music artists, former hosts and other celebrities saying their goodbyes. After the end-of-broadcast specials concluded, the channel aired the music video of "Zu geil für diese Welt" by Die Fantastischen Vier and then faded to 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, officially ending 25 years of broadcast. However, the broadcast was unintentionally "extended"; in the first seconds of the Comedy Central broadcast, the station briefly failed to transition from the VIVA logo.
Programming
#Facebookclips#Tweetclips10 Dinge, die ich an dir hasse180°Alle hassen ChrisAmerican Dad!Aqua Teen Hunger ForceArcherAwkward – Mein sogenanntes LebenBeavis and Butt-HeadBlue Mountain StateBritney and Kevin: ChaoticBully BeatdownCatfish – Verliebte im NetzCrash CanyonCriss Angel MindfreakDie Pinguine aus MadasgcarDie Ren & Stimpy ShowDeath ValleyDegrassiDeutschstundeDetektiv ConanDrawn TogetherThe Dudesons in AmericaEure VIVA LieblingsklicksFamily GuyFeat.Faust des ZenFlash PrankFriendzoneFuturamaGame OneGet the ClipGleeGeordie ShoreGood Morning SaturdayGood Morning SundayGuy CodeJungs mit KindernHappy EndHappy Tree FriendsThe Hard Times of RJ BergerThe HasselhoffsHollys WeltIch war mal dickInuYasha: Ein feudales MärchenJackassJersey ShoreKeeping Up with the KardashiansKendraKenny gegen SpennyKesha: Mein verrücktes schönes LebenKiller-KaraokeLiebe oder nichtLove Test 3 in 1LovelineMadeMein Leben als LizMeine super süße WeltklasseMelissa und JoeyMixery Massive MusicMost Wanted 2000sMTV at the Movies- MTV Europe Music AwardsMTV Home
- MTV Movie AwardsMTV Top 100 MTV Unplugged
- MTV Video Music AwardsMTV World StageMusicMy Kid Is Gonna Be FamousNarbenNarutoNeuNeu um 9Night SoundsNight Sounds Party NitrozirkusO.C., KalifornienOne PieceOne Tree HillParty, Bruder!The Pauly D ProjectPimp My RidePlain JanePromi-DeathmatchPunk'dEchte Männer von HollywoodRetro ChartsRidiculousnessRiesigRobot ChickenUnhöfliches RohrSailor MoonSavage UScandaliciousThe Short ListSkinsSMS GuruSnooki & JwowwSouth ParkSpecial ChartsSpongeBob SchwammkopfStreichelteStyle StarSuperchartsTeen Mom 2Then and NowTodd und das Buch des BösenTsubasa: Reservoir ChronikUgly AmericansUndateableUnderemployedUnglücksdatumVersuchsgeländeVIVA Charts... 1 Year AgoVIVA Charts... 5 Years AgoVIVA Club RotationVIVA CometVIVA FahrstuhlmusikVIVA Live!VIVA QuizVIVA SoundsVIVA SpezialVIVA Streaming ChartsVIVA Top 20 SinglechartsVIVA Top 40 SinglechartsVIVA Top 100VIVA WeckerVIVApediaVIVA's Most Played ChartsVIVA's Most Wanted ChartsWakeBrothersYour ChoiceYoung & Married
- ''Zoey 101''
Presenters
| VJ | Year | Shows |
| Mola Adebisi | 1993–2004 | Interaktiv; VIVA Top 100; Club R'n’B |
| Bibiana Ballbè Serra | 2001–2003 | Planet VIVA; Chartsurfer; Was geht ab?; Ritmo; Inside |
| Aleksandra Bechtel | 1993–1999 | Was geht ab?; Interaktiv |
| Nils Bokelberg | 1993–1998 | Was geht ab? |
| Ricky Breitengraser | 2000 | Interaktiv Spezial |
| Sabine Christ | 1994–1999 | Housefrau |
| Rocco Clein † | 1993–2001 | Neuigkeiten |
| Phil Daub | 1994–2001 | Metalla; Planet VIVA |
| Daisy Dee | 1996–2003 | Club Rotation Dance Charts; Ritmo |
| Isabel Dziobek | 1993–1996 | Freunde der Nacht als "VIVA TWINS“ |
| Natalie Dziobek | 1993–1996 | Freunde der Nacht als "VIVA TWINS“ |
| Mate Galić | 1994–1997 | Housefrau; VIVA Trance |
| Daniel Hartwig | 1998–1999 | Interaktiv |
| Klaas Heufer-Umlauf | 2004–2009 | Klaas' Wochenshow; VIVA Live!; Retro Charts; NEU; Interaktiv; VIVA News |
| Gülcan Kamps | 2003–2010 | Interaktiv; 17; VIVA News; NEU; Shibuya; VIVA Live!; VIVA Top 100 |
| Markus Kavka | 1997 | Metalla |
| Johanna Klum | 2005–2012 | VIVA Top 20; VIVA Top 100; Retro Charts; VIVA Live!; NEU; 17; Jung, sexy, sucht! |
| Lukas Koch | 2001–2002 | Voll VIVA; Was geht ab?; Chartsurfer; Neu bei VIVA |
| Sebastian König | 2006–2009 | Ringtone Charts; Straßencharts; Mixery Massive Music; NEU; VIVA Top 20; Special Charts; VIVA Live! |
| Joel Korenzecher | 1999 | World of Bits |
| Steffi Krause | 1999–2000 | VIVA Wecker |
| Ralph Michael Krieger | 1993–1994 | Jam; Metalla; Neu bei VIVA |
| Nadine Krüger | 1997–1999 | Film ab; Interaktiv; Jam |
| Sarah Kuttner | 2001–2005 | Interaktiv; Sarah Kuttner – Die Show; Albumcharts |
| Frank Lämmermann | 1998–1999 | Lämmermann Live |
| Liza Li | 2007–2008 | Straßencharts; VIVA Top 20; VIVA Top 100 |
| VJ | Year | Shows |
| Milka Loff Fernandes | 1999–2004 | Inside; Interaktiv; Was geht ab?; Face it! |
| Heike Makatsch | 1993–1997 | Interaktiv; Heikes Hausbesuche |
| MC Rene | 1999–2002 | Mixery Raw Deluxe |
| Nova Meierhenrich | 2000–2001 | Inside |
| Markus Meske | 2002 | Neuigkeiten |
| Enie van de Meiklokjes | 1996–2000 | Chartsurfer; Was geht ab?; Neu bei VIVA |
| Matthias Opdenhövel | 1993–1997 | Interaktiv; Neuigkeiten |
| Nela Panghy-Lee | 2004–2005 | Club Rotation Dance Charts; Neu bei VIVA |
| Minh-Khai Phan-Thi | 1995–1998 | Interaktiv; Minh-Khai & Friends |
| Oliver Pocher | 1999–2005 | Alles Pocher; Interaktiv; Trash Top 100; Was geht ab?; Planet VIVA; Chartsurfer |
| Stefan Raab | 1993–1998 | Ma' kuck'n; Vivasion |
| Janin Reinhardt | 2001–2005 | Film ab; Inside; Interaktiv; 17 |
| René le Riche | 1994–1996 | Neuigkeiten; Jam |
| Tyron Ricketts | 1996–2000 | Word Cup |
| Charlotte Roche | 1998–2005 | Fast Forward |
| Niels Ruf | 1998–2001 | Kamikaze |
| Falk "Hawkeye" Schacht | 2001–2004 | Supreme; Mixery Raw Deluxe |
| Tobias Schlegl | 1995–2004 | Interaktiv; Kewl; Schlegl; Das jüngste Gericht |
| Jessica Schwarz | 2000–2003 | Film ab; Interaktiv |
| Axel Terporten | 1993–1997 | Neuigkeiten |
| Martin Tietjen | 2006 | Ringtone Charts |
| Shirin Valentine | 1995–1999 | VIVA Wecker |
| Nadine Vasta | 2009–2011 | VASTA; VIVA Live!; VIVA Top 100; NEU |
| Jessica Wahls | 2003–2005 | 17; Interaktiv; Your Stars for X-Mas |
| Annemarie Warnkross | 2004–2005 | Ringtone Charts; Club Rotation Dance Charts |
| Collien Fernandes | 2003–2015 | Mixery Massive Music; Neu; Ringtone Charts; Special Charts; Straßencharts; VIVA Live!; VIVA Top 20; VIVA Top 100 |
| Palina Rojinski | 2011–2015 | VIVA Top 100; VIVAPedia |
| Romina Becks | 2011–2015 | VIVA Top 100; VIVAPedia |
| Jan Köppen | 2006–2018 | VIVA Liederladen Top 20; Ringtone Charts; VIVA Top 100; Neu; VIVA Live!; Retro Charts; VIVApedia; MTV Top 100 |
| Melissa Lee | 2015–2018 | VIVA Top 100 |
| Hanna Scholz | 2017–2018 | VIVA Top 100 |
| Uli Brase | 2018 | VIVA Top 100 |
Presenters from MTV
| VJ | Year | Shows |
| Daniel Budiman | 2011–2014 | Game One |
| Simon Krätschmer | 2011–2014 | Game One |
| Nils Bomhoff | 2011–2014 | Game One |
| Etienne Gardé | 2011–2014 | Game One |