After having talked about creating a Vice TV Network for almost two years, Shane Smith and company are finally set to bring Vice’s brand of journalism to the boob tube.
On Thursday, Smith joined Rogers CEO Guy Laurence to announce that the two companies were partnering to bring a 24 hour Vice TV network to Canada.
The partnership will see Rogers and Vice invest $100-million into creating original video content for broadcast and mobile platforms. The deal also involves the creation of a multimedia production house in Toronto.
Few details on details on programming were given during the announcement, though one imagines whatever content Vice creates will look similar to what it already has on offer on its network of websites.
“We wanted to build a powerhouse for Canadian digital content focused on 18- to 34-year-olds,” said Guy Laurence in a press release after the announcement. “Vice was the obvious choice to partner with.”
Since starting as a magazine in Montreal, Vice has grown to become a $2.5-billion media empire. The company raised $500-million this past September. [Source: Toronto Star]
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Igor Bonifacic is the managing editor of Toronto Standard. Follow him on Twitter.
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