DDTV

DDTV
CountryRomania
Broadcast areaRomania and Europe
HeadquartersBucharest
Programming
Language(s)Romanian
Picture format4:3 (576i, SDTV)
Ownership
OwnerDan Diaconescu
Key peopleDan Diaconescu
Sister channelsOTV
History
LaunchedApril 1, 2005
August 23, 2009(relaunched as an entertainment channel)
FounderDan Diaconescu
ClosedFebruary 24, 2014
Links
Websitewww.ddtv.home.ro (closed)

Direct Digital TV[1] (also known as DDTV and frequently mistaken for Dan Diaconescu TV) was a Romanian free-to-air entertainment television channel founded in 2005 by Dan Diaconescu, as a sister channel of OTV, reairing most of the shows OTV did broadcast. In August 2009, it was relaunched as an entertainment television channel that was mostly aimed at children.[2][3]

Background

Launched in 2005, the channel did broadcast talk shows, such as "Deșteptarea României" and "Dan Diaconescu Direct", which also aired on OTV. In the summer of 2009, it was announced that DDTV will be rebranded with a completely new programming schedule, getting rid of the talk shows it did broadcast. The rebrand took place on 23 August 2009, at 20:00 EET.[4] Between 06:00 and 19:00 EET, the channel was broadcasting animated shorts, mostly public domain cartoons from Fleischer Studios, Famous Studios, Van Beuren, ComiColor Cartoons, Flip the Frog, The Gumby Show, Tom and Jerry (MGM). (most of them being 60s cartoons with the 80s track, plus some episodes from the "revival") and some from Soyuzmultfilm (such as Nu, pogodi!). There were also some exceptions of illegally copyrighted material being aired, like Hanna-Barbera's Yogi Bear and Huckleberry Hound, Joe Oriolo's Felix the Cat TV series (plus even some episodes of The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat) and Casper the Friendly Ghost theatrical shorts (apparently taken from the Casper and Wendy's Ghostly Adventures VHS release). Here Cartoons Classics: Looney Tunes, MGM Cartoons, Pink Panther, Koziolek Matołek, and more In the evenings and nights, it did broadcast movies and documentaries targeted at teenagers.

In September 2009, DDTV was fined by CNA with 50,000 RON for broadcasting content (from Warner Bros.) without having the necessary rights to broadcast them, after Warner Bros. notified CNA about this problem.[5]

After OTV was closed by the CNA, Diaconescu used DDTV to broadcast the programs usually shown on OTV and CNA fined DDTV 100,000 lei (25,000 euros) in October 2013.[6]

The channel was closed on 24 February 2014, because its audiovisual license wasn't extended.[5]

In 2025, the channel will be possibly relaunched, alongside its sister channel, OTV.[7]

References

  1. ^ "- CNA". www.cna.ro. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  2. ^ Otevizarea (2009-08-21). "DDTV se relanseaza din 23 august". otevizarea. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  3. ^ Dobrescu, Petre (2009-08-23). "Diaconescu bagă 12.000.000 de euro în OTV şi în DDTV!". Libertatea (in Romanian). Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  4. ^ Otevizarea (2009-08-22). "DDTV se relanseaza din 23 august ora 20:00". otevizarea. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  5. ^ a b "DDTV, postul lansat de DAN DIACONESCU, a ramas fara licenta". livero.ro (in romanian). 10 March 2015.
  6. ^ "CNA sesizeaza Parchetul in legatura cu retransmisia OTV de catre DDTV. Postul de desene animate si muzica populara - suspendat temporar". Hotnews. Archived from the original on 2021-09-05. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
  7. ^ "OTV revine în forță pe micile ecrane: Andreea Marin și Mihaela Rădulescu s-ar afla pe lista lui Dan Diaconescu". Stiri pe surse (in Romanian). 2024-04-09. Retrieved 2024-05-04.