Editing Global Television Network (section)

===NTV===
The network has its origins in NTV, a new network first proposed in 1966 by [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]] media proprietor [[Ken Soble]], the co-founder and owner of independent station [[CHCH-DT|CHCH-TV]] through his Niagara Television company.<ref name=proposed>"Today in history: Satellite TV network proposed". ''[[Calgary Herald]]'', October 27, 1996.</ref> Financially backed by [[Power Corporation of Canada]], Soble submitted a brief to the [[Board of Broadcast Governors]] in 1966 proposing a national [[broadcast satellite|satellite]]-fed network.<ref name=pitch>"Soble's pitch". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', October 27, 1996.</ref> Under the plan, Soble's company would launch Canada's first broadcast satellite, and would use it to relay the programming of CHCH to 96 new transmitters across Canada.<ref>"Controversy? Sure". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', December 31, 1966.</ref> Soble died in December of that year; his widow Frances took over as president of Niagara Television,<ref name=mrssoble>"Mrs. Soble and a $75&nbsp;million dream". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', March 11, 1967.</ref> while former [[CTV Television Network|CTV]] executive Michael Hind-Smith and Niagara Television vice-president [[Al Bruner]] handled the network application.<ref>"Fired CTV official pilots plans for a third, satellite-based network". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', January 19, 1967.</ref> Soble had originally formulated the plan after failing in a bid to acquire CTV.<ref name=proposed/>

The original proposal was widely criticized on various grounds, including claims that it exceeded the board's [[concentration of media ownership]] limits and that it was overly ambitious and financially unsustainable.<ref name=pie>"TV satellite plan pie in the sky, communications firms tell BBG". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', March 8, 1967.</ref> As well, it failed to include any plan for local news content on any of its individual stations beyond possibly the metropolitan [[Toronto]], [[Montreal]], and [[Vancouver]] markets.<ref name=pie/>

By 1968, NTV put forward its first official licence application, under which the original 96 transmitters would be supplemented by 43 more transmitters to distribute a separate French language service,<ref name=ntvfiles>"NTV files application for a third network in English, French". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', September 26, 1968.</ref> along with provisions for the free distribution of [[CBC Television]], [[Ici Radio-Canada Télé|Radio-Canada]] and a new noncommercial educational television service on the network's satellite.<ref name=ntvfiles/> Transponder space would also be leased to CTV and [[CFTM-DT|Télé-Métropole]], but as competing commercial services they would not have been granted the free distribution rights the plan offered to the public television services.<ref name=ntvfiles/> However, after federal communications minister [[Paul Hellyer]] announced plans to move forward with the publicly owned [[Anik (satellite)|Anik]] series of broadcast satellites through [[Telesat Canada]] instead of leaving the rollout of satellite technology in the hands of private corporations, Power Corporation backed out of the application and left NTV in limbo.<ref name=satelliteplans>"Satellite in plans for third network". ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', April 22, 1970.</ref>