About Asian Television Network

Asian Television Network

Overview

Asian Television Network (ATN) is a Canadian broadcasting company headquartered in Markham, Ontario, that operates 54 specialty television channels in nine languages for Canada's South Asian communities. The company, formally Asian Television Network International Limited, is publicly traded on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol SAT. It is widely regarded as the pioneer of South Asian television in Canada: ATN traces its origins to a 1971 venture on the Rogers Cable system, making it one of the first broadcasters in North America to aim television programming at South Asian audiences.

ATN's channel portfolio spans general entertainment, Bollywood films, news, sports, music and lifestyle programming, together with dedicated Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi and Urdu services and a small number of Chinese channels. The company builds its schedules through programming alliances with major international broadcasters, including Star, Sony, Zee, Viacom, Disney Star, NDTV, B4U and ARY, and it has long been Canada's leading distributor of international cricket. Its channels are carried by cable, satellite and IPTV providers across Canada.

History

ATN's founder, Shan Chandrasekar, began producing South Asian television programming in Canada in 1971 through a venture on Rogers Cable, an era when ethnic programming on Canadian television was in its infancy. The modern company took shape in the 1990s: on 4 September 1996 the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) licensed South Asian Television Canada Limited to launch a regional specialty service for Ontario's South Asian communities, and on 7 August 1997 the service was authorised for distribution across Canada. The flagship channel launched nationally in May 1998 under the ATN name.

An early agreement with India's Zee TV made Zee programming the backbone of the flagship channel, which was renamed ATN Zee TV. A 2006 agreement brought programming from STAR Plus, then India's top-rated entertainment channel, to the service. As the digital specialty era expanded, ATN multiplied its channels, launching dedicated movie, news, music, sports and regional-language services. In January 2013 the company opened a new state-of-the-art broadcast facility in Markham, ended its Zee TV programming agreement, and took its flagship channel to high definition. Cricket was a recurring thread: the company states that it was the first to bring live World Cup cricket to Canada via satellite in 1987, and it has repeatedly acquired exclusive Canadian rights to international cricket, including rights associated with the BCCI, Cricket South Africa and New Zealand Cricket.

In 2023 ATN acquired exclusive Canadian rights from Disney Star for four channels — ATN Star Plus, ATN Star Gold, ATN Star Vijay and ATN Vijay Super — and in April 2025 it launched three Zee channels, including ATN &TV, which went live on 14 April 2025. Its ATN-Asian Radio service, launched on satellite radio on 24 September 2007, was carried on SiriusXM until its removal from that lineup in January 2025.

Cricket deserves separate mention in the company's history. ATN's press releases state that it has been the exclusive Canadian television distributor for several Cricket World Cups since 1986 and that it was the first to bring the World Cup live via satellite to Canada in 1987. It has since held Canadian rights from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Cricket South Africa and New Zealand Cricket, broadcast the Indian Premier League from its inaugural season in 2008, and by its own account became the largest cricket distributor in Canada. The flagship channel's identity shifted with its content deals: after the Zee agreement ended in 2013 it drew increasingly on other partners, and when ATN Star Plus lost the Star Plus rights in October 2017 the channel began carrying programming from &TV, the Zee network's general entertainment service with which ATN renewed its association in 2025.

Programming and Content

ATN's flagship ATN-HD general interest service anchors a portfolio that the company organises into Bollywood movie channels, sports channels — including ATN Cricket Plus and ATN DD Sports — news channels such as ATN News18 India, ATN Times Now and ATN ABP Sanjha, music channels such as ATN B4U Music and ATN MTV India, and lifestyle services such as ATN Food Food. Language-specific lineups include seven Punjabi channels (among them ATN Punjabi, ATN Alpha ETC Punjabi and ATN Zee Punjabi), Tamil services (ATN Jaya TV, ATN Vijay TV and ATN Star Vijay), and channels in Telugu (ATN SVBC), Bengali (ATN Bangla, ATN Sony Aath), Gujarati (ATN Gujarati) and Urdu (ATN ARY Digital, ATN Urdu), alongside three Chinese channels.

Programming is dominated by popular Indian television serials, reality formats, Bollywood films and live sport supplied by its international partners. Signature content has included Star Plus dramas such as Anupamaa and Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, Tamil reality programming such as Bigg Boss on Star Vijay, and live international cricket broadcasts that have been a hallmark of the service since the 1980s. In addition to its own licensed channels, ATN is the official Canadian distributor for several foreign services, including ABP News, ARY Qtv, Channel i and NDTV Good Times.

Audience and Reach

ATN serves Canada's South Asian communities — people of Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan and diaspora origin — in nine languages, and describes itself as one of the leading players in Canadian ethnic media. Its channels are distributed nationally through major television providers including Rogers Cable, Bell TV, Bell Fibe TV, Shaw Cable, Shaw Direct, TELUS Optik TV and Cogeco. ATN does not publish audited subscriber or ratings figures for its channels, and none are claimed here; its scale is instead reflected in the breadth of its channel portfolio and the longevity of its carriage agreements with Canada's largest distributors.

Digital Presence

The company's website, asiantelevision.com, presents its channel lineup, corporate profile and investor information, and its services have been promoted through provider platforms and electronic program guides across Canada. ATN content has also been made available on mobile devices, including a historical arrangement that placed ATN video on Bell mobile phones. The company issues regular press releases through Canadian newswires announcing channel launches and programming rights, including its 2023 Disney Star agreement and its 2025 Zee channel launches, which serve as the public record of its current activity.

Ownership and Organisation

Asian Television Network International Limited is a publicly traded company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (SAT). It was founded by Dr. Shan Chandrasekar, who serves as chairman and chief executive officer; his wife, Jaya Chandrasekar, has served as executive vice president and vice president of programming. Both have been inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame — Shan Chandrasekar in 2004 and Jaya Chandrasekar in 2008. The company was ranked ninth in Diversified Industries on the TSX Venture 50 in 2011, was named Large Business of the Year by the Newmarket Chamber of Commerce in 2009, and its founder was a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2010, according to the company's corporate profile.

Contact and Availability

ATN's head office and broadcast facility are located at 330 Cochrane Drive, Markham, Ontario L3R 8E4, Canada. The company's published telephone number is 905-948-8199, and its general email address, given in its press releases, is atn@asiantelevision.com. ATN channels are available across Canada through cable, satellite and IPTV providers including Rogers, Bell TV, Bell Fibe TV, Shaw, TELUS Optik TV and Cogeco; viewers can confirm individual channel availability and packaging through their local provider.