Extreme Sports Channel
European pay television channel
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The Extreme Sports Channel is a pay television channel that was launched from Amsterdam on 1 May 1999.[2] The channel broadcasts in over 60 countries and 12 languages, and covers extreme sport and adventure sports which include surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, wakeboarding, motocross, BMX, mountain biking, FMX, music, gaming and fashion.
| |
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Worldwide |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to 16:9 576i for the SDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Extreme International (brand) [1] AMC Networks International (channel) |
| History | |
| Launched | 1 May 1999 |
| Links | |
| Website | Extreme.com extremeinternational |
History
Alstair Gosling from Essex in the UK [3] founder of Extreme International and a passionate skier, surfer and came up with the idea for the Network in 1996. In 1997 Alistair, Ben Barret, Juanjo Marquez and Adam Oliver started approaching potential investors to back the plan for a new brand and TV network dedicated to extreme and adventure sports.[4] UPCtv, the programming arm of Europe's largest cable television operator UPC, was looking for new channels to offer its subscribers and in April 1998 Extreme international was exhibiting at the MIP programming market in Cannes, France, Ben Barrett the sales director was approached by Stephen Cohen, UPCtv's Chief Operating Officer, with a proposal for a joint venture between the two companies. Extreme partnered with UPC raised the capital required and The Extreme Sports Channel was launched from the Netherlands on 1 May 1999, and after launching in 22 other countries it launched in the UK in 2000.[5][6] The channel was designed by Gosling and Cohen, management and content was produced, curated and delivered by Extreme International and technical play out and uplink were supplied by UPC.
In late 1999, Extreme launched its United States operations, and charged veteran producer, Lloyd Bryan Adams with the task of heading up the North American presence. They launched Extreme TV, a branded block on Fox Sports Net in March 2012.
In 2005,[5] after launching the channel in over sixty countries and seeing the growth in social media and sports, Extreme International acquired sole ownership of the "Extreme" brand and IP and sold its 50% stake in Extreme Sports Channel to John Malone's Liberty Global Inc. which had by then become owner of UPC. The channel was put under the management of Chellomedia.[5]
Following the transaction, the company re focused its business model away from traditional television to focus on sports marketing, social media publishing, influencer marketing and management, live events and social stunts.
Operations and Agency Services
Today Extreme operates a global sports marketing, influencer agency and digital media network across the action sports, health and fitness, technology and automotive sectors. Its operations are divided into these areas:
- Influencer Agency: Activating Creator and Athlete marketing campaigns pairing brands with vetted athletes and influencers.
- Social Video Production: Development of short-form social video content, promotional social stunt films and multi-platform branded storytelling aimed at youth demographics.
- Social Media Management: End-to-end management of brand channels, covering content creation, strategy, community moderation and audience growth analytics.
- Live Events & Activations: Sponsor management and production of live events, social stunts and environmental initiatives, including the "Extreme Hangout" platform.
- Talent Management and Development Extreme represents a collection of athletes, social media publishers and creators including Supercar Blondie, the automotive content creator.
- Social Distribution: Delivering media distribution for branded short form content and live events across its owned social channels, creators and athletes that combined have a following of over 300 million fans and deliver a reach of 950+ million people per month across Instagram, YouTube, Tik Tok, Snapchat and Facebook.
Clients and delivery The agency has executed marketing campaigns, covering influencers, event activations and social media distribution for corporate clients and regional tourism boards. Its clients include Red Bull, Google, Stanley Black & Decker, TripAdvisor, Swatch, Clarks, Knoops, ITV, Public Investment Fund (PIF), and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Destination marketing partnerships include Visit Malta, Egypt Tourism and Qiddiya.
Events & Social Stunts
Extreme manages a portfolio of events focused on adventure sports, social Creator collaborations and environmental themes. This includes the "Extreme Hangout," an environmental action platform launched during COP26 in Glasgow, which has hosted more than 35 events globally.
Hotels and Resorts. in the hospitality sector, Extreme has partnered with an elite hotel and resort development team to launch branded, adventure-themed destinations. Working alongside investors, property owner, developers, and government toursim boards.
Sustainability Initiatives
Extreme operates around three guiding pillars: people, planet, and place. It works to sustainably drive sport participation, an active and healthy lifestyle, job creation, infrastructure investment and tourism. Whilst aligning with five key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and government agendas there is a commitment to be sustainable, and have launched the Extreme Hangout an events impact platform,[7] are signed up to Planet Mark to measure impact, 1% For The Planet to give back and the UN’s Sports for Climate Action to drive awareness.[citation needed]
The channel launched in Poland in January 2006, followed by France in that same year.[5]
The UK version of the channel was free-to-air from launch until the summer of 2006, when a deal with BSkyB meant that it became encrypted.
On 28 September 2011 the channel began broadcasting in widescreen (16:9) format.
On 1 February 2012 the high-definition version of the channel began broadcasting in Italy.[8]
AMC Networks acquired Chellomedia on 2 February 2014. Chellomedia was rebranded by AMC Networks International on 8 July 2014.[9]
On 31 December 2015, the channel was removed from the Sky EPG.
As of 27 October 2021 Extreme became available on Channelbox via Freeview channel 271 in the UK. Channelbox is a free IPTV service available to any Freeview compatible device that can connect to both an aerial and internet.[10]
In June 2024, the company acquired their own streaming slot on Freeview[11] under the name Extreme Channel[12] on channel 295.[13]
As of February 2025 Extreme decided to give up its separate slot on Freeview in favour of Channelbox and focusing on their Extreme Plus streaming application [14]