MTV has pulled the plug on its dedicated 24-hour music channels across the globe, marking the end of an era that defined music television for over four decades.
The closures, effective December 31, affect MTV Music, MTV 80s, MTV 90s, Club MTV, and MTV Live in regions including the UK, Ireland, Australia, Poland, France, Brazil, Germany, Austria, and Hungary.
The decision stems from Paramount Global’s $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media, finalized on August 7, 2025, forming Paramount Skydance Corporation. As part of aggressive cost-cutting announced in 2024—aiming for $500 million in annual savings—the company streamlined operations amid declining linear TV viewership.
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MTV Music signed off with The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star,” the very video that launched MTV on August 1, 1981. Club MTV closed on Rihanna’s “Don’t Stop The Music,” while MTV Live ended with Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own.” Channels will vanish from Sky and Virgin Media guides on January 6, 2026.
Shift to Digital Dominance
This move underscores music’s migration to digital platforms. UK data from Barb shows MTV Music reaching just 1.3 million households by July 2025, a sharp drop from 10 million in 2001. YouTube, TikTok, and Spotify now rule music discovery, offering immediacy and interactivity that traditional TV can’t match.
Manchester Metropolitan University’s Kirsty Fairclough highlighted the shift:
“Today’s audiences demand ‘immediacy’ and ‘interactivity,’ which traditional television viewing cannot deliver.”
The core MTV HD channel persists in select markets but long ago pivoted to reality shows like “Geordie Shore.”
Voices from the Past
Former MTV VJ Simone Angel, a staple of MTV Europe and UK in the 1990s, shared her heartbreak with BBC News.
“We need to support these artists, and we all need to dance again and listen to music,” she said. “MTV was the place where everything came together. So it really does break my heart.”
As streaming giants thrive, MTV’s legacy endures in nostalgia, but linear music TV appears extinct.
