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Legendary Broadcaster MTV to Close Five UK Channels by Year-End

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Legendary Broadcaster MTV to Close Five UK Channels by Year-End

Streamer dominance forces a top UK broadcaster to close five channels before 2026, ending an era in traditional TV.

British television, MTV has confirmed it will be closing five of its UK channels by December 31, 2025. The decision reflects the growing dominance of streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime, which have significantly reshaped viewer habits over the past decade.

MTV was a TV staple in the nineties and noughties, launching the carers of many presenters including Emma Willlis (pictured), but amid the rise of streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime, it has slowly but surely fallen out of favour

Paramount Global and Skydance Media reached an agreement late last year to close MTV Music, MTV 80s, MTV 90s, Club MTV, and MTV Live HD. While the broadcaster’s flagship MTV channel will remain on air, it will no longer feature music videos, focusing instead on reality TV shows such as 16 & Pregnant and Geordie Shore.

Once a cultural icon of the ’90s and 2000s, MTV was renowned for shaping the music industry and launching the careers of presenters like Cat Deeley, Emma Willis, and Greg James. However, the rise of streaming has eroded its audience, forcing the network to scale back significantly.

A source told The Sun:

“It’s a dark day for the music industry. MTV was once an industry powerhouse but is now a shadow of its former self. All channels except the main MTV station are being axed. Even that now focuses on reality TV.”

The closure of MTV’s UK channels comes as part of a wider trend. In recent years, streaming services have disrupted traditional broadcasting. Ofcom reported that in 2023, only 79% of UK viewers watched TV weekly, a drop from 83% in 2021. Daily watch time also fell from 2 hours 59 minutes in 2021 to 2 hours 38 minutes in 2022.

A source said: 'It's a dark day for the music industry - MTV was once an industry powerhouse but now is a total shell of its former self'

The decline in TV audiences has already led to major cutbacks at other broadcasters such as ITV, and MTV has taken further measures, including redundancies in its UK production team earlier this year. Staff described the closures as a “bloodbath of cuts,” with many losing decades-long careers.

MTV’s Global Retraction

The closures aren’t limited to the UK — MTV has also scaled back its presence in Asia, Latin America, and Australia as part of its global restructuring.

News of the closure of the channels comes after MTV's UK production team was made redundant earlier this year in the 'bloodbath' of cuts - pictured here is Cat Deeley, who also made a name for herself with the broadcaster

The official closure date for these channels will be New Year’s Eve 2025, marking the end of an era for a network that once defined music television for generations.