Project MTV: The FAST Lane

Writer's Note: I am not, nor will I ever expect to be associated with and employed by MTV and its parent company, Paramount Skydance. This is part of #projectmtv, a fan-made MTV rebranding project. This is not happening in any form, but it's fun to dream. - jh  

Prologue:

While the MTV rebrand is largely concentrated on the linear channels, that is only the cusp of what it’s about. By redefining what the MTV brand is all about, fully expanding into free ad-based streaming television (FAST) is where the MTV brand will thrive and survive into the 21st century. 

MTV should go head-on and rocket into the future.

Welcome to the MTV FAST Lane.


The MTV FAST Lane channels will represent each of the four brands. MTV will present channels that highlight the latest music from all genres. MTV Generation will be bring you back to the early days of the network with branded channels targeted for music fans of all generations. Club MTV will embrace millennial and Gen Z tastes in entertainment. MTV Palladia will be the hub for concerts, stage performances, and showcases for pop, rock, R&B, hip-hop, and soul music. 

Initially, the channels will launch on Pluto TV and will be exclusively there for nine months before expanding a bulk of them to other AVOD/FAST outlets, including Prime Video, PLEX, Tubi, XUMO, and Roku. Pluto TV will house all of the channels while others will get a healthy selection, about 60% of the channels. 

In addition, the MTV FAST Lane will have commercial-free linear channels exclusively on Paramount+ as part of a suite of linear channels on the premium streamer. Ad-supported versions would also appear on the ad tier.

Here are the initial channels of the MTV FAST Lane:


MTV Music (current music):

  • Spankin’ New 
  • Biggest Pop 
  • Yo! MTV
  • MTV Superrock 
  • Tr3s (Latin pop, rock, reggaeton, and other music genres)
  • MTV Kpop 

MTV Generation (retro music):

  • Sight on Sound (pre-MTV-era videos/performances)
  • MTV Neon (1980s music)
  • Yo! MTV Rap City (1980s-90s Rap/Hip-Hop)
  • Soul Vibrations (1980s-90s R&B plus episode/interviews from Video Soul)
  • Headbangers Ballroom (Metal and Rock)
  • Beyond 120 Minutes (1980s-90s Alternative plus interviews/segments from 120 Minutes)
  • MTV AMP (1980s-90s Electronica) 
  • MTV TRL Square (late-1990s-2000s Pop)
  • 106 & Park Memories (late-1990s-2000s R&B, Hip-Hop, and Rap)
  • Behind the Music (music documentaries and retrospectives)

Club MTV (general entertainment from MTV):

  • Jersey Shore
  • The Challenge
  • MTV Real (reality shows)
  • The Jackass Channel
  • The Osbornes
  • RuPaul’s Drag Race
  • Ridiculousness
  • The Orange Couch (live-action millennial favorites from Nickelodeon’s past)
  • UPN (UPN-era comedies and dramas as well as urban favorites from the CBS Studios library with some third-party fare from other studios)
  • Liquid TV (all animation, formerly Comedy Central Animation)

MTV Palladia (concert and live performances):

  • Soul Train (remastered and uncut editions of Soul Train)
  • MTV Live (concerts and archival live performances from the MTV/BET/VH1/CBS library)
  • Unplugged Stories (intimate artist performances from MTV Unplugged, VH1 Storytellers, CMT Soundstage, and BET Soulstage)
  • MTV UK† (UK-based music programming from MTV UK, BBC, and ITV)
  • Austin City Limits* 
  • The Midnight Special*
  • Don Kirshner's Rock Concert*

*FAST Channels Operated by MTV Under License from Respective Series Owners

† MTV UK is a streaming-only JV operated domestically by MTV and co-owned by MTV and BBC

I see you've noticed a few brands up there. I talked about The Orange Couch earlier.  Perhaps we need to take a bit of a swim in Liquid TV and see what the animation brand of MTV entails. 

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