ONTV (pay TV)
| ONTV | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Launched | 1977 |
| Closed | 1985 |
| Owned by | National Subscription Television (Oak Industries, Chartwell Enterprises and A. Jerrold Perenchio) |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Broadcast area | Nationwide (available in select areas) |
| Headquarters | New York City, New York |
| Replaced by | ON Subscription Television (1983-1985) |
ONTV (later known as ON Subscription Television from 1983 until its shutdown in 1985) is a defunct American subscription television service that was owned by National Subscription Television, a joint venture between Oak Industries (a manufacturer of satellite and pay television decoders and equipment), Chartwell Enterprises (owned by Norman Lear) and media executive A. Jerrold Perenchio. Operating in such major markets as Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit, ONTV aired a broad mix of feature films from mainstream Hollywood blockbusters to pornographic films as well as sports events and specials.
Launched in 1977, ONTV was one of many "scrambled UHF" television services in many major markets around the United States (including SelecTV, PRISM, Starcase, Spectrum, Preview, VEU, Wometco Home Theater, SuperTV and Z Channel) in the era before multi-channel cable television services offering cable-originated networks – including subscription services with formats similar to services like ONTV – became widely available. Cable television increased in availability throughout many cities during the 1980s, rendering "over-the-air" subscription television obsolete. The service changed its name to ON Subscription Television in 1983 after it purchased the rights to the subscriber list for Spectrum; ON continued operations until shutting down two years later in 1985.
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