Oxygen (branded on air as Oxygen True Crime) is a Canadian English-language discretionary specialty television channel owned by Bell Media. Based on the American cable network of the same name, the channel focuses on true crime programming, including original Canadian productions and imports from its American counterpart.
History
As Court TV Canada (2001–2010)
In November 2000, Learning and Skills Television of Alberta (LSTA), a company majority owned by CHUM Limited, was granted CRTC approval to launch a channel called "The Law & Order Channel." The channel launched on September 7, 2001, as Court TV Canada, replacing the American Court TV service that had been available in Canada as an eligible foreign service since 1997. In February 2005, CHUM completed its purchase of the remaining interest in LSTA, bringing ownership to 100%. Following CTVglobemedia's acquisition of CHUM in 2007, LSTA was wound up into CTV Limited in 2008.
As Investigation Discovery (2010–2024)
On August 30, 2010, the channel was relaunched as Investigation Discovery (ID) as part of a licensing agreement between CTVglobemedia and Discovery Communications. It was the only Discovery-branded channel operated by Bell Media in which Discovery held no ownership stake. A high-definition simulcast feed launched on December 15, 2011.
As Oxygen (2025–present)
In June 2024, Rogers Sports & Media announced it had acquired the rights to all Warner Bros. Discovery lifestyle and factual television brands in Canada, effective January 1, 2025. On October 17, 2024, Bell Media announced a licensing agreement with NBCUniversal to relaunch Investigation Discovery as a Canadian version of NBCU's true crime brand Oxygen on January 1, 2025. The relaunched channel retained its existing Canadian original programming while adding Oxygen library programs. A nationwide free preview ran from January 1 to February 28, 2025.
Programming
The channel primarily airs true crime programming sourced from its American parent network, including series such as Dateline: Secrets Uncovered, Snapped, Cold Justice, and The Real Murders of... It has also commissioned several original Canadian productions, including Forensic Factor and Fear Thy Neighbor (a co-production with French-language sister network Investigation and the American Investigation Discovery).
Ownership
The channel is owned by Bell Media, a subsidiary of BCE Inc. (Bell Canada). The Oxygen brand is licensed from NBCUniversal under a content and licensing agreement.
Availability
Oxygen is available through participating television service providers across Canada, including Bell Fibe TV, Bell Satellite TV, Rogers Xfinity TV, and others. Programming is also available on demand via CTV.ca, the CTV app, and on Crave.
