| Canal D | |
| Launch Date: | January 1, 1995 |
| Picture Format: | 1080i (HDTV) 480i (SDTV) |
| Owner: | Bell Media |
| Language: | French |
| Country: | Canada |
| Area: | Nationwide |
| Headquarters: | Montreal, Quebec |
| Sister Channels: | Noovo Investigation Discovery Canal Vie Z |
Canal D is a Canadian French language discretionary service owned by Bell Media. Canal D focuses on documentary programming primarily in the form of documentary-style television series that focus on a variety of topics such as crime, biographies, nature, and science.
In June 1994, Premier Choix: TVEC Inc. (Astral) was granted approval for a television broadcasting licence by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) for a channel called Arts et Divertissement, described as a service modelled after the American service, A&E, at that time. The proposed service was to focus on four main elements: documentaries (for which the service would primarily consist of), films, dramatic series, and arts programming.[1]
The channel was launched on January 1, 1995, as Canal D.
On March 4, 2013, the Competition Bureau approved the takeover of Astral Media by Bell Media.[2] Bell filed a new application for the proposed takeover with the CRTC on March 6, 2013;[3] the CRTC approved the merger on June 27, 2013,[4] effectively turning over control of Canal D to Bell on July 5 of that year.
On October 30, 2006, Astral Media launched "Canal D HD", an HD simulcast of Canal D's standard definition feed.[5]