US media company Paramount is preparing a major withdrawal from the linear television market, with multiple MTV channels across Europe set to close at the end of 2025.
According to a BBC report, the closures will include MTV Music, MTV 80s, MTV 90s, Club MTV and MTV Live in the UK, all scheduled to go off air on 31 December 2025. The flagship MTV channel (MTV HD), which now focuses largely on reality and entertainment formats, will remain available. The decision reflects a long-term decline in the audience for linear music channels as viewers increasingly turn to platforms such as YouTube and TikTok for music videos.
Industry observers note that the UK shutdowns are part of a much broader realignment of Paramount’s international portfolio. In several Central and Eastern European markets, including Poland and Hungary, MTV music channels, TeenNick, NickMusic, Comedy Central Extra and Paramount Network are expected to close at the end of 2025. Similar reports have emerged from the Benelux region, suggesting that local versions of MTV 80s, MTV 00s and other thematic feeds are also being discontinued.
As affected TV platform operators confirmed to Broadband TV News, MTV’s parent company will also shut down MTV-branded channels in Germany and Austria. In Germany, one operator has already informed its B2B customers about the closure of MTV Live HD on its platform and nationwide at the end of the year.
When approached by Broadband TV News, both Paramount’s German and the international press department declined to comment.
