BSkyB set to challenge MTV with three music channels

BSkyB has unveiled its three new music channels which are ready to challenge MTV's stranglehold on the music TV marketplace.

Flaunt, The Amp and Scuzz are set to air in April, and each of the digital channels will launch with a commercial media partner to provide content and cross-promotion.

All three will be available on the Freeview and Sky Digital platforms, and BSkyB is in the process of negotiating carriage with the cable networks.

Flaunt will be a chart music station targeting girls aged 13 to 16, and as a partner, BSkyB has teamed up with Popworld, the teenage music and fashion website founded by the former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller.

This is the latest Popworld brand extension - last month it revealed plans to launch a monthly magazine.

The Amp has a core demographic of men aged 25 to 29 and will play music from artists such as White Stripes, Doves and Massive Attack. Xfm will be its commercial partner.

The final channel, Scuzz, is still without a partner, although BSkyB is looking for one. Its target audience is men in their late teens, with a rock content comprised of artists such as the Foo Fighters.

Lester Mordue, BSkyB's head of music television, said: "Sky is entering the music category with the same passion it has for sport and other entertainment.

Our channels will be highly interactive with a unique mix of music, lifestyle and entertainment that reflects their audience."

Mordue joined BSkyB as its first head of music from MTV Networks Europe, where most recently he was the head of programming at VH1.

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