Yomiuri Telecasting Company: Background to the launch
In 1953 , prior to its launch in Tokyo, Nippon Television Network Corporation (hereafter referred to as "NTV") submitted an application for a broadcasting license in Osaka to the Radio Regulatory Commission . However, at the time, there were only two radio waves allocated to the Osaka area, and licenses were given to two stations, NHK Osaka Broadcasting Station and Osaka Television Broadcasting (OTV, now Asahi Television Broadcasting Corporation ), and the license for "NTV Osaka Broadcasting Station" was rejected.

The reason for the rejection was that "Nippon Television represents the Tokyo area, and broadcasting in Osaka would be 'crossing borders.'" [ note 2 ] Matsutaro Shoriki , head of the Yomiuri Shimbun and Nippon Television , applied to the Radio Regulatory Commission to establish regional broadcasting stations in Sapporo , Nagoya , and Fukuoka in addition to Osaka, but this was also rejected for the same reason . [ note 3 ]

At that time, the Yomiuri Shimbun had expanded into Osaka, and was competing fiercely with the Asahi Shimbun , the Mainichi Shimbun , and others in sales. Since Osaka Television Broadcasting was a television station established by the Asahi Shimbun, the Mainichi Shimbun, and the Asahi Broadcasting Corporation and New Japan Broadcasting (now the Mainichi Broadcasting System), Tsutomu Mitsuo , the president of the Osaka Yomiuri Shimbun (now the Yomiuri Shimbun Osaka Headquarters) at the time , was convinced that "in order to increase circulation against the two newspapers, we need to have our own affiliated television station," and the Yomiuri Shimbun also decided to create a television station with investment from the Kansai business community, centered around the Osaka Yomiuri Shimbun. Tsutomu was the representative promoter and gathered promoters from the business community.

The name of the broadcasting station was " Shin -Osaka Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd. " (abbreviated as NOTV = New Osaka Television . It was called " No-Tele "), and the founding general meeting was held in February 1957. The company building was constructed by borrowing most of the grounds of the Tenman Betsuin temple of the Otani-ha Shinshu sect in Iwai-cho , Kita-ku, Osaka (now Higashi-Tenma ) .

In October 1956, they submitted an application for a broadcasting license to the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications. In October 1957, a provisional license was issued to Shin-Osaka Television Broadcasting as a quasi-educational station (Channel 10, JOIX-TV). The company held its founding general meeting on February 12, 1958, and on August 1 of the same year, the company changed its name from "Shin-Osaka Television Broadcasting" to "Yomiuri Telecasting Co., Ltd." (abbreviated as YTV, nicknamed Yomiuri Television). On the 28th of the same month , it opened as the second commercial television station in the Kinki region, completely transferring all of the Nippon Television programs that had been networked with OTV.

The opening of Yomiuri Television resolved the dissatisfaction of sponsors of Nippon Television Network Corporation's programs, which had not been broadcast in the Kinki region due to OTV's cross-network policy. [ Note 4 ] This also contributed greatly to the increase in circulation of the Yomiuri Shimbun in western Japan .

Among the commercial television stations headquartered in Osaka (Osaka-based television stations), it is the only one that does not have capital from a Kansai private railway , and its capital is composed of Yomiuri Shimbun Group and Nomura Securities affiliates . [ Note 5 ]

Network transition
August 28, 1958 - Launched. As the first station in the Nippon Television Network, it declared itself a "station network station." Since then, Nippon Television has consistently been the main broadcaster of all programs.
April 1, 1966 -News network NNN was launched and the station joined.
June 14, 1972 - Joined the NNS, which was launched on this day.
chronology
The original company building (part of it) was demolished around 1990, and the site is currently used as a parking lot as of 2021 (October 1989, Higashitenma, Kita-ku, Osaka City)
The original company building (part of it) was demolished around 1990, and the site is currently used as a parking lot as of 2021 (October 1989, Higashitenma, Kita-ku, Osaka City)

The second-generation company building before the logo change (March 2006)
The second-generation company building before the logo change (March 2006)

The second-generation company building after the logo change (from autumn 2007 to 2019. The black building is the Osaka Tokio Marine & Nichido Building)
The second-generation company building after the logo change (from autumn 2007 to 2019. The black building is the Osaka Tokio Marine & Nichido Building )

Yomiuri Television's broadcasting equipment transport vehicle (Hino Profia) with the new "ytv" logo painted on it
Yomiuri Television's broadcasting equipment transport vehicle ( Hino Profia ) with the new "ytv" logo painted on it
November 26, 1956 - Application for a 10 kW television broadcasting license [ 7 ] .
1957 (Showa 32)
January 14 - The founding office is opened within the Osaka Yomiuri Shimbun (now the Yomiuri Shimbun Osaka Headquarters) . [ 7 ]
October 22 - Preliminary license issued.
1958 (Showa 33)
February 12 - Shin-Osaka Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd. inaugural general meeting [ 7 ] .
February 13 - With investment from the Osaka Yomiuri Shimbun and others, the company is established as a quasi-educational station , the Shin-Osaka Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd. (NOTV). Registration completed . [ 7 ]
August 1 - Company name changed to "Yomiuri Television Broadcasting Corporation" (YTV).
August 3 - Test radio signal transmission from 12:17 p.m. [ 7 ]
August 16 -Test broadcasts begin [ 7 ] .
August 20 - Full license issued (call sign: JOIX-TV, call name: Yomiuri Television) [ 7 ] .
On August 28th, at 9:00am , the station started broadcasting from 2-36 Iwai-cho, Kita-ku, Osaka (later changed to "1-8-11 Higashitenma" due to a change in the name of the town in response to the implementation of the residential address system ) ( Osaka's second station). The station was launched by transferring Nippon Television (NTV) programs that had been networked with Osaka Television Broadcasting (OTV, now Asahi Television Broadcasting Corporation ). As the first Nippon Television affiliate, it announced that it would become a "station network station" (the forerunner of full network stations) . [ Note 6 ]
January 8, 1959 (Showa 34) - Early morning broadcast begins (from 8:00 a.m. [ note 7 ] [ 7 ] )
1960 (Showa 35)
January 20 -Application for an experimental color television station license [ 7 ] .
February 15 - A 2-inch color VTR manufactured by RCA is introduced . [ 8 ] [ 9 ]
March 31 - Three color video cameras are installed. A full-scale system is in place to prepare for the start of color broadcasting. [ 9 ]
September 2 - At 2:20 p.m., a color broadcast test signal was transmitted. [ 7 ] [ 10 ]
September 10 - After passing the inspection by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications Kinki Radio Regulatory Bureau, regular color television broadcasting begins at 1:15 p.m. [ 7 ] (the first in the Osaka area, along with NHK Osaka Broadcasting Station and Asahi Television Broadcasting Corporation) . [ Footnotes 8 ] [ 11 ] In addition, the first color spot broadcasting in Japan also begins. [ 10 ]
October 21 - RCA color television cameras are installed. In-house production of color programs begins. [ 10 ]
November 21 - RCA studio color cameras are introduced. [ 12 ]
November 30 - The company completes the conversion of its Studio 3 broadcasting equipment to color. [ 12 ]
December 4 - The color broadcast vehicle is completed. [ 12 ]
December 13 - Broadcast of "Your Color Show", the first music program in Western Japan to be shot with a studio color camera. [ Notes 9 ] [ 11 ] [ 12 ]
June 10, 1962 – Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation's microwave simultaneous television network line becomes the first to be colorized (high-standard) on the Hokuriku down route (Tokyo → Hokuriku → Osaka). This allows Nippon Television to broadcast color simultaneously. [ 13 ] [ 14 ]
1963 (Showa 37)
April 1 - The Tokaido route (Osaka → Nagoya → Shizuoka → Tokyo) of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation's microwave simultaneous television network line is converted to high-standard color . [ 15 ] This makes it possible to simultaneously broadcast in color to Nippon Television.
December 1 - The Tokaido down route of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation's microwave simultaneous television network is converted to color (high standard). [ 16 ]
1964 (Showa 39)
February 2 - A color camera is brought to the Takarazuka Revue and the "Takarazuka Revue 50th Anniversary Performance - Invitation to the Review" is broadcast in color. [ 17 ]
March 8 - The Osaka Grand Sumo Tournament is broadcast in color for the first time. [ 16 ]
August 28 – On this day, which marks the sixth anniversary of the station's launch, the station will broadcast six and a half hours of color programming as "Color Campaign Day." [ 17 ]
August 28, 1965 – On this day, the seventh anniversary of the station's launch, the station broadcast seven hours of color programming a day, including the in-house produced "Victor Kayo Show," as "Color Campaign Day. " [ 18 ]
1967 (Showa 42)
April 1 - Programming and production agreement (NY Agreement) signed with Nippon Television Network Corporation.
October 11 - A Toshiba Ampex 2-inch high-band VTR (VR-2000) is purchased and installed. [ 19 ]
November 1 - The Bureau is changed from a quasi-educational bureau to a general bureau . [ 20 ]
1970 (Showa 45)
March 14 - In commemoration of the Osaka Expo , which had its opening ceremony on this day, the station became the host and broadcasting station for " The Japan World Expo Begins, " the first joint production and simultaneous broadcast by all commercial television stations affiliated with the Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association at the time. [ Footnote 10 ] [ 21 ]
October 4 - " I Want to Go Far Away " begins broadcasting.
1978 (Showa 53)
September 20 - 1-inch VTR is introduced. [ 22 ]
September 22 - The company obtains a preliminary license for practical test broadcasting of audio multiplex broadcasting . [ 22 ] [ 23 ]
September 30 - The company obtains a full license for the practical test broadcasting of audio multiplex broadcasting . [ 23 ] [ 24 ]
October 1 - Test broadcasting of audio multiplex broadcasting begins (second after Nippon Television Network Corporation. However, initially, only bilingual broadcasts were available via the Internet, and stereo was only available through the company's own transmission, including video feed). [ Note 11 ] [ 22 ] [ 23 ] [ 25 ]
November 11 - The first stereo broadcast of a self-produced program on this day was the live broadcast of "Game 10 of the Japan-US Baseball Series" from Nishinomiya Stadium . [ 23 ] [ 26 ]
December 31 - On this day, the show " Pink Lady Sweat and Tears of New Year's Eve 150 Minutes!! " aired nationwide on Nippon Television , and was the first to be broadcast in stereo via the Internet. [ 22 ] [ 27 ]
1979 (Showa 54)
March 19 - Starting from this day, the live Nippon Television program " NTV Kohaku Uta no Best Ten ," which is broadcast every Monday, becomes the only regular simultaneous internet program to begin broadcasting in stereo (the other programs began broadcasting in stereo on August 8 of the same year). [ 28 ]
August 1 - The company began broadcasting its self-produced nationwide program " 2-ji no Wide Show " in stereo over simultaneous internet lines on the same day. [ Footnote 12 ] [ 29 ]
August 8 - Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Public Corporation (now NTT ) completes construction to convert television relay lines in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Hokuriku (Kanazawa) to stereo. [ 30 ] [ 31 ] As a result, the company begins full-scale stereo broadcasting via its own Internet lines.
In the early 1980s, Sanrio appointed "Toppy and Cuppy" as mascot characters, designed by Shinichi Emura, and these characters were used for about 10 years . [ 32 ] [ 33 ]
1988 (Showa 63)
August 1 - The head office building is moved from Higashitenma, Kita-ku, Osaka to Osaka Business Park (OBP) at 2-2-33 Shiromi, Higashi-ku (now Chuo-ku), Osaka . The 10 mark begins full-scale use.
April 1, 1989 ( Heisei 1) - Clear Vision broadcasting begins.
1993 (Heisei 5)
June 6 - " Osaka Honwaka TV " begins broadcasting.
October 21 - " Downtown DX " begins broadcasting.
January 8, 1996 - Detective Conan begins broadcasting.
1998 (Heisei 10): Appointed "I Need-kun" as a pet character. (At that time, there was a slogan called "I Need 10").
July 1, 2000 - The mascot character "TV Yan" (a character based on a television cathode ray tube. The design was later slightly changed in 2002) was unveiled. The character is a blue TV with a yellow screen. The character appears on screen and on the network's website. In 2002 he got a dog-like sidekick known as Telepochi
2003 (Heisei 15)
July 13 - " Takaji's Sokomade Itte Iinkai " begins broadcasting.
December 1st -Yomiuri Digital Television (JOIX-DTV, 14ch) begins broadcasting on terrestrial digital broadcasting . At the same time as the start of regular broadcasting, the operation of an analog/digital integrated master is also started (the master manufacturer is also changed from NEC to Toshiba ). There is also a TV Yan/Telepochi icon about this
2004
May 24 - The "Yomiuri Television" ending logo is modified to include a image of TV Yan next to it
July 29th - August 7th, 2005 - A large-scale event called " Tempozan 10 Days Exciting Treasure Island " was held at Tempozan Harbor Village .
July 31, 2006 - " Information Live Miyaneya " begins broadcasting. Write a news article Dec 24 2006, it attempts to obtain cable carriage in 4 other countries
August 2006
August 3: Test broadcasts for new programming and potential events for the upcoming year are planned, enhancing audience engagement.
December 2006
December 1-25: Christmas Fair in Osaka
A festive event hosted by Yomiuri Television's mascots, "TV Yan" and "Telepochi," takes place at various locations in Osaka, featuring activities, entertainment, and special programming related to the holiday season.
January 2007
January 1: New Year programming begins, featuring specials and highlights from the previous year.
March 2007
March 31: Concludes the fiscal year with a review of key programming success, ratings, and audience engagement metrics. Future programming strategies are discussed for the upcoming year, focusing on improving viewer involvement and expanding broadcast offerings.
April 1, 2007 - In preparation for the 50th anniversary of the station's launch, the "Ukiuki Wakuwaku Campaign" was launched. A new CI was introduced, and the logo was changed from "Yomiuri Television" to "ytv" (when used in kanji for news-related purposes, NNN source subtitles, etc., it is written as "Yomiuri Television" ). The third mascot character, " Ukiki the Monkey", was also born on this day.
2009 (Heisei 21)
March 30 - " Kansai Information Network ten! " begins broadcasting.
November 24 - The Tokyo branch office moves to the Nippon Television Tower (Nippon Television's headquarters building) in Higashi-Shinbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo.
July 5, 2010 - In accordance with an agreement between NHK and the Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association, all analog broadcasting programs will be switched to letterbox broadcasting with a 16:9 aspect ratio (excluding commercials produced with a 4:3 aspect ratio) in preparation for the transition to terrestrial digital broadcasting. Also, from September 6 of the same year, a notice to raise awareness of preparations for terrestrial digital broadcasting began to be displayed at all times during the black bars on analog broadcasts, except during commercials.
2011 (Heisei 23)
July 24 - Analog broadcasting ended at noon on this day. After a blue screen announcement for inquiries, a special closing [ 33 ] was broadcast at around 11:59 p.m., and at 11:59:59 p.m., analog broadcasting, which had continued for 52 years and 7 months, was stopped and completely switched to digital broadcasting.
October 3 - As a result of the shift to stereo broadcasting of all programs by Nippon Television affiliates , all programs produced by Yomiuri Television that had previously been broadcast in mono were switched to stereo broadcasting (some were mono-stereo broadcasting). Write a list of events from 2012 to 2019

Here is a list of notable events for Yomiuri Telecasting Company (ytv) from 2012 to 2019 based on the historical context and typical activities of a major Japanese TV station, as no specific details were provided in the text for these years:

2012

Continued expansion of digital content and online streaming initiatives to adapt to changing viewer habits.
Strengthened partnerships with Nippon Television Network Corporation for content and program sharing.
2013

Upgraded broadcasting technology and infrastructure, improving HD and multi-platform compatibility.
Launch of new local and regional programming to boost Kansai area viewer engagement.
2014

Participation in nationwide broadcasting campaigns and events coordinated by commercial broadcasters.
Introduction of new on-air personalities and refreshed program line-up for prime time slots.
2015

Commemorated 57th anniversary with special programming events and community engagement activities.
Further adoption of social media platforms for audience interaction and program promotion.
2016

Introduction of advanced digital broadcasting formats and interactive viewer services.
Collaboration on major sports and cultural event coverage within the Kansai region.
2017

Expansion of children’s programming and family-oriented content, capitalizing on mascot characters like “TV Yan” and “Telepochi”.
Upgrades to studio facilities and mobile broadcasting units.
2018

Strengthening of news broadcasting capabilities within the NNN network framework.
Launch of new variety shows and entertainment programming tailored to younger demographics.
2019

Preparation and promotional activities leading up to the 61st anniversary.
Continued transition towards digital and HD content delivery with innovations in program production.
If you want, I can provide further details or look for specific programming or corporate events within these years.

Write a forum conversation asking when was Ukiki dropped

User1:
Hey everyone, quick question! Does anyone know when Yomiuri Television stopped using their mascot Ukiki the Monkey? I remember it was introduced around 2007, but I’m not sure when they stopped featuring it.

User2:
Good question! I don’t remember the exact year either. Ukiki was definitely popular for a while after the 50th anniversary rebranding in 2007. Maybe sometime in the 2010s?

User3:
I think Ukiki faded out gradually. I remember seeing less of Ukiki after around 2014 or 2015, but YTV never made an official announcement about retiring the mascot.

User4:
From what I recall, TV Yan and Telepochi remained the main mascots later on. Ukiki just kinda disappeared without much fanfare. Maybe it was quietly dropped as the station updated its branding and focused on newer campaigns.

User1:
Thanks for the info! I guess unless someone finds an official source, the exact date might be a bit of a mystery. If anyone has more concrete info, please share!

Write a reply saying they kept the logo that was introduced in 2007, but mascot wise things went back to the way they were, Everything else remained the same, It felt kind of refreshing seeing Yanpochi again,

User5:
From what I’ve seen, Yomiuri Television actually kept the logo that was introduced in 2007 with the “ytv” branding, so that didn’t change. But mascot-wise, things pretty much went back to how they were before Ukiki came around. TV Yan and Telepochi (or “Yanpochi,” as some fans call them) became the main mascots again, and it felt kind of refreshing to see them take center stage once more. Other than that, pretty much everything else about the station’s branding and programming stayed the same.

Write a conversation saying it felt like they were dead between 2007 (when Ukiki was launched) and 2014