Licensed in 1994, Showcase was a venture between Alliance Communications (prior to its merger with Atlantis), the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and a number of smaller independent Canadian producers, and was intended to be a showcase for "the best of independently-produced movies, drama, comedy and mini-series from Canada and around the world", with limited content from the United States. Showcase was formerly subject to a condition of licence obligating it to air 100%
Canadian content between 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. in the time zone of the originating feed. While some foreign programming did air in the late afternoon prior to this window, any foreign programming subject to
watershed restrictions was required to air at 10:00 p.m. ET or later per the Code of Ethics agreed upon by the industry. For a few years beginning in fall 2005, when the channel was drawing most of its highest ratings for programming acquired from American cable networks, Showcase promoted 10:00 p.m. as its flagship timeslot; in one marketing campaign, the network hired branded taxis in major markets to drive people home for free by 10:00 p.m. Showcase later spawned two
digital television services, the male-oriented
Action (formerly Showcase Action, which rebranded and relaunched as a Canadian version of
Adult Swim in April 2019) and the more female-oriented
Showcase Diva (which rebranded to a Canadian version of
Lifetime in 2012). On December 19, 2006, Alliance Atlantis launched a
high definition simulcast of Showcase, available through all major television providers in Canada. After several acquisitions over the years,
Alliance Atlantis gained full control of Showcase. On January 18, 2008, a joint venture between
Canwest and
Goldman Sachs Alternatives known as CW Media bought Alliance Atlantis and gained AAC's interest in Showcase. Following its acquisition by Canwest, the channel's new management felt that Showcase's adult programming was alienating viewers and advertisers. On August 31, 2009, Showcase underwent a major rebranding, introducing a new three-dimensional logo, and a new programming lineup with a greater focus on hit
dramas (such as
Bones and
NCIS) and feature films to make the channel more attractive to viewers and advertisers. On October 27, 2010, ownership changed again as
Shaw Communications gained control of Showcase as a result of its acquisition of Canwest and Goldman Sachs' interest in CW Media. For the Fall 2013 season, Showcase unveiled a new slogan and branding campaign: "Character is Everything". The four-week marketing campaign was highlighted by promos narrated by characters from Showcase's series in first-person. An interactive website was created by
Stitch Media. On it, viewers can create their own trailers for Showcase programming based on their own character. On March 30, 2015, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the network's launch, Showcase introduced a new logo inspired by its pre-2009 branding, and the new slogan "Beyond Ordinary". In April 2016, as part of a reorganization of Shaw's assets, Showcase was acquired by
Corus Entertainment. ==Programming==