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Canale 5 is an Italian free-to-air generalist television channel owned by Mediaset, the broadcasting group controlled through MFE - MediaForEurope. In 1980 it became the first private television network to achieve national coverage in Italy, breaking the RAI monopoly and remaining one of the country's most-watched channels ever since. Its schedule is built for a broad family audience: entertainment shows, reality formats, films, series, soaps and the TG5 news bulletins.

From Telemilanocavo to a National Network

The channel's roots lie in Telemilanocavo, a cable station founded in 1974 by Giacomo Properzj and Alceo Moretti in a suburb of Milan. Sold in 1976 for a symbolic one lira to a company of the Berlusconi group, it was renamed Telemilano 58 after its UHF frequency. The Canale 5 trademark was registered in Milan on 23 February 1979, and in January 1980 Silvio Berlusconi agreed with around 25 private broadcasters across Italy to air the same programmes in the same time slots. The experiment opened with the game show I sogni nel cassetto hosted by Mike Bongiorno, distributed on videocassettes sent by courier from Milan - the technique nicknamed "pizzone". On 11 November 1980 the Canale 10 name used in central and southern Italy was dropped and the network became Canale 5 nationwide.

Growth into the Fininvest Flagship

In 1981 the channel bought the rights to the American soap Dallas, fighting a famous ratings war against Dynasty on rival Rete 4, while blocks of cartoons and quiz shows filled the daytime grid. Fininvest bought Italia 1 in 1982 and took over Rete 4 in 1984, moving long-running successes such as The Maurizio Costanzo Show to Canale 5. After a court-ordered blackout in three regions in October 1984, the Craxi government's so-called Berlusconi Decree restored the network's broadcasts. The long-running Buona Domenica and the courtroom show Forum both began in 1985, and on 14 January 1987 the premiere of the film The Woman in Red drew nearly 13 million viewers, around a 48 percent share. Under the 1990 Mammi law the network finally gained permission to broadcast live.

News and Satire

The channel's news identity is TG5, launched in 1992 and broadcast from Rome in several editions daily; its 8 pm edition is among the highest-rated news programmes of Italian commercial television, and the editor-in-chief is Clemente Mimun. The information offering also includes the morning talk and news show Mattino Cinque, the afternoon Pomeriggio Cinque and the satirical programme Striscia la notizia.

Entertainment and Reality Formats

In 2000 Grande Fratello brought reality television to Italy on Canale 5, its final episode reaching 16 million viewers. Maria De Filippi's productions became pillars of the schedule: the talent show Amici di Maria De Filippi and the talk format Uomini e Donne. The grid also features the talent competition Tu si que vales, the comedy show Zelig, game shows Caduta libera and La ruota della fortuna, the daily court session of Forum and the soaps Beautiful and Una vita, alongside films and series in prime time.

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