ANS TV

Azerbaijan News Service

Logo from 1999 to 2012
Country	Azerbaijan
Ownership
Owner	ANS Group of Companies
Key people	Vahid Mustafayev
History
Launched	26 November 1991 (1991-11-26)
Closed	18 July 2016 (2016-07-18)
Links
Website	anstv.ws

ANS TV (also known as ANS Independent Broadcasting Media Company, stylized as ⱭNß until 2012) was a news television channel in Azerbaijan, which was owned by ANS Group of Companies from its foundation on 26 November 1991 until its closure on 18 July 2016. Its name, ANS, stands for Azerbaijani News Service.

History

ANS was the first privately owned independent television company in the former Soviet Union.^[1] It has been described as a staunchly pro-government station.

In the early years of ANS' establishment, there were many local wars on the territory of the former Soviet Union. ANS TV got popularized by reporting news from the frontlines - Chechnya, Georgia, Ossetia, Karabakh, Abkhazia, Afghanistan, Ingushetia and frequently selling footage to BBC, CNN, NBC, ZDF, ARD, VOX, RAI, TF, Russia-1, CBS, TBS.^{[2][clarification needed]}

ANS TV was taken off the air in July 2016 when its broadcasting license was revoked after it had announced it was to broadcast an interview with Fethullah Gulen. Azerbaijan's National Television and Radio Council stated that the channel's license would be withdrawn permanently, accusing the station of "contradicting the strategic partnership between the Azeri and Turkish people by offering support to Fethullah Gulen and his supporters".^[3]

Bizimkiler

In the run-up to Azerbaijan's success in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011, the station ran a project called Bizimkiler, which included top local musicians playing globally-known western tunes.^[4]

See also

• ANS ChM

References

1. "Azerbaijan Development Bulletin". UNDP. Archived from the original on 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
2. "ANS Group of Companies". Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
3. Azerbaijani TV Station Closed Over 'Interview' With U.S.-Based Turkish Cleric Accused By Ankara In Coup https://www.rferl.org/a/azerbaijani-tv-station-shut-down-gulen-interview-turkey/27867890.html
4. "BIZIMKILER AN ALTERNATIVE SOUND OF MUSIC". Visions of Azerbaijan. July 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2019.