MTV shutting down? Iconic network pulls plug on 24-hour music channels on New Year’s Eve. What to know about channels going off air

It’s an end of an era for MTV. MTV has shut down several of its dedicated 24-hour music channels before New Year’s Eve, a decision company announced in October. MTV, known to play music videos all day and night, stopped the broadcasting several of its music-only channels and they went officially dark at the end of 2025, reports Rolling Stone. The flagship channels will continue airing programming.

For someone who grew up in the 90s era loving music, fashion and pop culture, then MTV had to be your thing. Launched in 1981 in the United States, the powerhouse channel defined an entire generation and be it grunge, hip hop or pop, it became the centre of their musical dreams. On the last day, the channel played the final clip that MTV Music played when it was aired- “Video Killed by Radio Star” by the Buggles, pouring in emotional reactions about how MTV was a part of the growing up years of the millennials.

“While it’s a bit sad, it’s been a bit sad for a while. I think MTV had its time and history that time will never repeat, and it’s time to change,” former MTV DJ Daisy Fuentes told PEOPLE in October 2025. “We all change. We have to evolve. And I hope that there’s another version of them, just like there’s another version of us, us who were part of that we’re no longer the same. Why should we expect them to be? The world has changed so much.”
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Is MTV shutting down?

Social media is abuzz with netizens’ nostalgic post around the iconic music channel MTV of 1980-90s questioning the end of its legacy. But the truth is MTV is not shutting down altogether and the network has ceased broadcasting of its dedicated music channels from airwaves at the end of 2025. PEOPLE reported that MTV’s flagship channels will continue to air regularly scheduled progamming, including franchises like The Challenge and RuPaul’s Drag Race. According to Variety, MTV ranked 49th among cable networks in 2025, ahead of Comedy Central.“MTV’s specialist music channels in the UK will no longer operate as linear channels. The flagship MTV UK channel will continue to broadcast… Paramount is reviewing and adjusting its international Pay TV portfolio, given shifts in audience behavior towards streaming and digital platforms,” a source told Variety.
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Which channels have been discontinued by MTV?

MTV Music, MTV 80s, MTV 90s, Club MTV and MTV Live went off the air in various countries on Dec. 31. The United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, Australia and Brazil were impacted, according to the BBC. Each channel aired a different music video in its final moments. MTV Music played “Video Killed the Radio Star,” while MTV 90s concluded with the Spice Girls’ song “Goodbye.”
Now, when viewing these channels, viewers see a rotating image of the channel’s logo. A message also appears on the screen, stating that MTV content is still available on the main channel, MTV HD. According to Rolling Stone, MTV and its parent company, Paramount, have not publicly disclosed the reasoning behind the closure of these music channels.
Despite axing much of its dedicated music programming, MTV’s flagship channels are still expected to keep broadcasting in the UK and elsewhere. This is not the first time MTV has reduced its programming. Earlier this year, the network canceled several awards shows, including the MTV Europe Music Awards and MTV Latin America’s MIAAW Awards. The decisions to cancel award shows were taken in a bid to reduce costs by Paramount this year. n May 2023, the network’s news division, MTV News, was shut down after 36 years amid “pressure from broader economic headwinds,” per Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks president Chris McCarthy.

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