NEW YORK, Jan 4: MTV officially pulled the plug on several of its dedicated 24-hour music channels on December 31, 2025, ending a 44-year era that defined music television and shaped pop culture for generations.
The iconic music network shut down MTV Music, MTV 80s, MTV 90s, Club MTV and MTV Live across multiple countries including the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, Australia and Brazil.
On its final broadcast, MTV Music played “Video Killed the Radio Star” by the Buggles—the same song that launched the channel when it debuted in the United States on August 1, 1981. MTV 90s concluded its run with the Spice Girls’ “Goodbye,” while each channel aired different music videos in their final moments.
“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.”
Despite widespread speculation on social media, MTV is not shutting down altogether. The network’s flagship channels will continue airing regularly scheduled programming, including popular franchises like The Challenge and RuPaul’s Drag Race.
According to Variety, MTV ranked 49th among cable networks in 2025, ahead of Comedy Central. “Paramount is reviewing and adjusting its international Pay TV portfolio, given shifts in audience behavior towards streaming and digital platforms,” a source told Variety.
Viewers now see rotating images of channel logos with messages stating that MTV content remains available on the main channel, MTV HD.
MTV and its parent company Paramount have not publicly disclosed the reasoning behind the closures. However, the decision comes amid aggressive cost-cutting measures as Paramount Global merges with Skydance Media.
Earlier in 2025, MTV canceled several awards shows including the MTV Europe Music Awards and MTV Latin America’s MIAAW Awards to reduce costs. In May 2023, MTV News was shut down after 36 years amid “pressure from broader economic headwinds”.
The shutdown triggered emotional responses across social media from millennials who grew up with MTV as their primary source for music, fashion and pop culture. For those who came of age in the 1990s, MTV was the powerhouse channel that defined an entire generation through grunge, hip hop and pop music.
“Damn End of era. Couldn’t be a kid in the 90s without MTV. It was everything,” one fan expressed on social media.
The closures mark the definitive end of the linear music video era, as streaming giants like YouTube and TikTok have transformed how audiences consume music content.
