The Channel Six Project

The Channel Six Project was a project by Mega Broadcasting Corporation that started on November 15, 1968 in an attempt to establish a public television broadcaster in the Philippines, by establishing it on channel 6.

Out of the three channels that was launched by the network, Empire Television was the longest-running television station. The project ended on November 5, 1981, three days after Empire Television went on the air, when they decided to make the station permanent.

Station Six (1968-1976)
Main article: Station Six

The Mega Broadcasting Corporation launched the project in order to establish a public broadcaster in the Philippines, since there isn't any at the time.

They launched an experimental station in the channel number 6, as The Filipino Public Television, which they broadcasted between December 11-21, 1968. It was officially launched on January 21, 1969, as Station Six, providing educational programming that includes documentaries, student-produced programming and current affairs. It was funded by the government and the public.

During that time, they only broadcasted 8 hours a day, from 11 am to 7 pm.

However on September 23, 1972, when martial law was declared by President-turned dictator Ferdinand Marcos, the station was closed. They relaunched the station on November 22, 1972, returning with a variety of programs, such as educational programs, children's shows, music programs, comedy, and dramas. After the relaunch, they started broadcasting 15 hours a day, from 7:30 am to 10:30 pm.

On November 1976, they announced that they were being replaced by Islands Six Television, an upcoming television station that targets the youth. They aired a live special program at December 31, 1976 at 7:00 pm, signing off with its station ID and a new year's message. After a few minutes, the screen cuts to a Philips PM5544 color test card, and then to black.

Islands Six Television (1976-1981)
Islands Six Television replaced Station Six after several employees agreed to replace the television station. They divided the station into two separate channels, Northern Six Television (nicknamed The Blue Television) which broadcasts at the northern half of the Philippines, and Southern Six Television (nicknamed The Yellow Television) which covers the southern half of the Philippines.

They launched on December 31, 1976 at 9:50 pm, just a few hours after Station Six's final sign-off, starting with a new years message and its station identification. The channel aired several movies and a series of short films, followed by a launch night at 11:30 pm. Their first broadcast ended at approximately 1:15 a.m. on January 1, 1977.

ISTV signs on every 6:45 am, and signs off at 11:00 pm. Most of Station Six's programming continued to air in the new channel.

They have three major programming blocks:

On September 25, 1981, a promo was aired in the channel, which announces a channel rebranding on November 2. The promo's slogan was "Different channel, but same excellent programming."
 * From 7:00 to 11:30 am and 3:30 to 5:30 pm, They have ISTV1, which broadcasts entertainment programs, such as sitcoms, dramas, music shows, and talk shows.
 * From 12:00 to 3:00pm and 6:00 to 7:30pm, They have ISTV2, which broadcasts educational and current affairs programs, such as documentaries, news programs, and science programs.
 * From 8:00 to 10:45 pm, They have Late-Night ISTV, which broadcasts feature-length films, animated shorts, and talk shows.

On November 1, 1981, they aired a live farewell program, similar to Station Six's. They signed-off at 11:45 pm.

Empire Television (1981-present)
On November 2, 1981 at 6:00 am, Empire Television signed-on with a clock ident, a station ID, and continuity.