Israel+ (Canada)

Israel+ is an Israeli television and content brand led by CEO Sharon Lamberger.[1] Its stated international purpose is to make Israeli culture, creativity, and entertainment accessible in English and to position the service as a global destination for Israeli content.[1] The brand frames its role as broadening the international picture of Israel beyond news coverage through stories about people, food, innovation, travel, and entrepreneurship.[1]

Its programming spans culture, food, travel, innovation, entertainment, technology, entrepreneurship, music, sport, human-interest stories, documentaries, cooking programs, travel series, and Israeli television formats.[1] The brand has also described plans for additional digital services and FAST channels, as well as expansion into markets including Latin America.[1]

The reviewed sources do not state when the current Israel+ brand was founded or establish whether it is legally or corporately connected to the earlier Russian-language channel that used the same name. Earlier Israeli media coverage identified Israel Plus, later known as Channel 9, as an Israeli Russian-language television channel that went on air in November 2002. It was described as the first designated channel launched on Israeli cable and satellite television.[3]

Channel 9 broadcast news editions, news bulletins, weekend programs, and current-affairs programming with commentary. A 2015 Ynet report described it as the only channel addressing Russian speakers throughout the Middle East.[4]

The channel was operated by Vash Telecanal. In October 2003, Africa-Israel controlling shareholder Lev Leviev agreed to acquire 42% of the channel from Africa-Israel for 10.8 million shekels and assume half of Africa-Israel's obligations, then estimated at 10–15 million shekels.[5] The channel had accumulated losses of approximately 60 million shekels since its establishment.[5]

Channel 9 recorded its first monthly profit in December 2004, although it still posted a quarterly loss. Its advertising airtime sales rose 41% during 2004, while accumulated losses were estimated at 120–130 million shekels. Africa-Israel and Leviev each controlled approximately 42% at the time.[3]

In 2013, Leviev and Africa-Israel sold their reported 48% stake in Vash Telekanal to their partner Alexander Levin for $6.5 million, including a $540,000 owners' loan.[6] Globes described Levin as a Russian media businessman whose goals included attracting younger viewers, reaching Russian speakers outside Israel, and strengthening the channel's news desk.[6]

Following the ownership change, Channel 9 changed its management, personnel, programming, and news production. It moved to new studios in Modi'in that the channel said were built with an investment of more than 50 million shekels.[4] Channel 9 also described itself as the world's largest Russian-language broadcaster outside Russia, a characterization presented as the channel's own claim rather than an independently verified ranking.[4]

In 2007, Channel 9 launched broadcasts in Russia and other former Soviet countries under the Israel Plus brand.[7] An initial agreement with the Russian distributor Servincom made the channel available free of charge to hundreds of millions of potential viewers. It operated on a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week schedule using content already broadcast by Channel 9 in Israel.[7]

Channel management said the expansion was intended to provide Russian-language coverage of Israel and the Middle East that it considered insufficient in Russia and surrounding countries. It also cited viewers' family and social ties with people living in Israel.[8]

By 2013, Channel 9 broadcasts were distributed in Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, the Czech Republic, Germany, France, the United States, Canada, and Australia.[2]

The current Israel+ brand says it is available through major television platforms in the United States, Canada, and Europe, although the cited profile does not identify the Canadian carriers.[1] The brand presents this distribution as part of a broader expansion strategy that includes additional digital services, FAST channels, and entry into markets such as Latin America.[1]

Separately, a 2013 report listed Canada among the countries receiving broadcasts from the Russian-language Channel 9, alongside Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, the Czech Republic, Germany, France, the United States, and Australia.[2] The reviewed sources do not establish that this earlier Canadian distribution and the current Israel+ service are part of the same corporate operation.

Israel+ presents English-language distribution as a way for international viewers to encounter Israeli society beyond news coverage. Its stated model is to create a continuing destination for programming about Israeli people, creativity, culture, food, travel, innovation, and entrepreneurship rather than exporting individual programs separately.[1]

In April 2025, Israel+ joined Ynet Global and ILTV News in announcing "Voices of Valor," a virtual program honoring the heroes of October 7, Israel's defenders, and Jewish and non-Jewish individuals described as having stood up for Zionism and against antisemitism.[9] Lamberger said, "This isn't just an event. It's a bridge between Israel and the world—an emotional journey that reminds us what we're fighting for and who we are as a people." He added that the organizers expected millions to connect with the program.[9]

The principal cited profile of the current Israel+ brand is explicitly labeled as having been written in cooperation with Israel Plus. It does not identify the brand's ownership or precise corporate structure, provide independently audited audience figures, or name its Canadian carriers.[1] The reviewed sources also leave unresolved whether the current brand has any corporate connection to the earlier Channel 9 operation that used the Israel Plus name.[1][2]

Regarding Channel 9, former editor-in-chief Yana Dan criticized the post-2013 emphasis on Russian-related foreign news and questioned whether the station remained an Israeli channel broadcasting in Russian or had become an international or effectively Russian channel operating from the Middle East.[4] Channel 9 responded that its changes reflected evolving programming, regulatory, and staffing needs, but the quoted response did not directly address Dan's criticism of the balance between Israeli and Russian news.[4]