Bell Local TV is making its way to the nation’s capital.

The VOD-driven community TV service for Fibe subscribers is expanding to Ottawa where it will continue its strategy of commissioning locally oriented original content.

The twist with the Ottawa launch, however, is the bilingual needs of the market.

According to Christopher Redmond, senior producer for Bell Local TV Ottawa, 50% of the content on the service will be in French, creating the opportunity for both Anglophone and Francophone producers to pitch the service. The target demo of the service is 18 to 34 year olds.

He says that while no content has been commissioned as of yet, community proposals have begun trickling in.

“We’re still in the really early stages. We still haven’t met with anyone who’s put anything in,” Redmond explained, adding that he is still in the process of hiring staff, including a producer, camera person and editor.

Redmond also said that the channel is unique from other community networks because its original content isn’t primarily studio-based, but instead created by his team and local indie producers.

“We’re going to be a lot more on the fly, in the community doing things and it’s going to be a lot more rock and roll. It’s going to be younger, it’s going to be a little more engaging that way,” he said.

Redmond says he’s started promoting the channel on social media and will be looking to use Bell’s assets to get the word out about it going forward.

“We have the whole Bell network that we can leverage in some way,” he said. “We’re at over 300 likes and just starting in that early kind of grassroots way.”