The station first went on the air on October 1, 1961 as Edmonton's second television station; the previous CBC affiliate, CFRN (channel 3), switched to the newly established CTV on the same day. Initially, it was branded as "CBXT 5", or "Channel 5". After being known as "Edmonton/5" in the late 1970s, it became known as "XTV" in 1980. It reverted to the "Edmonton 5" brand in the mid-1980s and then, on January 1, 1986, became "CBC Television Edmonton". Its local newscasts were originally known as "Metro".