It is owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (known in French as Société Radio-Canada) alongside CBC Television outlet CBMT-DT (channel 6).

The two stations share studios at Maison Radio-Canada on René Lévesque Boulevard East in Downtown Montreal; CBFT-DT's transmitter is located atop Mount Royal.

At that time, all English programming moved to CBMT, while CBFT became a purely French-language station as the flagship of the Télévision de Radio-Canada network for francophone viewers.

Prior to the digital transition, CBFT operated a translator network that stretched across most of Quebec, parts of Ontario, and most of northern Canada (Northwest Territories and Nunavut).

Due to a lack of sources for alternative programming, most Radio-Canada stations' schedules are largely identical to those of CBFT, other than commercials and regional news.