Venezuela TV station on cable after Chavez shutdown

CARACAS, July 11 (Reuters) - An opposition television station that President Hugo Chavez stopped from broadcasting on a nationwide frequency will return to Venezuelan screens on Monday, but with a much smaller audience, RCTV network said.

Chavez in May refused to renew RCTV's license to broadcast on a public frequency on grounds that it backed a failed coup in 2002, but critics at home and abroad said the move showed the self-styled socialist leader was threatening free speech.

"As of July 16 we will be on the air," RCTV chief Marcel Granier said at a news conference on Wednesday.

RCTV, formerly the nation's longest-running television station, will broadcast its news and commentary programs and racy soap operas via digital television provider DirecTV DTV.N and a group of local cable providers.

The government says about one in five Venezuelan homes have subscription television, which does not reach much of Chavez's majority poor support base.

RCTV's closure, which polls say was opposed by seven out of 10 Venezuelans, sparked demonstrations by thousands of opposition sympathizers and spurred new political activism by university students.

Critics ranging from the U.S. Senate to the watchdog organization Human Rights Watch said the move threatened free speech and would intimidate other media into silencing criticisms.

For years, RCTV backed opposition campaigns to oust Chavez through a range of efforts including a two-month general strike and the 2002 coup.

Other national private networks also used to oppose Chavez but are now more favorable to the government and have retained their licenses.