CNM Short Takes

The Toronto Show on tap?Craig Broadcast Systems Inc. won’t launch its controversial over-the-air toronto/one television station until this fall, but the company has applied to register a trademark for The Toronto Show. The trademark application is in association with proposed services including "(1) Design, development, production, broadcast and distribution of a television show(s), operation of a web site which provides information about television entertainment, television news, and television information; television broadcasting and telecommunication of information and advertisements for others." The application also lists a standard rote of products on which the company might slap the name, including media such as CDs and DVDs with pre-recorded content. Electronic greeting cards may pose security riskThe president of Toronto-based 800onemail issued a media release on February 13 to warn about the dangers of sending and receiving electronic greeting cards on Valentine’s Day. Gus Harsfai says e-cards can be used to transmit computer viruses, and that sending the greetings can also land users on spam email lists. He also cautions that senders might want to ensure their greetings are appropriate given their employer’s guidelines on email content. L’Oréal Paris, Global TV urge users to send e-cardsL’Oréal Paris in partnership with CanWest Media Sales have launched a nationally integrated "drive-to-web" campaign to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8. Several Global TV on-air personalities will participate in the campaign, which uses ad spots to drive women to a web site where they can find out more information about the day and to send an electronic greeting card to other women. The campaign will also be supported in print in various CanWest newspapers. Rogers offers real-time SMS/television interactivityRogers AT&T Wireless has announced that viewers of the reality show Star Académie will be able to interact with the program using their Rogers handsets to either communicate with participants or vote. TVA began broadcasting the show on February 16. Partnership launches broad study of T.O. digital playersThe City of Toronto’s Economic Development Division, the Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance and the SMART Toronto Technology Alliance are undertaking an interactive digital media study that will eventually be part of a comprehensive Toronto-area information and communications technologies sector profile and benchmarking study. The findings will also be used to update a Deloitte & Touche 1999 study. Funds will come from the grant recently won by SMART Toronto from Ontario’s Ministry of Enterprise, Opportunity and Innovation through the Interactive Digital Media Small Business Growth Fund (CNM, Feb. 7/03). AOL Time Warner retains services of Wellington Strategy GroupAOL Time Warner has retained the services of the Wellington Strategy Group Inc.’s Gordon Quaiattini to lobby the federal government on issues including the ongoing review of the Broadcasting Act, proposed changes to the Copyright Act, changes to the tax credit system in support of film production in Canada and the review of telecommunications foreign ownership restrictions. The company wouldn’t comment on whether it has replaced or added to its roster of Canadian lobbyists on the issues. Nanci Woods from The Capital Hill Group is still listed as a lobbyist for AOL Time Warner on the review of the Broadcasting Act, and Stikeman Elliott’s Randall Hofley is still listed as working on intellectual property issues including potential changes to the Copyright Act. Woods and Capital Hill’s David Dyer continue to be registered as lobbyists for AOL Canada on privacy issues and third-party access to high-speed cable. Federal budget makes two-year, $150-million CTF commitmentOttawa announced in its February 18 budget a contribution of $75 million in each of the next two years for the Canadian Television Fund. The current one-year contribution agreement was set to expire on March 31. The funding was not part of the Standing Committee on Finance’s budget recommendations last fall. The new funds represent a 25% reduction in the government’s contribution on an annual basis. The money saved on the CTF will reportedly be used to boost the film and TV tax credit for foreign productions to 16% from 11%. OMDC seeks applicantsThe Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC) is seeking applicants to two programs. Applications are due February 28 for the Market Access Program’s Los Angeles mission. Eight interactive digital media players will receive travel support of $1,500 to go to LA, will receive a briefing in Toronto which will proved an overview of the U.S. market, meet with key industry players and attend social events. Further information is available at www.omdc.on.ca under Business Development/Market Access Program. The OMDC is also offering bursaries to interactive digital media producers from Ontario of $1,500 to attend Interactive Screen 0.3 July 15-20 at the Banff Centre. The event is a program of the Banff New Media Institute. Applications should be directed to Banff Centre, and forms are available at www.banffcentre.com/programs/bnmi_interactive_screen. Mainframe wins Mattel Hot Wheels animation contractVancouver-based Mainframe Entertainment Inc. has been chosen by Mattel Inc. to animate the company’s new Hot Wheels Highway 35 World Race series being introduced this fall. The series is a multimedia brand with a new line of vehicles, track sets, comic books, home videos, a video game and a television network special. No value for the deal was announced. The project should further strengthen the existing Mainframe/Mattel relationship. Mainframe previously animated Barbie in the Nutcracker and Barbie as Rapunzel (CNM, March 27/02). Calling Card short films to air March 11 on ShowcaseFour films from the sixth annual Al Waxman Calling Card program run by the Ontario Media Development Corporation will air Tuesday, March 11 at 10 p.m. on Showcase. One of the films, Countdown, is being touted for its visual effects created by Toronto-based Seamless Creations. Inspired by the JMW Turner painting, Rain, Speed and Steam, visual effects artist Rob Del Ciancio created a set of clouds that interact with the actors. The set was created using Houdini, and the environment and final composite was achieved in two dimensions using Combustion. The other films include The Quarry, You Might be the Youngest and AWOL. Digital works featured in new Banff Centre exhibitionCalgary curator Diana Sherlock has assembled several digital works in a new exhibition of the works of seven Canadian, American and English artists to run from February 22 to April 19 at the Walter Philips Gallery, located in Glyde Hall at the Banff Centre. The show is called Super Modern World. New web development suite launched by MindAvenueMontreal-based MindAvenue has launched its AXELedge V2, the latest edition of its web design suite for creating interactvie graphics. The product allows for the creation and export of 3D animation to the .swf format, and to web video formats including MPEG-4. It also includes direct support for publishing interactive 3D QuickTime content. The suite is available at a suggested retail price of US$595. Alliance numériQC meets with QC finance minister on budgetAlliance numériQC president Alain Aubut made several recommnedations to Quebec finance minister Pauline Marois in pre-budget consultations. The list came as no surprise, comprising a wish list of items that the group has long been lobbying for. Measures would include support for the association, a broad re-evaluation of the various IT programs Quebec offers with an eye to better leveraging funds, provide SODEC with the tools it needs, create more venture capital funding, support commercialization, and create policies to buy and use Quebec-created content and applications (CNM, Oct. 3/02). The association has also asked the government to eliminate the negative effects of receiving Telefilm Canada Canada New Media Fund assistance. Companies winning loans from Telefilm have that money counted as revenue, which reduces the amount of tax credits they’re eligible for in the production of multimedia titles. terminus 1525 to showcase young artistic talentCanadian Heritage and the Canada Council for the Arts have created a partnership with the New Media Innovation Centre, the National Arts Centre, Hexagon, 4th Stage, CBC Radio 3 and others to launch a new online/offline collaborative artist showcase. The site launches March 8. Further information at www.terminus1525.ca.

CNM Short Takes

Broadcast | February 20, 2003

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