Posted on

Technicians reject contract offer from Bell

Bell Canada was advised today that Craft and Services employees represented by the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers’ Union of Canada (CEP) have voted to reject the company’s final contract offer.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

Infosat gets new chief executive

Infosat Communications has appointed Graeme Watson as the new president and CEO, effective immediately. Previously, Watson held the position of senior VP of operations.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

Advertisers lobby for better protection on the broadcasting dial

The CRTC should allow advertising on video-on-demand programs, maintain the 12-minute per hour advertising cap on specialty shows and limit the number of discretionary services a company can own. It’s a wish list the Association of Canadian Advertisers (ACA) – often the forgotten stakeholder in the broadcasting industry – will be pitching to the CRTC at next month’s BDU and specialty hearing.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

RDS grabs CTV director

Réseau des sports (RDS) has named Mike Piperni its new executive producer, effective in May. Piperni joints RDS from CTV Montreal where he has held the position of director of news and public affairs since 2004. Previous to that he worked at SRC for six years as assignment editor in the sports department, as well as TQS for three years as editor in chief. Overall, Piperni has worked in radio and television for close to 30 years. His main responsibility at RDS will be to ensure editorial coordination on  all information platforms, as well as over see the supervision and training of newsroom staff.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

W Network takes to the skies

Corus Entertainment and in-flight entertainment specialist Spafax Canada Inc. have announced the launch of a dedicated W Network in-flight channel on Air Canada‘s personal audio video on demand (AVOD) system. "At Spafax, we are always seeking out new and exciting programming opportunities to help deliver a unique and diverse entertainment offering to Air Canada’s passengers," said Rebecca Bircher, manager in-flight entertainment and content development at Spafax. "Female travellers are an important passenger segment, and we are pleased to partner with W Network to provide entertainment specifically targeted to this audience." Beginning this month Air Canada patrons can enjoy programming including Take This House and Sell It!, Style By Jury, Divine Design and Maxed Out on the W branded channel.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

CTF announces 2008-09 BPEs

The Canadian Television Fund has announced its Broadcaster Performance Envelopes for the 2008-2009 broadcast season. Of the $275 million being distributed this year by the fund, $173 million will be allocated to English-language broadcasters and $79 million to French-language broadcasters for drama, children’s and youth, variety and performing arts, and documentary programming, and $23 million will be allocated to development projects, French-language projects outside of Quebec, aboriginal production, and versioning. CBC/Radio-Canada receives 37% of the total BPE allocation as a condition of the CTF’s Contribution Agreement with the Department of Canadian Heritage. More information on the distribution of funds will be posted on the CTF website, www.ctf-fct.ca.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

Regional telcos apply to beef up IPTV services with VOD

South-western Ontario telecommunications providers Bruce Telecom and  Wightman Telecom Ltd. have applied to the CRTC to add video-on-demand to their IPTV services. The applications were among 40 released by the regulator Friday, which also included a request from Rogers Broadcasting Ltd. for a Category 2 specialty service called Baseball TV.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

Cable company alliance in the making

All the stars appear to be aligned for a pan-Canadian cable company new entrant alliance after Industry Canada’s upcoming spectrum auction is complete.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

Is Telus going to adopt GSM and introduce a new youth brand?

Faced with a maturing mobile market and slowing net subscriber additions, Telus Corp. appears set to make a major change in strategy.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required
Posted on

Rogers Wireless can’t wait to offer DRM-free music

Removing digital rights management (DRM) protections from online music is a pivotal step in growing Canada’s legitimate online music market, says an executive with Rogers Wireless. While Rogers is promoting its indie music portal Redpipe.ca through an upcoming online battle of the bands, it may have to wait for record labels to drop their digital protection measures to substantially increase use of the Rogers MusicStore.

This content is available to wirereport.ca subscribers

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

Take a free trial or subscribe to The Wire Report now.

FREE TRIAL

Two weeks free access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Register for free

* Required

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited access to thewirereport.ca and our exlusive newsletters.

Continue

* Required