TAGGED AS MEDIA

Corus to shuffle executive ranks

Media | 07/18/2013 8:51 pm EDT

Corus Entertainment Inc. outlined changes to its executive team as it prepares to more closely align its television and radio businesses, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Corus said it will appoint Doug Murphy as the company’s new executive vice-president and chief financial officer, effective Sept. 1. Murphy, currently the company’s executive vice-president and president of Corus Television, will report to Corus CEO John Cassaday, the company said. According to the release, Corus will make other changes to its executive leadership team, primarily by adding responsibilities to existing executives’ portfolios. “The changes capitalize on our strengths and streamline decision-making across our Television and Radio businesses, as we prepare for the integration of our new assets, and grow the Corus brand in Canada...

Radio

Sun Media eliminates 360 jobs, 11 newspapers

Media | 07/17/2013 9:03 pm EDT

Sun Media, a Quebecor Inc. subsidiary, is cutting 360 jobs and closing 11 of its newspapers, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Sun Media said it is closing the Ottawa, Edmonton and Calgary editions of its 24 Hours news service, a free daily newspaper designed for commuters. It said it is also closing eight other newspapers in Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Manitoba: L’Action Régionale en Montérégie, The Lindsay Daily Post, The Midland Free Press, The Meadow Lake Progress, The Lac du Bonnet Leader, The Beausejour Review, Le Magazine Saint-Lambert, and Le Progrès de Bellechasse. The company said it expects the cuts, along with “a series of initiatives to enhance operational efficiencies,” will result in approximately $55 million in...

CRTC rejects amendments to Book Television licence

Media | 07/17/2013 8:51 pm EDT

The CRTC has rejected a request by BCE Inc.’s media division to allow its Book Television specialty channel to air more drama and comedy programs. In a decision Wednesday, the CRTC said it denied Bell Media’s request...

CRTC

HBO could launch today as OTT. Where does that put BCE’s TV Everywhere strategy?

Media | 07/17/2013 8:42 pm EDT

BCE Inc., the country's largest converged media and telecom company, finally acquired Astral Media Inc. and its “must have” pay service TMN last month, after the CRTC gave its blessing to the $3.38-billion deal. The companies said the transaction, which would give BCE ownership of...

A la carte would drop U.S. TV revenues almost 50%: analyst

Media | 07/17/2013 7:35 pm EDT

The American television industry's annual revenues of $150 billion US would be cut nearly in half if broadcast distributors moved to an a la carte model, said a report by research firm Needham...

CRTC Netflix Ott

Thirty executives leave Bell Media following Astral merger

Media | 07/16/2013 8:01 pm EDT

More than 30 managers and executives have left BCE Inc. division Bell Media in the past two weeks following a corporate reorganization and merger with the former Astral Media Inc., according to...

Bell

CRTC should look into OMNI cuts: CEP

Media | 07/15/2013 8:59 pm EDT

The CRTC should hold a public hearing related to staff and ethnic programming reductions at Rogers Communications Inc.’s OMNI television stations, the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP) said. In an application filed with the CRTC on June 26, the union said Rogers’ broadcasting subsidiary, Rogers Broadcasting Ltd., cut 63 positions at OMNI stations since the beginning of this year, including 14 reporting positions. It said Rogers “dropped or substantially reduced … at least twenty-one programs broadcasting in a dozen languages” during that time, including weekly, daily, and periodic magazine and newscast programs in other languages, such as Greek, Italian and Portuguese. Rogers’ “explanation for its substantial program...

Blue Ant to rebrand eqhd as Smithsonian Channel

Media | 07/15/2013 8:58 pm EDT

Independent broadcaster Blue Ant Media Inc. will rebrand its specialty channel eqhd as the Smithsonian Channel this fall. In a release Monday, Blue Ant said the change will mark the first international expansion for the U.S.-based Smithsonian Channel. It said the Smithsonian Channel’s programming is “largely inspired by the assets of the...

Rogers, York Region settle dispute over burying cables

Media | 07/12/2013 9:05 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. has settled a two-year dispute with the Regional Municipality of York over how to divide the costs of burying overhead cables, and established a new agreement with the...

Rogers

CRTC consulting on broadcast applications

Media | 07/12/2013 8:26 pm EDT

The CRTC is consulting on seven applications on TV and radio licenses, the commission said in a notice Friday. The commission will consider whether Canadian Documentary Channel L.P. can acquire specialty channel Documentary and an application by Rogers Communications Inc., on behalf of Mountain Cablevision Ltd., to acquire licences “as part of an...

CRTC denies request to put radio transmitter on a mountain

Media | 07/12/2013 8:19 pm EDT

The CRTC denied an application by Newcap Inc. to move CKKO-FM Kelowna’s transmitter onto a mountain and change its transmitter class, the commission said in a decision Friday. Newcap had...

Radio

16% of Canadians have cut the cord, report says

Media | 07/12/2013 8:14 pm EDT

New research by comScore Inc. said 16 per cent of Canadians have cut the cord, the Canadian Press reported Thursday. The study, commissioned by Google Inc., found that 35 per cent of respondents watch only TV, while 45 per cent...

Television

Sirius XM Canada reports profit in Q3

Media | 07/11/2013 9:18 pm EDT

Sirius XM Canada posted a profit of $776,119 in its third-quarter of 2013 compared to a loss of $4.2 million in the third quarter of last year, parent company Sirius XM Canada Holdings Inc. said in a release Thursday. Over the first nine months of 2013, the company posted a profit of $8.1 million, compared to a loss of $10.3 million last year, it said....

Industry must be ‘united’ going into CRTC’s TV review: Cassaday

Media | 07/11/2013 9:17 pm EDT

Canada's largest media companies should head into the CRTC's upcoming TV policy review with a “united view” to avoid new regulations, said Corus Entertainment Inc. chief executive John Cassaday. On a conference call with analysts Thursday for the company's third-quarter earnings, Cassaday said he...

Corus profits fall 3% on softer advertising

Media | 07/11/2013 8:55 pm EDT

Corus Entertainment Inc. reported lower TV and radio profits in part due to a softer advertising market. According to its third-quarter financial results for the three-month period that ended May 31, 2013, reported on Thursday,...

Corus

CRTC rejects amendments to Comedy Network licence

Media | 07/11/2013 7:31 pm EDT

The CRTC has rejected a request by BCE Inc.’s media division to amend The Comedy Network’s broadcast licence, citing concerns the channel wouldn’t have aired enough Canadian programming. In a decision released Thursday, the CRTC said it rejected Bell Media’s request to change the licence conditions of the Category A specialty channel to allow it to air more animated programming, as well as non-Canadian mini-series and feature films. “The Commission is concerned that the amendment proposed by Bell Media could result in the addition of a significant number of...

Bell

Supreme Court to consider police access to unlocked phones

Media | 07/11/2013 7:23 pm EDT

The Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear a case that will consider whether police can glean information from unlocked cellphones without a warrant, the court said. In a release Thursday, the Supreme Court said it will hear an appeal by Kevin Fearon, who was convicted of armed robbery after the police officers who...

Facebook opens Montreal office

Media | 07/10/2013 9:37 pm EDT

Facebook Inc. opened a two-person office in Montreal, The Canadian Press reported Wednesday. The employees will “serve businesses looking to expand their presence on the social network,” CP said. The move...

Facebook

France drops ‘three strikes’ Hadopi law

Media | 07/10/2013 8:59 pm EDT

France removed a provision in its copyright law that gave courts the power to suspend the Internet services of users who repeatedly infringed copyright, the French Ministry of Culture and Communication said in a release. Aurélie Filippetti, the minister of culture and communication, released an official decree to remove the...

New Canadian TV festival to launch this fall

Media | 07/10/2013 8:54 pm EDT

Bell Media, the Canada Media Fund (CMF) and the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) are supporting a new festival designed to showcase Canada’s television programming to Canadians and international audiences. In a...

Bell

Inukshuk buys Vecima spectrum

Media | 07/09/2013 7:59 pm EDT

Inukshuk Wireless Partnership has agreed to drop its lawsuit against broadband equipment manufacturer Vecima Networks Inc. after reaching a deal to acquire some of Vecima’s radio spectrum, Vecima said. In a release Monday, Vecima said it reached a $4-million agreement to sell some of its 3.5 GHz spectrum to Inukshuk, a partnership between Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. dedicated to rolling out a national, wireless broadband network. The company said it was the third deal it had reached to sell spectrum licences since last July, when it estimated its spectrum's worth as between $10 million and $15 million. It added the company made $14.1 million through those sales and still holds licences in the 24 GHz and 38 GHz ranges, “as well as those licences which are used by its YourLink subsidiary.” Last December,...

Bell Rogers

Tories pull advertising, news services from CETA cultural exemption

Media | 07/08/2013 8:17 pm EDT

The Conservative government removed advertising and news agencies from its “cultural industries” exemption in the free trade deal being negotiated with the European Union, according to an internal German analysis of the agreement. Negotiators are meeting in Ottawa this week to discuss the Comprehensive Economic...

CRTC makes comms staff changes

Media | 07/08/2013 8:13 pm EDT

Further changes came to the CRTC's communications staff following Amanda Cliff’s appointment as the commission’s executive director of communications and external relations in April. Guillaume Castonguay, formerly...

CRTC

Cecchini joins Corus

Media | 07/05/2013 8:14 pm EDT

Mario Cecchini, previously Astral Radio’s senior vice-president of sales and marketing, will join Corus Entertainment Inc. on Sept. 2. He will be responsible for the company’s Eastern Ontario radio and conventional television stations, as well as for the Quebec specialty TV and Ottawa...

Corus

Overnight, Astral brand all but disappears

Media | 07/05/2013 7:15 pm EDT

BCE Inc. didn’t waste any time in absorbing the former Astral Media Inc. BCE, Canada’s largest vertically integrated communications and media company, formally gained control of Astral at 12:01 a.m. Friday, eight days...

Bell

Videotron launches online music channel

Media | 07/05/2013 7:12 pm EDT

Videotron, a subsidiary of Quebecor Inc., launched a new online music channel called En visite chez ZIK for its illico.tv app. The channel, which will feature interviews and performances, will be available on the company's...

Videotron

CRTC consulting on 68 radio renewals

Media | 07/05/2013 7:08 pm EDT

The CRTC is consulting on licence renewals for 68 commercial, ethnic and religious radio stations. The commission said in a notice of consultation Thursday that it is consulting on 49 commercial, ethnic and religious radio...

Radio

Postmedia reports loss as print revenues continue decline

Media | 07/04/2013 9:20 pm EDT

Postmedia Network Canada Corp. reported a print advertising decline of $17.7 million, or 13 per cent, in its third quarter of 2013 as digital revenues rose by about two per cent from a year earlier. For its third quarter ending May 31, the company, which owns a national chain of newspapers and websites including...

New entrants leading lower mobile phone and Internet prices, report says

Media | 07/04/2013 9:05 pm EDT

Canadians are paying less, on average, for their mobile phone, home Internet and mobile Internet services than last year, a new report released by Wall Communications Inc. said. The annual report, commissioned by the CRTC and Industry Canada, released by Wall Communications Thursday, said mobile phone services are priced...

CRTC consulting on radio renewal

Media | 07/03/2013 9:21 pm EDT

The CRTC is consulting on an application by CHFN Communications Society to renew the broadcasting licence for its Native Type B radio station near Wiarton, Ont., the commission said. In a notice of consultation Wednesday, the commission said the station, officially known as CHFN-FM Cape Croker Reserve #27, appears to have failed to properly file its annual returns for the 2009-2010 broadcast year, in contradiction of the commission’s Radio Regulations. The deadline for submissions is Aug. 7....

CRTC

Duncombe to head Corus Radio’s new media activities

Media | 07/03/2013 9:18 pm EDT

Corus Entertainment Inc. appointed Chris Duncombe director of new media at Corus Radio, the company said. In a release Tuesday, Corus said Duncombe will provide “overall strategic leadership and management to Corus...

Corus

Bendable mobile devices may be widely available in 5 years, depending on demand

Media | 07/03/2013 8:38 pm EDT

Flat, paper-like mobile devices that can be rolled up, packed away like deck of cards, or spread out on a desk to form a single screen. It's the future. At least Roel Vertegaal sees it that way. The professor of human-computer interaction believes the devices could be here within half a decade, he says, and he and his...

CRTC consulting on radio licence renewals

Media | 07/02/2013 9:22 pm EDT

The CRTC set a deadline of Aug. 6 for comments on licence renewals for 26 radio stations that are in “apparent non-compliance” of their licence conditions. The stations include eight campus and community radio stations, two Native Type B radio stations and 16 religious and commercial radio stations, whose licences expire Aug. 31, the CRTC...

TV providers to fight for smaller share of customers as housing starts fall

Media | 07/02/2013 7:14 pm EDT

Lower housing starts this year will lead to fewer television subscriptions and could trigger pricing wars among TV providers, industry experts said. In a data released last week, the Canada Mortgage...

Ott

We will ‘manage through’ conditions on Astral acquisition, Bell says

Media | 06/28/2013 9:07 pm EDT

BCE Inc. will “manage through” conditions the CRTC put on the regulatory approval of the company’s $3.38 billion deal to acquire Astral Media Inc., said Mirko Bibic, BCE’s executive vice-president and chief legal and regulatory officer. “They are what they are. In fact, most of them were conditions we had put on the table,” Bibic said in an interview Friday on BNN. “There are some additional conditions that the commission imposed in yesterday’s...

700 mhz Bell

Golden West gets FM station in Steinbach

Media | 06/28/2013 8:42 pm EDT

The CRTC approved Golden West Broadcasting Ltd.’s application for a licence to operate a new English-language FM radio station in Steinbach, Man., the commission said. In a decision Friday, the commission said the new station would be allowed to offer a “country favourites music format” that would target listeners aged 18 to 54. It...

D’Avella to leave Shaw in August

Media | 06/28/2013 8:33 pm EDT

Michael D’Avella, Shaw Communications Inc.’s senior-vice president of planning, will retire at the end of August, the company said Friday. CEO Brad Shaw said in a third quarter conference call with analysts that...

Shaw

CRTC approves BCE purchase of Astral, applies new safeguards

Media | 06/27/2013 8:07 pm EDT

The CRTC approved BCE Inc.’s reworked application to purchase Astral Media Inc. for $3.38 billion, with conditions that raise the company’s contributions to Canadian broadcasting by $72...

Astral Bell

Apple, Microsoft, Yahoo, argue against new music download royalty

Media | 06/26/2013 9:38 pm EDT

Apple Inc., Microsoft Inc., Yahoo! Inc. and Canada's largest Internet and mobile wireless providers said the Conservative government's amendments to the Copyright Act last year did not create...

CRTC expected to approve Bell-Astral: Shine

Media | 06/26/2013 8:30 pm EDT

BCE Inc. has “pretty much done all it could do to appease” CRTC concerns about the company’s proposed $3.38-billion purchase of Astral Media Inc. and should receive regulatory approval this week, National Bank Financial analyst Adam Shine said. In a research note released Tuesday, Shine said the CRTC could require further...

CRTC to issue BCE-Astral decision Thursday

Media | 06/25/2013 9:46 pm EDT

The CRTC will release its decision on BCE Inc.’s $3.38-billion deal to buy Astral Media Inc. on Thursday, after rejecting Bell's first application to acquire Astral last year, the commission said in a notice Tuesday. A media lockup will be held at 2:30 p.m., and the decision will be released at 4 p.m., the notice said. BCE's proposed...

Privacy, ‘speculative invoicing’ concerns raised at Voltage hearing

Media | 06/25/2013 9:13 pm EDT

TORONTO—Privacy concerns and Voltage Pictures Inc.'s previous lawsuits in the United States were the focus of a court hearing that will determine whether the studio can sue Canadian Internet subscribers whose accounts have been linked to illegal downloads of its films. Lawyers for Voltage and Internet service...

Ouya’s $99 gaming console available Tuesday

Media | 06/24/2013 8:57 pm EDT

P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm; } Ouya Inc. will launch its $99 video game console in Canada, the U.S. and U.K. on Tuesday, the Guardian reported Friday. The Ouya device will be the “first totally open video game console,” according to Ouya's website, and will encourage consumers “to unscrew it and have a look around,”...

CRTC accepting applications for radio licences in Cranbrook, B.C.

Media | 06/21/2013 8:47 pm EDT

The CRTC is calling for applications for radio licences in Cranbrook, B.C., the commission said in a notice of consultation posted on its website Friday. Clear Sky Radio Inc. has applied for a licence for an English-language commercial station in Cranbrook, and the commission is calling for applications from others who want to obtain a licence in the area, the commission said in the notice. “Applicants will be required to provide evidence giving clear indication that there is demand and a market for the station and the proposed service,” the CRTC said. The deadline for applications is Sept. 16....

Small radio stations to receive exemption from Cancon contributions

Media | 06/21/2013 8:37 pm EDT

The CRTC intends to change some of its Canadian content development (CCD) rules to exempt commercial and ethnic radio stations with less than $1.25 million in revenues from making basic CCD contributions, the CRTC said. In a policy decision Friday, the CRTC said the move would reduce regulatory burden for small ethnic...

CTV moving Super Bowl stream behind paywall, including it in new CTV Go app

Media | 06/21/2013 8:28 pm EDT

BCE Inc. plans to put its online stream of next year’s Super Bowl behind a paywall, sending a message to cord cutters that the days of free, and legal, premium content online are numbered,...

Bell

Shaw to lead in digital, over-the-air signals as conventional TV’s future questioned

Media | 06/20/2013 9:14 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. is positioning itself as a leader in digital, over-the-air television as other broadcasters question the future of conventional TV broadcasting, experts said. In applications filed with the CRTC this year, including some this month, Shaw proposed to convert 13 analog...

Boxee acquisition expected this week

Media | 06/20/2013 8:34 pm EDT

Boxee Inc. has been acquired by an unknown buyer and an announcement about the purchase should take place this week, VentureBeat reported last week, citing “sources familiar with the matter.” VentureBeat said sources...

Ott

Government outlines ‘modest’ plans for intellectual property

Media | 06/20/2013 8:16 pm EDT

The Conservative government’s response to the House of Commons industry committee report offered some indications of new plans for intellectual property reforms. On Wednesday, the government responded to an earlier committee report on Canada’s intellectual property regime. Michael Geist, the Canada research chair in Internet and e-commerce law at the University of Ottawa, said in a blog post Thursday that it was “a modest plan.” “Having expended significant political capital to pass copyright reform legislation last year, it is apparent that the government will address IP pressures that arise from trade discussions (the IP agreements and anti-counterfeiting...

Media revenues to be 57% digital by 2015: report

Media | 06/20/2013 8:06 pm EDT

By 2015, a majority of media companies’ revenues will come from digital sources, said an Ernst & Young survey of executives released Wednesday. Right now, 47 per cent of revenues come from digital sources, a figure that is expected to climb to 57 per cent by 2015, a release said. The study was based on a survey of more than 500 executives...

Commercial radio revenue growth slows to 0.4%

Media | 06/20/2013 2:46 am EDT

Canadian commercial radio stations’ revenues rose slightly in 2012 by 0.4 per cent, led by revenues from FM radio stations, new CRTC data show. Revenue growth slowed as there was “competition from satellite, online...

Radio

Trudeau is CBC’s ‘shiny little pony,’ LeBreton says

Media | 06/19/2013 9:42 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada journalists treat Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau as “their shiny little pony,” said Marjory LeBreton, the Conservative government’s leader in the Senate. During a debate in the Senate Tuesday, LeBreton criticized CBC reporter Terry Milewski for a question he posed to Prime Minister Stephen...

CBC/Radio Canada seeks designs for new Montreal building

Media | 06/18/2013 8:52 pm EDT

CBC/Radio Canada issued a request for proposals for the redevelopment of its Maison de Radio-Canada site in Montreal. The new building will remain on the same site in downtown Montreal, which could...

Cbc

Google Glass ‘raises significant privacy issues,’ Stoddart says

Media | 06/18/2013 8:34 pm EDT

Jennifer Stoddart, Canada’s privacy commissioner, is among 36 data protection authorities who issued a joint letter Tuesday raising concerns about Google Glass. The letter, addressed to Google Inc. CEO Larry Page, asked the company to answer questions about privacy implications related to Google Glass, a smart...

Menzies promoted to vice-chair; CBC’s Shoan named to CRTC

Media | 06/18/2013 12:32 am EDT

The federal Conservative government appointed Peter Menzies as the CRTC’s new vice-chair of telecommunications and former CBC/Radio-Canada employee Raj Shoan as a regional commissioner for Ontario, the Heritage Department said. In a release Monday, Heritage Minister James Moore said Menzies will take over the...

Netflix signs original content deal with DreamWorks

Media | 06/17/2013 9:08 pm EDT

Netflix Inc. signed its biggest-ever deal for original content, inking a multi-year contract with DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc., Netflix said Monday. The new TV shows will be “inspired by characters” from...

Netflix

CMPA and DGC agreement ratified

Media | 06/17/2013 8:53 pm EDT

The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) and the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) ratified their new independent production agreement, the organizations said Monday. The agreement will last until 2015, “effective immediately on all productions that opened offices on or after June 14, 2013,” a release said. The agreement ensures...

Indications of an ‘audacious’ Bell-Astral decision, analyst says

Media | 06/14/2013 8:49 pm EDT

Following the CRTC's wireless code decision last week, the regulator may make a second “audacious” regulatory decision on BCE Inc.’s proposed $3.38-billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc., Veritas Investment Research said. Veritas analysts Neeraj Monga and Desmond Lau, in a research note Thursday, referred to CRTC Chairman Jean-Pierre Blais' speech at the Banff World Media festival on Wednesday, where he said the regulator's decision making process will mean “sometimes being audacious” with intervention and in other cases taking a “step back” and deregulating. Blais “quoted Napoleon Bonaparte and said 'the art of sometimes...

NHK World TV added to foreign channels list

Media | 06/14/2013 8:06 pm EDT

The CRTC added NHK World TV to its list of foreign TV channels that can be distributed in Canada, the commission said. In a decision Friday, the CRTC approved Telus Corp.’s request to add NHK World TV to the list. NHK World TV is a “24-hour 100% English-language news channel consisting of news and information reporting on Japan’s...

Bill would let government issue directives to CBC

Media | 06/14/2013 7:56 pm EDT

A private Senate bill tabled this week would give the federal Heritage Minister and Parliament the power to give CBC/Radio-Canada written directives relating to its image and branding, coverage of news and “the Canadian...

Cbc

National ad revenues drop to 2009 levels for private conventional TV

Media | 06/13/2013 9:05 pm EDT

Private conventional television stations' national advertising revenues fell to 2009 levels in the 2012 broadcast year, dropping 7.9 per cent and causing profits to sink, new CRTC data show. In conventional TV statistical and financial data released on the commission’s website Thursday, the CRTC said private...

Google buys mapping company Waze

Media | 06/13/2013 2:03 am EDT

Google Inc. bought Waze Ltd., a company that develops mapping applications with real-time updates, for about $1 billion US, Reuters reported. Google made the announcement on its blog on Tuesday, in a post by...

Google

Pecman named commissioner of competition

Media | 06/13/2013 1:57 am EDT

John Pecman was named to a five-year term as new commissioner of the Competition Bureau, Industry Canada said Wednesday. Pecman has served as interim commissioner since former commissioner Melanie Aitken stepped down last year, three years into her five-year term. He has been with the bureau for nearly 30 years, having worked "in every enforcement branch of the Bureau and held a variety of increasingly senior investigative and managerial positions,” a release said. The commissioner is appointed on the advice of the federal cabinet. Pecman’s “proven commitment to...

Competition bureau

CMF launches online crowdfunding resource

Media | 06/12/2013 9:13 pm EDT

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) launched a new website that provides information about crowdfunding in Canada, the organization said Monday at the Banff World Media Festival. In a release, the CMF said the new site will offer general information, outline various crowdfunding models, and provide advice for a successful crowdfunding campaign. It also lists a...

CRTC to review ‘complex,’ rules-focused broadcasting framework: Blais

Media | 06/12/2013 9:08 pm EDT

The CRTC will review a “complex” broadcasting regulatory framework that has become too much about the rules as opposed to policy objectives, CRTC Chair Jean-Pierre Blais said. “Regulatory fiat is becoming an obsolete concept in a borderless world. There’s nothing to be gained by regulating for...

Eastlink launches remote DVR

Media | 06/12/2013 9:07 pm EDT

Eastlink introduced a feature that will allow customers to use computers, tablets and smartphones to program their personal video recorder (PVR) devices, the company said. In a release Wednesday, the Bragg Communications Inc. subsidiary said the Eastlink Remote DVR will allow customers to access a TV guide, search for programs, and view, cancel or...

CRTC approves Shaw’s TVtropolis acquisition

Media | 06/12/2013 8:47 pm EDT

The CRTC approved Shaw Communications Inc.’s acquisition of the remaining shares of TVtropolis, the commission said Tuesday. In a decision, the CRTC said it allowed Shaw to acquire Rogers Communications Inc.’s 33 per cent share of TVtropolis, giving Shaw complete ownership of the Category A specialty service. The change in ownership,...

Channel Zero acquires AndPop

Media | 06/12/2013 8:42 pm EDT

Channel Zero Inc. will “fast track” its way into online video after acquiring a controlling interest in multi-platform video producer AndPop Inc., the company said. In a release Tuesday, Channel Zero said it launched a new digital division of the company following its merger with AndPop, which operates music and entertainment blogs...

Could the CRTC really deny BCE-Astral again?

Media | 06/12/2013 8:19 pm EDT

It's not often that CRTC hearings about mergers and acquisitions draw a room full of laughter. Commissioner Peter Menzies, sitting on the regulator's panel for its hearing on BCE Inc.'s proposed acquisition of Astral...

Astral Bell

Radio-Canada not retreating from ICI lawsuit

Media | 06/11/2013 9:16 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada is not backing down from its lawsuit against International Channel/Canal International (ICI), even if it no longer intends to completely change the name of its French-language broadcaster to ICI, CBC spokesman Marc Pichette said. The Wire Report reported last week that CBC was suing private broadcaster International Channel over its...

Videotron promotes Dessureault

Media | 06/11/2013 8:49 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc. named Isabelle Dessureault as the new vice-president of content commercialization and public affairs at its Videotron Ltd. subsidiary, Quebecor said. In a release, Quebecor said Dessureault will be responsible for “the distribution, commercialization and programming of content for all of Videotron's content delivery...

CMPA, Telefilm launch mentorship program

Media | 06/11/2013 8:36 pm EDT

The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) and Telefilm Canada introduced a new mentorship program that will link marketing professionals with production companies. In a release Tuesday, the CMPA and Telefilm said the Telefilm Canada Marketing Mentorship Program will provide six “emerging and mid-level marketing professionals” a 20-week placement at a production company. “Participants will gain in-depth knowledge of the Canadian film, television and interactive media sectors while focusing on the promotion of the company and its projects,” the release said. The goal of the program, the organizations said, is to help companies promote Canadian content and talent. The deadline for applications is Sept. 15....

TMN Go app available to Source Cable customers

Media | 06/11/2013 6:36 pm EDT

Hamilton, Ont. company Source Cable Ltd. is now offering Astral Media Inc.'s The Movie Network Go service for online, on-demand and mobile viewing, the company said. The service allows cable subscribers who pay for TMN to...

Astral

HBO’s Game of Thrones sets Canadian ratings record

Media | 06/11/2013 6:18 pm EDT

The third season of Game of Thrones, which wrapped up June 9, broke HBO Canada’s ratings record as its most watched series, said Astral Media Inc.'s The Movie Network. The series was “the most-watched pay TV series in Canadian history,” a release said Monday. HBO Canada is is available through pay TV...

CMPA elects new board members

Media | 06/11/2013 12:13 pm EDT

The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) elected four new directors and re-elected the rest of its board for a two-year term, the CMPA said. In a release Sunday, the CMPA said it elected new directors Charles Bishop from Six Eleven Media, Paul Bronfman from Comweb Group, Bob Crowe from Angel Entertainment, and Joe Novak from 1400 Months. They...

Small incumbents to lower long distance rates

Media | 06/11/2013 12:09 pm EDT

The CRTC wants to work with wireline telephone companies to reduce their long distance rates, said Chris Seidl, the commission’s executive director of telecommunications. “We’ve seen evidence, the rates you collect can be reduced,” Seidl said Monday in a speech at the annual convention of the Independent Telecommunications...

Lago launches new branded content firm

Media | 06/11/2013 12:02 pm EDT

Former Bell Media director Carmen Lago launched Branded Content Television Inc., a multiplatform advertising firm that will partner with networks and other production companies to create original advertising content for TV and the Internet, the company said. In a release Monday, the Toronto-based firm said it will create ads targeting consumers “across his or her entire ecosystem, regardless of the medium.” “The company will connect with consumers where they watch, surf, search and shop while weaving a client's brand effortlessly into the storyline,” the release said. The company will “work and partner with brands to identify, package and negotiate the right content and media deals in order to bring a brand a much higher ROI [return on investment] that...

Quebecor appoints Giampaolo as head of media, sports

Media | 06/10/2013 8:54 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc. appointed Aldo Giampaolo as president and CEO of the company's media entertainment and sports group, the company said. Giampaolo has more than 25 years of experience in managing, promoting and producing...

Quebecor

More TV viewers binge-watching: survey

Media | 06/10/2013 8:46 pm EDT

More Canadian TV viewers are binge-watching television series, according to a new poll commissioned by Rogers Communications Inc., with more than 80 per cent of respondents saying that they watched three or more shows or two or...

Ott

Radio-Canada says it’s ‘not changing names’

Media | 06/10/2013 8:22 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada's Radio-Canada division is “not changing names” as the organization creates a new brand identity as “ICI,” the broadcaster said. Radio-Canada issued a release Friday evening that challenged releases from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the Syndicat des...

CBC challenges private broadcaster in court over ICI brand

Media | 06/07/2013 9:09 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada is taking private broadcaster International Channel/Canal International (ICI) to court over competing claims to the ICI brand name. CBC said on Wednesday it plans to change the name of its French-language broadcaster, previously Radio-Canada, to ICI. Radio-Canada has used the ICI acronym—also a word...

BCE plans community TV channels in Montreal, Ottawa

Media | 06/07/2013 9:05 pm EDT

BCE Inc. asked the CRTC for permission to use funds dedicated for Canadian programming to launch new community TV channels in Montreal and Ottawa. In two applications posted on the commission’s website on June 4, Bell asked to amend its regional broadcasting licenses in Ontario and Quebec to allocate some of its Canadian programming contribution...

CRTC proposes radio licence exemptions

Media | 06/07/2013 8:53 pm EDT

The CRTC opened consultations on proposed licence exemptions for low-power tourist and religious radio stations. In a notice of consultation posted on the commission’s website Friday, the CRTC said it is consulting on a proposal to exempt low-power tourist information stations from requiring broadcasting licences if they do not broadcast any...

Union opposes Radio-Canada name change

Media | 06/07/2013 5:04 pm EDT

A union representing CBC/Radio-Canada’s French-language, on-air staff is opposing the public broadcaster’s decision to change the name of French-language broadcaster to ICI, the union said. In a release Thursday, Syndicat des communications de Radio-Canada said it is “firmly” against CBC’s decision, announced Wednesday, to...

TVA to cut 90 jobs

Media | 06/07/2013 4:44 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc. subsidiary TVA Group Inc. will eliminate 90 jobs across its network, the company said. In a release Wednesday, TVA said it will eliminate 4.5 per cent of it workforce as part of a “rationalization plan” that will cut five per cent off its operating expenses. It said the job cuts would come through a “reduction of existing personnel” and by eliminating positions through...

Bell Media to launch Bravo GO in July

Media | 06/07/2013 4:12 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s Bell Media subsidiary will launch Bravo GO as its first TV Everywhere product next month, the company said. In a release Thursday, Bell Media said it will launch multiplatform live streaming and video-on-demand services for its Bravo Canada television channel, a Category A specialty channel, on July 18. The subscription service will be available through Canadian TV service providers, and will be accessible from the Bravo.ca website, through mobile applications that run on Apple Inc.’s iOS and Google Inc.’s Android operating systems, and on the set-top boxes of applicable broadcast distributors. BCE executives told CRTC commissioners at a hearing last month that the company’s proposed $3.38-billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. would support its...

BCE teams up with Twitter on social TV research project

Media | 06/06/2013 9:26 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s media subsidiary is teaming up with Twitter Inc. in a new research project to measure Canadians’ “social TV behaviour,” Bell Media said. In a release Thursday, Bell...

Advertisers favour online video ads: report

Media | 06/06/2013 9:16 pm EDT

Digital video advertising has become the fastest-growing segment of online advertising in Canada, according to a report by digital video ad firm BrightRoll Inc .and IAB Canada. The report, titled “Canada Video Advertising Report,” drew from a survey of more than 300 advertising executives and found that the majority of agencies have more...

First signs of cord cutting are here, Boon Dog says

Media | 06/06/2013 7:09 pm EDT

Canada’s publicly traded broadcast distribution companies reported “concrete signs” of cord cutting over the past two quarters as their combined subscriber base fell for the first time since cable TV first become a feature in most homes, said Mario Mota, partner at Boon Dog Professional Services Inc. In a release Thursday, Boon Dog...

Rathgeber disagrees with amendments to C-461

Media | 06/06/2013 6:28 pm EDT

A private member’s bill that aims to remove an exemption from the federal Access to Information Act for CBC/Radio-Canada will move to report stage after a parliamentary committee reported amendments to the bill....

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The Score to become ‘Sportsnet 360’

Media | 06/06/2013 4:06 am EDT

Rogers Communications Inc.’s specialty sports channel The Score will be rebranded as “Sportsnet 360,” the company said Tuesday. In a release, Rogers said“Sportsnet 360” will launch on July 1 and will have a different logo than The Score, which Rogers purchased earlier this year. The company said that further detail on the Category A specialty channel’s programming and marketing campaign will be released “in the coming weeks.” Rogers also owns Category C specialty sports channel Sportsnet, which had 8.8 million subscribers as of Aug. 31, 2012 and reported $21.6 million in pre-tax profits last year, according to CRTC data. The Score reported profits of $5.2 million last year and had 6.7 million subscribers....

Radio-Canada to rebrand as ICI

Media | 06/06/2013 3:55 am EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada will change the name of its French-language broadcaster, previously Radio-Canada, to “ICI,” the public broadcaster said Wednesday. In a notice posted on Radio-Canada's French-language website, CBC said the name change will allow it to harmonize its name across its French-language platforms. Ten platforms will...

Pelland joins Ubisoft

Media | 06/04/2013 7:42 pm EDT

Ubisoft Entertainment S.A.’s Quebec City office hired François Pelland as its executive director of development, the company said. In a release Tuesday, the international video game producer said Pelland will be responsible for “successfully delivering the ambitious projects” developed at its Quebec City studio. It added that he previously served as senior development director at Electronic Arts...

Glick moving to Google’s California office

Media | 06/03/2013 9:17 pm EDT

Jacob Glick, head of Google Inc.’s government relations and public policy team for Canada, will move to the company’s head office in California. Glick, a former technology lawyer at McCarthy Tetrault, joined Google’s policy team in Ottawa in 2007, according to his LinkedIn page. He also worked as general counsel at the Canadian...

Apple signs radio service deals: report

Media | 06/03/2013 8:55 pm EDT

Apple Inc. has signed agreements with Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group to support its developing Internet radio service, the New York Times reported Sunday. According to a report, Apple signed an agreement with Warner for both recorded music rights and publishing rights. Its deal with Universal only pertains to recorded music rights, the...

Schouela joins Blue Ant as VP marketing, comms

Media | 06/03/2013 8:53 pm EDT

Blue Ant Media Inc. appointed Jamie Schouela to vice-president of marketing and communications, the company said Monday. In a release, Bleu Ant said Schouela most recently worked for Shaw Communications Inc.'s Shaw Media subsidiary as its vice-president of marketing....

BCE, Astral, extend deal’s closing date

Media | 05/31/2013 8:44 pm EDT

Astral Media Inc. and BCE Inc. extended the deadline to close their acquisition agreement to July 31, the companies said. The previous deadline was June 1. BCE has proposed a purchase of Astral for $3.38 billion. The CRTC, which held a public hearing on the transaction this month, is expected to issue its decision on it in early summer....

ACTA bill debated at second reading

Media | 05/31/2013 8:01 pm EDT

Bill C-56, the Combating Counterfeit Products Act, moved into second reading debate on Thursday in the House of Commons. Michael Geist, the Canada research chair in Internet and e-commerce law at the University of Ottawa, said in...

CBC requirements are floors not ceilings, Blais says

Media | 05/31/2013 5:48 pm EDT

The CRTC expects CBC/Radio-Canada to exceed programming requirement “floors” it established for the public broadcaster in its latest licence conditions, CRTC Chair Jean-Pierre Blais said. “We have established...

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CBC lays off technicians in Quebec

Media | 05/31/2013 3:26 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada laid off a third of its technicians in Matane, Rimouski and Sept-Îles, Que., said the local union for the workers. Michel Labrie, vice-president of the Syndicat des technicien(ne)s et artisan(e)s du réseau français de Radio-Canada (STARF), said in a release that CBC management has not provided a plan to manage the staffing reduction. “How will they produce and air broadcasts without competent employees?” he said. The CRTC said in a decision this week that it will allow the public broadcaster to air ads on its Radio 2 and Espace Musique radio...

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