CRTC denies Rogers request for rebroadcasting amendment

Media | 10/10/2012 7:45 pm EDT

The CRTC denied an application by Rogers Communications Inc. for permission to use “simultaneous substitution" for its Citytv Toronto signal. In several local licence areas where Rogers...

Tomik leaves CBC revenue group for Rogers

Media | 10/10/2012 7:11 pm EDT

Jack Tomik, general manager of CBC/Radio-Canada's revenue group, is leaving the public broadcaster for a new position at Rogers Communications Inc., the broadcasters said Wednesday. Tomik's departure from CBC is effective...

Moore reappoints Lacroix to head CBC

Media | 10/10/2012 1:14 pm EDT

Hubert T. Lacroix was reappointed as president and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada, Heritage Minister James Moore said Friday. In a CBC release, Lacroix said he was pleased with the minister’s announcement. “In 2010,...

Canadian TV content should compete internationally: Peladeau

Media | 10/10/2012 1:03 pm EDT

Canada’s entertainment industry must better reach international audiences outside of its borders to help compete with online TV services, Pierre Karl Peladeau, president and CEO of Quebecor...

CBC would take $200M hit annually without HNIC: report

Media | 10/10/2012 11:54 am EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada's annual revenues would fall by up to $200 million if the public broadcaster does not secure the rights to Hockey Night in Canada in 2014, watchdog group the Friends of Canadian Broadcasting said. In a submission to the CRTC dated Oct. 5, Friends said Hockey Night in Canada accounts for 10 per cent of CBC TV's English-language schedule, one-third of its audience share and more than 50 per cent of its advertising revenues. Friends said losing Hockey Night in Canada would create a “400-hour hole” in CBC’s English TV schedule. “The CBC is hooked...

YouTube expands with 60 channels in Europe

Media | 10/09/2012 8:30 pm EDT

Google Inc.'s YouTube video service expanded its “original channels” program to Europe with at least 60 new channels in France, Germany and the U.K., the company said. In a post Sunday on YouTube's blog,...

U.S. industry group identifies Cancon regs as ‘trade barrier’ to tackle in TPP

Media | 10/05/2012 7:41 pm EDT

A major U.S. association of software, film, TV and music companies is lobbying the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to address Canadian “trade barriers” related to Canadian content regulations and copyright law, according to a consultation document filed with the USTR. The...

CBC programming would suffer if broken into a ‘constellation’ of subscription services: CBC

Media | 10/05/2012 4:19 pm EDT

OTTAWA—Breaking up public broadcaster CBC/Radio-Canada into a “constellation” of specialty channels and online pay services would not result in more high-quality or Canadian programming, said Mark Starowicz, executive director of documentary programming at CBC Television....

CRTC to help build ‘informed and empowered’ base of consumers, Blais says

Media | 10/04/2012 11:19 pm EDT

OTTAWA—The CRTC will inform the public about their telecommunications options in an effort to build an “informed and empowered” constituency of consumers, new CRTC chair Jean-Pierre...

CBC Music ad revenues a fraction of the service’s costs, CBC says

Media | 10/04/2012 8:43 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada's online music service is not profitable as advertising revenues amount to about one seventh of costs, said Chris Boyce, executive director of English-language radio and audio services at CBC. “The advertising revenue covers a fraction of the expenses associated with the operation of the...

Online to overtake TV ad spending in 2016: report

Media | 10/03/2012 9:21 pm EDT

Online platforms will overtake television as the most popular source for Canadian advertising dollars in the next four years and the trend is not necessarily bad for traditional TV broadcasters, said Conference Board researcher...

Private radio sector worth $1.6B: StatsCan

Media | 10/03/2012 8:40 pm EDT

Operating revenues for Canada's private radio sector reached $1.6 billion in 2011, Statistics Canada said Wednesday. In a release, Statistics Canada said total revenues rose 3.7 per cent from 2010 with the “vast majority,” 97.7 per cent, coming from advertising. Statistics Canada said the FM sector’s operating revenues totalled...

Citytv audience share grows with expansion

Media | 10/03/2012 8:07 pm EDT

Citytv gained more than 20 per cent year-over-year growth in audience share for fall television's premiere week, the TV network said Tuesday, partly as a result of the network's expansion. Citytv's national market share for the week Sept. 24 to 30 rose 22 per cent from the same period a year earlier, the broadcaster, owned by Rogers...

Roberts stepping down from Zoomer

Media | 10/02/2012 8:06 pm EDT

Bill Roberts, president and CEO of ZoomerMediaTV (owned by ZoomerMedia Ltd.), will step down from his role on Oct. 31, Roberts said in a statement Monday. “After 12 years at the helm of VisionTV, S-BOX (the holding entity brand we invented), and latterly ZoomerMedia (TV), I will be stepping down as president and CEO,” Roberts said in a letter. Roberts said he would be looking forward to a brief period of “under employment” and that he wishes future success to ZoomerMedia and its leadership. Under Roberts’ 12-year tenure, VisionTV was recognized by more than 150 award nominations at various Canadian and international festivals as well as award shows, the letter said....

CRTC rejects Rogers application for entertainment channel

Media | 10/02/2012 8:00 pm EDT

The CRTC on Tuesday approved specialty channel licences for two proposed “personal development” services and rejected a Rogers Communications Inc. application for a new entertainment news channel. In two decisions, the commission said it approved applications by MOTV Media Inc. to operate English- and...

WIPO Broadcasting Treaty document proposes webcasting alternative

Media | 10/02/2012 7:23 pm EDT

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)'s new working document for a Broadcasting Treaty includes a reference to online signals, a sticking point at committee discussions in Geneva...

CRTC posts commission vacancies

Media | 10/02/2012 11:45 am EDT

The CRTC posted a notice of vacancies for the positions of vice-chair of telecommunications and regional member for Ontario. The CRTC said in the posting Monday that the successful candidate for the vice-chair position, which ranges from $196,800 to $231,500 in salary, will have “extensive” experience providing corporate direction and...

Sun Media names VP for reorganization

Media | 10/02/2012 11:33 am EDT

Sun Media Corp. appointed Eric Morrison to the position of vice-president of editorial, the Quebecor Media Inc. news company said last Thursday. In a release, the company said Morrison will lead the reorganization of Sun Media across all platforms. Morrison’s prior experience includes the position of president of The Canadian Press. He is also...

OTT, CRTC deregulation, putting upward pressure on content costs: Bell

Media | 10/01/2012 9:22 pm EDT

The presence of unregulated online competitors in the Canadian broadcasting market and a CRTC decision to open up sports specialty channels to competition have fuelled a “dramatic” increase in the cost of licensing content in Canada, BCE Inc. said in regulatory documents filed with the commission Friday. “[T]he presence of foreign OTT [over-the-top] providers is being felt by both broadcasters and [broadcast distributors] alike,” Bell wrote in final reply comments for a CRTC proceeding on its proposed $3.38 billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. “For broadcasters, this is evident when we bid for programming and for [broadcast distributors], the threat of...

CRTC approves CCTV 9 Documentary

Media | 10/01/2012 9:18 pm EDT

The CRTC approved adding CCTV 9 Documentary to the list of TV services available for distribution in Canada. The Canadian Chinese Media Network's CCTV 9 service is a “primarily” English-language documentary channel with Mandarin-language programming, the CRTC said in its decision Monday. It features cultural information and...

Pandora says it will not enter Canada under proposed ‘per play’ royalty rate

Media | 10/01/2012 8:41 pm EDT

OTTAWA—Pandora Media Inc. will not enter the Canadian market if the Copyright Board approves music royalties on a “per play rate” as proposed by copyright collective Re:Sound, said Joseph Kennedy, president and CEO of the online music company. “We have said explicitly that...

Corus appoints new television VPs

Media | 09/28/2012 8:22 pm EDT

Corus Entertainment Inc. appointed Maria Hale to the position of vice-president of television and head of digital and distribution, and John MacDonald as vice-president of television and head of programming and production, the company said Friday. Corus said in a release that the appointments are effective Oct. 15, 2012. Hale previously held the...

Radio Haute Mauricie moving to AM band

Media | 09/28/2012 8:03 pm EDT

The CRTC approved Radio Haute Mauricie inc. to move an AM radio licence in La Tuque, Que., to FM. In a decision Friday, the commission said the new station, operating at 97.1 FM, will maintain the popular music format of the company’s current AM station in the area, CFLM. The commission said that it was granting the licence on a short-term basis...

Court’s satellite piracy decision raises questions about CRTC data collection: Experts

Media | 09/27/2012 8:08 pm EDT

A Quebec judge's decision in Quebecor Media Inc.'s satellite piracy lawsuit against BCE Inc. raises questions about the quality and thoroughness of company data filed with the CRTC, experts say. “The whole premise of the regulatory system to date has been that companies are honestly...

Asian Connections Television licence approved

Media | 09/27/2012 7:21 pm EDT

The CRTC said Thursday it approved an application from Channel Punjabi Broadcasting Corporation (CPBC) to operate a Category B specialty channel called Asian Connections Television. In the decision, the CRTC said CPBC proposed a niche English- and third-language service devoted to traditional South Asian religion, entertainment, news and community...

Bureau official Pecman named interim competition commissioner

Media | 09/26/2012 9:32 pm EDT

Competition Bureau official John Pecman was appointed the new interim commissioner of competition for up to a one-year term, Industry Minister Christian Paradis said Wednesday. Pecman replaces Melanie Aitken, whose last day as commissioner passed last week. "With nearly 30 years of experience at the Bureau, Mr....

New tariff on webcasting services necessary to offset ‘cannibalization’: Re:Sound

Media | 09/26/2012 8:13 pm EDT

Copyright collective Re:Sound is pushing for a new proposed royalty on online music services to offset streaming music businesses' inevitable cannibalization of CD and download sales, said Ian MacKay, president of the collective. MacKay, who appeared as a witness at a Copyright Board hearing in...

Executives turning to digital video brand advertising: survey

Media | 09/26/2012 2:30 pm EDT

A rising number of Canadian advertisers are looking at digital videos to support advertising projects and nearly half of them prefer to advertise on the online platforms of traditional  broadcasters, a new report by IAB Canada and digital video ad firm BrightRoll Inc. said. The report, titled "Digital Video 2012: Canada Video Advertising Report," drew from surveys of “more than 100 advertising executives at top agencies across Canada” to find that a majority of those executives said digital video ads are more effective than other forms of advertising and that a rising number of them include video components in more than half of their requests for proposals. “As consumers watch more video online, coupled with the rapid adoption of mobile, Canadian...

Companies partner to form Shift Media Group

Media | 09/25/2012 9:22 pm EDT

Production firms Original Pictures Inc. and Partners in Motion are joining forces with marketing firm Veria Search Media Marketing to form a new national multimedia company, the companies said Tuesday. In a release, Ron Goetz, executive vice-president of Partners in Motion, said in a statement that the companies’ new enterprise, Shift Media...

CBC braces for lower TV revenues under extended NHL lockout

Media | 09/25/2012 9:19 pm EDT

The delay or potential cancellation of the NHL hockey season would “negatively impact” CBC/Radio-Canada’s advertising revenues as the public broadcaster plans for replacement...

Stoddart raises alarm over website ‘leakage’

Media | 09/25/2012 9:12 pm EDT

Some of the most popular websites used by Canadians are “leaking” their users’ private information to advertisers and other third parties, and may be in violation of Canadian privacy laws, Canada’s federal privacy commissioner said Tuesday. In a release, Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart said research her office conducted...

CRTC expedites undue preference complaint

Media | 09/25/2012 8:53 pm EDT

The CRTC is expediting VMedia’s undue preference complaint against BCE Inc., the commission said in a letter posted on its website Monday. In a complaint filed with the commission this month, VMedia, a subsidiary of...

CRTC expedites anti-competitive complaint against Shaw Go service

Media | 09/25/2012 8:47 pm EDT

The CRTC will consider and expedite a Telus Corp. complaint against Corus Entertainment Inc.’s exclusive handling of Movie Central and HBO content offered on Shaw Communications Inc.'s Shaw Go mobile TV service, the commission said. In a complaint filed with the commission Sept. 20, Ann Mainville-Neeson, Telus’ director of broadcast regulation, said Corus broke the CRTC's rules for large, vertically integrated broadcast companies by making its Movie Central and HBO content...

NHL lockout would affect Bell, Rogers: report

Media | 09/24/2012 8:48 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. would lose ticket, merchandise and TV advertising revenues as a result of an NHL lockout that halts the Toronto Maple Leafs' season, Bloomberg reported Sept. 21. Graydon Ebert, a corporate and commercial law expert at Barriston Law LLP in Barrie, Ont., told Bloomberg the lockout could cost each of the...

Writers Guild reaches agreement with CMPA

Media | 09/24/2012 8:42 pm EDT

The Writers Guild of Canada reached a tentative Independent Production Agreement with the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) and the Quebec Film and Television Producers Association (APFTG), the Writers Guild said Friday. In a release, the Writers Guild said it will present the details of the new agreement to its members “as it is...

Quebec OTA profit margins highest in the country: Rogers

Media | 09/24/2012 8:05 pm EDT

Profit margins for private, conventional television broadcasters are higher in Quebec than anywhere else in the country, a study commissioned by Rogers Communications Inc. said. The study, conducted...

Copyright Board hearing on Re:Sound tariff starts Monday

Media | 09/21/2012 8:22 pm EDT

The Copyright Board opens a hearing Monday on copyright collective Re:Sound's application for tariffs on simulcasting and webcasting services. The hearing is scheduled to start Monday and will...

Canadians fourth for ‘unauthorized’ music downloads: MusicMetric

Media | 09/21/2012 8:19 pm EDT

Canadians download more unauthorized music through the BitTorrent file-sharing network than consumers in all but three other countries, a new Digital Music Index study from MusicMetric said....

Regulators will not block Bell-Astral deal, industry sources predict

Media | 09/21/2012 7:23 pm EDT

The Competition Bureau and the CRTC will not block BCE Inc.'s $3.38-billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. and will seek concessions from the companies or put conditions on the deal, according...

Stornoway appoints new executives

Media | 09/21/2012 12:03 pm EDT

Stornoway Communications Inc. appointed Don Gaudet as its new vice-president of programming and promoted Cindy Boyd to the position of vice-president of operations, the company said Thursday. Don Pagnutti, Stornoway’s general manager and chief financial officer, said in a release that Gaudet and Boyd will be part of the company’s...

Shaw releases ‘Shaw Go’ TV service

Media | 09/21/2012 11:28 am EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. launched a new over-the-top TV service that allows its television subscribers to watch premium TV content on the go over their iPhone and iPad devices, the company said Thursday. In a release, Shaw said...

Netgear working on licensing for new OTT devices in Canada

Media | 09/20/2012 9:14 pm EDT

Netgear Inc. rolled out new over-the-top TV devices that will be available in Canada in November, the company said Thursday. In a release, the San Jose, Calif. company said its new lineup of “NeoTV Streaming Players,” available in the United States, will provide consumers with access to “hundreds of HD streaming channels and a variety of entertainment features,” including songs and shows available on apps by Netflix, YouTube and Best Buy CinemaNow. It will also offer access to U.S services Vudu, Hulu Plus, Pandora and Rhapsody, the release said. Damir Skripic, product...

Tories ‘considering all options’ on CRTC size, vacancies

Media | 09/20/2012 8:54 pm EDT

The Conservative government is “considering all options” related to the size of the CRTC and the filling of upcoming vacancies, Heritage Minister James Moore said. “We’re...

Internet companies form new D.C. lobby group

Media | 09/19/2012 9:05 pm EDT

A coalition of some of the world’s largest Internet companies launched a new U.S. lobby group to promote their interests and those of the Internet economy. In a release Wednesday, the newly launched Internet Association said it will lobby Washington policy makers on three areas of interest, including “protecting Internet freedom; fostering...

Bell Media appoints new VP

Media | 09/18/2012 8:42 pm EDT

BCE Inc. subsidiary Bell Media appointed Jon Arklay to the position of senior vice-president for Bell Media agency and brand strategy, the company said Monday. Bell said in a release that Arklay will oversee the “complete design, promotion, brand strategy, and media buying services for all...

Cogeco reorganizes marketing team

Media | 09/17/2012 9:01 pm EDT

Cogeco Cable Inc. has adopted a new organizational structure for greater marketing efficiency for its residential services, Ron Perrotta, vice-president of marketing and strategic planning at Cogeco, said in a release Monday....

Dubé to co-anchor CTV News shows

Media | 09/17/2012 8:51 pm EDT

Michelle Dubé will be the new co-anchor of CTV News At Six and CTV News At Noon with Ken Shaw, BCE Inc.-owned CTV News Toronto said Monday. In a release, the company said Dubé joined the CTV Toronto News team in 2009 and appeared on local and national newscasts. Dubé is well-known to its viewers as a reporter and fill-in anchor, CTV said. Prior to joining CTV, Dubé was a reporter and anchor of the evening newscast with the CHCH News team Hamilton, Ont. Dubé replaces long-serving Toronto news anchor Christine Bentley, who stepped downfrom the position last week after 35 years with CTV News....

Quebecor appeals civil damages against Bell; seeks over $150M more

Media | 09/17/2012 7:16 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc. filed an appeal of the damages handed down in a Quebec Superior Court civil judgment related to satellite piracy of BCE Inc.'s satellite TV system, said Serge Sasseville,...

NWTel benefits could go to on-screen: Bibic

Media | 09/14/2012 9:17 pm EDT

BCE Inc. would redirect $40 million in tangible benefits funding to on-screen television content if the CRTC denies its request to use that money to support northern wireless infrastructure, Mirko Bibic, Bell’s chief legal and regulatory officer, said Friday. As a part of its $3.38-billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc., Bell has proposed...

CBC ‘fiercely opposes’ Bell’s all-news channel proposal

Media | 09/14/2012 8:57 pm EDT

The CRTC should throw out BCE Inc.’s “unprecedented” proposal to use tangible benefits money to launch a new, French-language television news service in Montreal, CBC/Radio-Canada...

Bentley leaving CTV News

Media | 09/13/2012 8:32 pm EDT

Long-serving Toronto news anchor Christine Bentley is stepping down after 35 years with CTV News, the BCE Inc. subsidiary said Wednesday. In a release, CTV said Bentley has been a part of CTV News since 1977, where she began as a general assignment reporter before she was assigned to City Hall and Queen’s Park. Her last broadcast will be this Friday during the station’s 6 p.m. news program, she said in a CTV...

PIAC calls for review of TV services prices

Media | 09/13/2012 7:11 pm EDT

The CRTC should launch a proceeding to examine the rates consumers pay for their television services after a new survey found increasing dissatisfaction among Canadian TV subscribers, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC)...

Colba.Net licensed to expand IPTV service

Media | 09/13/2012 6:24 pm EDT

The CRTC has given Colba.Net Telecom Inc. permission to extend its Internet protocol TV (IPTV) into some of Ontario and Quebec’s largest municipalities and the areas that surround them, the commission said in a pair of...

My Broadcasting gets FM radio licence in Alliston

Media | 09/13/2012 3:23 am EDT

The CRTC has approved an application by My Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) to operate a commercial FM radio station in Alliston, Ont., the commission said Wednesday. In its decision, the commission said the new English-language FM...

Screens, not scale, key to competing with OTT providers, Rogers says

Media | 09/12/2012 10:37 pm EDT

Consumer-friendly content distribution platforms are more important than scale to Canadian broadcasters and broadcast distributors competing against large, over-the-top (OTT) service providers like...

Channel Zero eyes U.K. local broadcasting licences

Media | 09/12/2012 5:28 pm EDT

Canadian independent broadcaster Channel Zero Inc. has applied for licences to operate a chain of over-the-air television stations in England and Scotland as U.K. lawmakers attempt to kick-start a local-TV industry. In May, U.K. regulator Ofcom responded to a government order to encourage the development of a local TV industry by releasing a call for applications for 21 local TV licences that would operate in cities and towns across the U.K.. Unlike in Canada, the U.S., and other leading European countries, the U.K. is not currently home to a series of local TV stations that allow TV viewers outside of major urban centres to gain specific news and insight about their communities. “[W]hile the UK has an established regional television service provision, there is hardly any news or...

Bell-Astral would have ‘monstrous’ share of French specialty revenues: Quebecor

Media | 09/11/2012 10:18 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s proposed $3.38 billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. would give the company a “monstrous” share of subscriber revenues for French-language specialty channels and could deplete Quebec’s conventional TV networks of vital advertising revenues, Quebecor Media...

ACTRA members ratify TV, radio deal with CBC

Media | 09/11/2012 7:41 pm EDT

Members of the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) have voted to ratify a series of television and radio agreements with CBC/Radio-Canada, ACTRA said Tuesday. In a release, ACTRA said 99.4 per cent...

Rogers reaches deal to power Sony’s mobile gaming connections

Media | 09/11/2012 7:35 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. has reached a deal with Sony Corp.’s Canadian video game division to become the exclusive carrier of wireless services for the portable PlayStation Vita gaming system in Canada, Rogers said Tuesday. In a release, Rogers said the deal will allow gamers to play mobile games on a new...

Rock 95 Broadcasting wins Toronto FM slot

Media | 09/11/2012 4:57 pm EDT

The CRTC has awarded a coveted Toronto FM radio slot to independent broadcaster Rock 95 Broadcasting Ltd. to offer an “indie-rock” music station that will target the city’s young adults, the commission said...

Astral purchase will bolster Canadian programming and infrastructure, Bell says

Media | 09/10/2012 11:23 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s intended $3.38-billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. will protect Canadian content producers from increasingly competitive online, foreign services that are not bound by Canadian content requirements, George Cope, Bell’s president and CEO, said during the first day of a CRTC hearing into the deal Monday. “The Canadian system needs companies with the scale to compete against foreign content companies like Netflix [Inc.], Apple [Inc.], Google [Inc.] and Amazon...

Copyright submission provides fresh ‘distant viewing’ data

Media | 09/07/2012 8:15 pm EDT

BBM data submitted to the Copyright Board earlier this summer provides the first comprehensive update of Canadian “distant viewing” statistics since 1994, Peter Grant, a broadcasting expert and partner with McCarthy Tétrault, said in a Copyright Board submission. The data, which was submitted as a part...

CBC secures rights to 2015 Pan and Parapan American Games

Media | 09/07/2012 8:01 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada has reached a deal to acquire the host and domestic broadcast rights for the Toronto 2015 Pan and Parapan American Games, the public broadcaster said Friday. In a release, CBC said the deal includes television broadcasting rights in both official languages, as well as online content, mobile content and...

ATN gets cooking channel licence

Media | 09/07/2012 8:00 pm EDT

The CRTC approved on Friday an application for Asian Television Network Ltd. (ATN) to operate a Category B service called ATN South Asian Cooking Channel 1. In the decision, the commission said ATN said the new station would offer programming devoted to South-Asian cooking shows from the Asian sub-continent. Programming would also be aimed at the...

Rogers applies to change G4Tech licence conditions

Media | 09/07/2012 7:58 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. has applied to convert its G4TechTV specialty station from a Category A station to a Category B station. In an Aug. 30 application that was posted on the CRTC’s website Thursday, Rogers said G4, a...

CRTC releases three-year work plan

Media | 09/06/2012 8:59 pm EDT

The CRTC released a plan Wednesday outlining the activities it intends to carry out over the next three years. In the release, Jean-Pierre Blais, chairman of the CRTC, said the commission will focus its activities on three...

Software for jailbroken Apple TVs rising, receiving ‘a lot of interest,’ FireCore says

Media | 09/06/2012 8:28 pm EDT

Consumer interest insoftware for “jailbroken” Apple TV units has grown over the years as pricing for the product has fallen, James Abeler, director of business development at FireCore, said in an interview. FireCore, based in Denver, Colo., sells software called aTV Flash for jailbroken...

Corus invests in Fingerprint Digital’s mobile apps for kids

Media | 09/05/2012 8:23 pm EDT

Corus Entertainment Inc. will be a lead investor in the expansion of Fingerprint Digital Inc.’s Fingerprint Play learning and entertainment platform, the companies said Wednesday. In a release,...

Anselmi takes helm of MLSE

Media | 09/05/2012 8:21 pm EDT

Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) appointed Tom Anselmi to the position of president and chief operating officer, the company said Tuesday. MLSE said that in his new role, Anselmi will oversee all MLSE operations and report in the interim to the MLSE board through the chair. Anselmi previously held the position of executive vice-president and COO with MLSE, the organization said in the release. Vertically...

CRTC opens broadcast consultations

Media | 09/05/2012 6:26 pm EDT

The CRTC has opened consultations on 23 broadcasting applications, including Rogers Communications Inc.’s bid to acquire a Montreal-area over-the-air station, the commission said Wednesday. In a notice of consultation, the commission said it will consider Rogers’ application to acquire Métro 14 Montréal (CJNT) from independent broadcaster Channel Zero Inc. at a Gatineau, Que., hearing that will begin on Nov. 7. Rogers, which announced the intended acquisition in May, is seeking to convert the French-language ethnic television station into an English-language station...

CRTC consulting on CBC licence renewal

Media | 09/05/2012 6:23 pm EDT

The CRTC has re-opened its consultation on CBC/Radio-Canada’s licence renewal applications in advance of a twice-rescheduled hearing now expected to begin on Nov. 19, the commission said Wednesday. In the updated notice of...

CRTC numbers point to careful examination of Bell-Astral deal, competitors say

Media | 09/05/2012 4:39 pm EDT

Annual broadcast industry data released by the CRTC “confirms” that BCE Inc.’s bid to acquire Astral Media Inc. would put the company’s English-language TV audience share...

Shaw agrees to carry Travel+Escape

Media | 09/04/2012 9:18 pm EDT

Blue Ant Media Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. have reached an agreement to offer the Travel+Escape specialty channel over Shaw’s cable and satellite-TV packages, Blue Ant said Tuesday. Blue Ant said in a release that the...

Bell, Quebecor scheduled for first day of Astral hearing

Media | 09/04/2012 9:13 pm EDT

BCE Inc., Quebecor Media Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. are scheduled to appear before CRTC commissioners on the first day of a five-day hearing to determine the fate of Bell’s $3.38-billion...

Canadians consuming more content on traditional and new media platforms, CRTC says

Media | 09/04/2012 8:51 pm EDT

Canadians are watching and listening to more content across both traditional and new media platforms, but still turn to TV and radio for the bulk of their media consumption, the CRTC said in an annual report released Tuesday. In the latest iteration of its Communications Monitoring Report, the CRTC said the average Canadian watched 28.5 hours of television and listened to 17.7 hours of radio each week in 2011, up from 28 hours of weekly TV viewing and 17.6 hours of radio listening in 2010. The...

Blais appoints chief consumer officer in first move as CRTC chair

Media | 08/31/2012 8:36 pm EDT

In his first decision as the new CRTC chair, Jean-Pierre Blais appointed a chief consumer officer to the commission and renamed the commission’s research bureau to reflect consumer priorities, a...

Pattison promotes Baggio to general manager

Media | 08/31/2012 6:49 pm EDT

The Jim Pattison Broadcast Group has promoted Leo Baggio to general manager of its Cranbrook/Fernie division, the independent broadcaster said Thursday. As the division’s general manager, Baggio will oversee Jim Pattison’s CHBZ-FM country music station in Cranbrook, B.C. and its co-branded CHDRFM & CJDR-FM “The Drive”...

CBC selling off analog transmitter assets

Media | 08/31/2012 6:46 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada is looking to sell off a series of “surplus transmission assets” following the public broadcaster’s move this summer to decommission 607 analog transmitters across the country. In a notice...

Rogers adds Grand Slam of Curling to sports portfolio

Media | 08/30/2012 9:11 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc.'s Sportsnet purchased the Grand Slam of Curling and will establish a new events division, the company said Thursday. Sportsnet said in a release that it will own and operate the Grand Slam of Curling, part of the World Curling Tour and featuring the best curling teams from Canada and around the world. Sportsnet said the...

Lawford to head PIAC

Media | 08/30/2012 9:01 pm EDT

John Lawford will become the Public Interest Advocacy Centre’s (PIAC) new executive director and general counsel as of Sept. 1, PIAC said Thursday. In a release, PIAC said Lawford will replace Michael Janigan, who has held the executive director and general counsel position since 1992. Janigan will replace Toronto counsel Michael Buonaguro as lead counsel representing PIAC’s clients before the Ontario Energy...

Astral rolls out outdoor augmented reality advertising

Media | 08/30/2012 8:57 pm EDT

Astral Media Inc.’s outdoor advertising division teamed up with Nova Scotia’s Ad-Dispatch to roll out the “first ever universal augmented reality application” for outdoor signage ads. Augmented reality applications allow smartphone and tablet users to view computer-generated sounds and 3D images and...

CBC consulting on programming for Canada Day 2017

Media | 08/30/2012 8:51 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada said it will hold a series of regional events across the country to hear from Canadians for programming ideas to celebrate Canada's 150th anniversary in 2017. In a release Thursday, CBC said its “2017...

Paradis nods to regulators for ruling on Bell-Astral deal

Media | 08/29/2012 8:22 pm EDT

Industry Minister Christian Paradis referred to the independence of the CRTC and the Competition Bureau when asked about the federal government’s role in approving BCE Inc.’s $3.38 billion bid to acquire Astral Media Inc. “As far as I understand, this is within the jurisdiction of CRTC and the Competition...

U.S. rights value for baseball content doubles

Media | 08/29/2012 8:11 pm EDT

ESPN Inc., operator of America’s largest sports television network, has agreed to pay a record-breaking $5.6 billion US for the television and digital rights to Major League Baseball content from 2014 through 2021, Reuters reported Tuesday. Under the terms of the deal, ESPN, a Walt Disney Co. subsidiary, will pay an average of $700 million US a year, “nearly double” the price the network pays for MLB content under its current carriage deal, Reuters reported, quoting unnamed sources. ESPN now pays $306 million US for MLB’s domestic television rights and $50 million US for digital, international and radio rights, Reuters said. The new deal will expand ESPN’s rights for cable television broadcasts of MLB content, and provide MLB content on  ESPN websites...

CRTC issues FM licence to B.C. nonprofit

Media | 08/29/2012 8:05 pm EDT

The CRTC granted the Smithers Community Radio Society a broadcast licence to operate a low-power community FM radio station in Smithers, B.C., the commission said Wednesday. In its decision, the commission said the nonprofit community group can air popular music and special interest music on the new channel in addition to talk radio programming...

CRTC opens consultations on radio licence renewals

Media | 08/29/2012 6:17 pm EDT

The CRTC issued five notices of consultation calling for comments on 123 radio licence renewal applications. In one notice, the commission said it is taking comments on applications to renew and amend eight radio station...

Consumer groups campaign against Bell-Astral deal

Media | 08/28/2012 9:20 pm EDT

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and advocacy group OpenMedia.ca formed a “broad-based coalition of groups” to oppose BCE Inc.’s $3.38 billion bid to acquire Astral Media Inc., the groups said Tuesday....

CRTC’s approval of MLSE deal shows VI regs are working, Bell says

Media | 08/28/2012 9:08 pm EDT

BCE Inc., the country's single largest broadcast and telecom company, cited the CRTC's approval of the sale of sports company MLSE as evidence that the commission's existing regulatory framework to prevent abuses of market power is working. In a reply comment filed Aug. 20 for the CRTC's consultation on...

Newfoundland politician protests CBC analog shutdown

Media | 08/27/2012 9:16 pm EDT

A provincial politician in Newfoundland and Labrador asked the CRTC to review whether CBC/Radio-Canada violated the Broadcasting Act by not warning the public earlier before shutting down its analog transmitters. Jim Bennett, a Liberal member of the provincial legislature, said in a letter to the commission that CBC’s decision to shut down its analog over-the-air transmitters this summer came a year earlier than the broadcaster had previously announced. Bennett said cable TV provider Eastlink, a Bragg Communications Inc. subsidiary, “is unable to provide local [CBC] programming until 2013. This means that a large number of viewers receive no local [CBC] news and instead are shown local news from another province.” Bennett asked the CRTC to review whether CBC violated...

Rogers to leverage the Score for advertising, Pelley says

Media | 08/27/2012 8:57 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. will leverage the Score Television Network to deliver more sports programming on multiple platforms and seeks to sell advertising geared to younger Canadian sports viewers,...

More consumers turning to VPN services to access geoblocked video content

Media | 08/24/2012 7:55 pm EDT

Retail Internet encryption services are growing in popularity as a means for average Internet users to bypass “geoblocks” that deny access to online video content outside their national...

Spotify to enter Canada: report

Media | 08/23/2012 9:12 pm EDT

Spotify Technologies SA is planning to bring its popular music-streaming service to Canada, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. According to the news report, Luxemberg-based Spotify said in an April 23 financial filing that it will move into Canada and possibly “countries in Asia and South America” to further its position as the...

Crowdfunding helping to ‘democratize’ content production: report

Media | 08/23/2012 9:03 pm EDT

Crowdfunding is becoming an attractive tool for content creators seeking project funding but there remain risks and regulatory limitations in Canada, a new report commissioned by the Canada Media Fund said. The report by consulting firm Nordicity Group Ltd., released Thursday, said crowdfunding—where project creators...

Fusca heads Fusion, steps down as head of Stornoway

Media | 08/23/2012 8:14 pm EDT

Stornoway Communications president and CEO Martha Fusca stepped down from day-to-day management of the company, Stornoway said in a release Wednesday. Fusca retired from her existing role at the company effective Aug. 10 to lead a new Stornoway venture called Fusion, the release said. “Stornoway is synonymous with Martha, and we are delighted...

CBC NN nabs CTV bureau chief

Media | 08/23/2012 7:31 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada specialty channel CBC News Network hired Sarah Galashan for the position of breaking news reporter with its Vancouver news steam, the public broadcaster said Thursday. CBC News said in a release that the...

Cogeco approved to change station to talk radio

Media | 08/23/2012 1:52 am EDT

The CRTC approved an application from Cogeco Diffusion Inc. to operate French-language station CJMF-FM Quebec, or FM93, in a new talk radio format. In the decision Wednesday, the commission said Cogeco applied to amend its broadcasting licence to devote more than 50 per cent of its weekly programming hours to spoken word. The CRTC said that in...

CBC appoints new director for multi-platform news

Media | 08/23/2012 1:38 am EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada appointed David Walmsley as its new director of news content, the broadcaster said Tuesday. Walmsley, an award-winning editor, producer and journalist, previously held the position of managing editor of news and sports at The Globe and Mail. In a release, CBC said that in his new position Walmsley will drive CBC’s foreign and...

Salmon Arm FM radio licence approved

Media | 08/21/2012 9:03 pm EDT

The CRTC approved an application Tuesday from the Voice of the Shuswap Broadcast Society (VSBS) to operate a low-power community FM station in Salmon Arm, B.C. In the decision, the commission said the English-language station can operate at 93.7 FM with an average effective radiated power of 15 watts. The CRTC said VSBS submitted to broadcast 98 hours of programming per week, with 62 of those hours featuring station-produced content. The group submitted that the remaining hours would come from campus and community stations across Canada. VSBS also proposed broadcasting two hours per week of...