June 17, 2016 6 years ago

Banff Fest 2016: Quebecor as a case study of the French market’s challenges

BANFF - Quebecor Media put on one of the best scripted and packaged panels I've ever attended at Banff – and they made a very convincing case for the power... Continue Reading

June 16, 2016 6 years ago

Banff Fest 2016: Audience isn’t just everything, it’s the only thing

BANFF – Haven't we always been told that "content is King"?Well, Jay Bennett, senior vice-president at Shaftesbury/Smokebomb, doesn't buy it. "Audience is not only king, but queen and knight too",... Continue Reading

June 16, 2016 6 years ago

Banff Fest 2016 commentary: Rigid, old, political rhetoric may mean playing field remains uneven

BANFF – Okay, how do you know you've got a great tax accountant? Well, it's obvious – she's got a loophole named after her!Yup, the title "Digital Content Taxation: Levelling... Continue Reading

June 14, 2016 6 years ago

Banff Fest 2016: “Within two years there will be 20% fewer TV channels and 20% fewer producers” (CORRECTED)

BANFF – An 8 a.m. gathering of various hungover and/or jet lagged TV types in the thin mountain air of Banff had lots of potential.However, when better to kvetch about... Continue Reading

June 14, 2016 6 years ago

Banff Fest 2016: Why Canadian broadcasters ponder becoming studios; and why next year’s L.A. screenings may be tipping point

BANFF – Inside the picturesque Banff Springs Hotel much is being said about monetization strategies for content development and distribution.And in that context it's fun to recall that titles like... Continue Reading

June 13, 2016 6 years ago

Banff 2016: How the Heritage Minister missed the mark with her Banff Fest opener

BANFF – It is difficult to resist the evident charm and good intentions of the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage.However, here at the 2016 Banff World Media Festival,... Continue Reading

December 3, 2015 7 years ago

Bill Roberts interviews Michael MacMillan, the contrarian CEO of Blue Ant Media

LISTEN CLOSELY AS THE two discuss topics such as Michael's strategy for Blue Ant, international media opportunities for Canadian entrepreneurs (big), what makes leading Blue Ant different from helming Alliance... Continue Reading

November 19, 2015 7 years ago

Corus multiplatform campaign cooks up community for McCain

TORONTO - The best case studies, in my view, extract practical methods for dealing with wicked real world problems and at NextMedia, held last week in Toronto, Corus Entertainment showcased... Continue Reading

November 12, 2015 7 years ago

NextMEDIA 2015: Raptors, cakes, comedy, consistency, smart-bombing and influencers. Whew!

TORONTO - According to speakers like Sean Buckley, Founder & Executive Producer, Buck Productions, print, radio and TV should not be first to mind anymore.Today's brave new world is about... Continue Reading

November 10, 2015 7 years ago

NextMEDIA 2015: It’s a new, Uberized, culture world

TORONTO – It was another first, as in my first communications or cultural industries conference that was trending in the top five on Twitter – along with the audience getting... Continue Reading