GATINEAU – In its final reply to the CRTC last week on the proposed purchase of Astral Media by Bell Canada, Rogers Communications informed the Commission that, if Montreal’s CKGM-AM (now TSN690) came on the market, it would be prepared to purchase the station and keep it sports talk. This was first reported by Cartt.ca.
In their last written reply to the Commission on the proposed $3.2 billion deal, filed today, Bell and Astral, put plainly, didn’t buy Rogers’ assertion. Not one bit.
As many readers will already know, in order to keep TSN690, Bell has asked for an exemption to the CRTC’s rules on local radio station ownership so that it can keep the station, as well as the other three English language stations Astral owns in Montreal.
During the hearing, Bell and Astral executives noted that if the Commission did not allow the exemption, the company could either try to sell the station, or close it. The executives said they thought it unlikely a buyer would come forward, especially one willing to maintain it as a sports station, since Bell Media owns the broadcast rights to popular content like the Montreal Canadiens and the CFL.
Rogers, however, said it would be a willing bidder for the station – and that it would keep it all-sports, a-la its popular The Fan 590 in Toronto (however, The Fan has many live Blue Jays and Toronto Maple Leafs games in its schedule).
“We question the sincerity of this claim or its appropriateness at this stage in the process given the guidelines the Commission set for final intervener comments,” reads Bell/Astral’s final reply.
“There is no actual evidence on the record that they would or could make such an offer or that they could viably operate CKGM as a sports service. The claim was raised for the first time in the final paragraphs of their final comments after not having even been hinted at one time in the whole course of the proceeding even though the exception to the Common Ownership Policy for CKGM has been a consistent part of our application since it was filed.
“Even since this surprise announcement, Rogers has not attempted to contact Bell Media about this possibility,” added the reply.
– Greg O'Brien
