TORONTO – In hockey-mad Canada, the continuing NHL lockout has turned the pro league toxic with fed-up hockey fans. But what about broadcasters and NHL sponsors now facing cancelled TV games through December 30 during stalled labour talks?
“We miss it every night that we don’t have a live game. We miss the audience that it brings to our network,” TSN president Stewart Johnston, told Cartt.ca. On weekends, the sports channel had offset much of the impact of the NHL lockout by counter-programming CFL games against Hockey Night in Canada’s older games on the CBC.
Stewart said the real crunch has…
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TORONTO – An improvement in how the CBC responds to Access to Information requests has bumped up its grade from an F to an A, and all it took was for senior leadership to get on board says Suzanne Legault, Information Commissioner of Canada. But at least one other major media company believes Legault is giving the CBC too much credit for just showing up.
On Thursday Legault released a special report to Parliament ranking the progress the CBC and Canada Post have made over the past two years on federal compliance with the access…
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MONTREAL – Bell has expanded its sports line-up on its Mobile TV service with the addition of both NBA TV Canada and NBA on TSN.
"Bell Mobile TV's addition of non-stop basketball action from NBA TV Canada and NBA on TSN means keeping up with your favourite sports, anytime, anywhere, just got better," said Wade Oosterman, President of Bell Mobility and Residential Services, and Bell's Chief Brand Officer.
Through NBA TV Canada, Bell Mobile TV customers will have access to basketball programming including games from around the league and original shows such as NBA Game Time, Open Court and The…
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CALGARY – Telus is adding Movie Central and HBO Canada content to its Optik on the go service, offering the latest seasons of HBO Canada and Movie Central programming to customers who subscribe to Movie Central. First launched in 2011, Optik on the go allows customers to view a selection of TV On Demand shows and movies on their mobile devices, tablets and laptops, at home and on the move.
With the addition of Movie Central and HBO Canada programming, Optik will now offer subscribers new seasons of popular HBO original series such as Game of…
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GATINEAU – Having heard nine days of complaints, plaudits and the general direction of questions being asked by commissioners CBC/Radio-Canada committed to air more programs of national interest (PNI), regional French-language programming and children’s TV shows during the reply stage of its CRTC licence renewal hearing which wrapped up on Friday.
Some of the new proposals in French language services include 100 hours of per year of original Canadian programming, a commitment to do its best to reach 10 hours of local production in the Windsor market beginning in September 2013, and a willingness to accept a condition of licence…
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OTTAWA – On its final day before the CRTC to consider its licence renewal, CBC/Radio-Canada once again called for a flexible regulatory framework to allow it to “evolve with the landscape.”
In concluding two weeks of public hearings the corporation used the opportunity to reiterate its commitment to the “essential and unique role that the public broadcaster plays in the Canadian broadcasting system,” the challenges it faces in fulfilling that role, and the need for regulatory flexibility and additional revenue opportunities to meet those challenges.
"We have a clear mandate from Parliament and a…
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GATINEAU – On the second to last day of the CBC license renewal hearing, we heard perhaps the most blunt opposition yet to the public broadcaster’s request to be able to sell ad time on Radio 2 and Espace Musique, from Moses Znaimer’s company.
MZ Media, a division of Znaimer’s Zoomer Media which owns Classical 96.3 and 103.1 FM and AM 740 (as well as Vision TV and some other television assets) told CRTC commissioners Thursday that letting another station in the Toronto market sell advertising will make an already tough market, worse. And, to allow an organization already funded…
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TORONTO – CTV really wants you to watch all of its ads this Sunday evening. It’s promising to deliver a “special on-air message directed exclusively to Canadians” this Sunday, Dec. 2 in a commercial break sometime between 8-9 p.m. ET. The message was “taped in secret earlier this month at CTV headquarters by one of the most recognizable people on television, a multiple Emmy Award-winning personality,” it said in a statement.
Leading up to the big reveal, viewers can share their guesses on Twitter about what this special message could be for a chance to win a special…
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OTTAWA – Esther Enkin, currently executive editor of CBC News, has been appointed as the corporation's new Ombudsman for English services, effective January 1, 2013. Enkin was unanimously selected for the job by an expert selection committee with internal and external representation. Enkin succeeds Kirk LaPointe, who will remain in the position in the interim.
"Accuracy, integrity, impartiality, fairness and balance in journalism are key to the credibility of any news organisation, and credibility is the essential currency of a public broadcaster," said Hubert T. Lacroix, president and CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada. "The Ombudsman is responsible…
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GATINEAU – Quebecor Media renewed its assault on CBC/Radio-Canada’s access to information practices during the corporation’s licence renewal hearing on Monday by requesting the CBC include access to information data in transparency and accountability reports to the Commission.
CRTC chair Jean-Pierre Blais, however, wondered if it’s wise to have a parallel system regarding access to information.
“We’re not asking for the CRTC to impose sanctions on CBC/Radio-Canada with respect to access to information like the Information Commissioner can. What we’re asking for is in the reports that are submitted to the CRTC, which allow the Commission to verify how…
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